Focaccia
- Total Time
- 30 minutes, plus resting and rising
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:One 9-by-13-inch pan
- 3¼cups/415 grams all-purpose flour
- 1tablespoon kosher salt
- ½teaspoon active dry yeast
- 1¾cups/420 milliliters warm water
- 4tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing
- 1½teaspoons coarse sea salt
- Whole or chopped fresh rosemary leaves, dried oregano, fennel seeds, herbes de Provence or other dried herbs, for garnish (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (1 servings)
1994 calories; 58 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 40 grams monounsaturated fat; 7 grams polyunsaturated fat; 317 grams carbohydrates; 12 grams dietary fiber; 1 gram sugars; 44 grams protein; 2072 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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- Step 1
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, kosher salt and yeast. Add the warm water to the flour mixture and stir until all the flour is incorporated and a sticky dough forms. (Expect a very wet dough; no kneading required.) Pour 2 tablespoons oil into a medium bowl. Transfer the dough to the bowl, turn to coat, and cover tightly with a lid or plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator to rest for at least 24 hours or for up to 2 days.
- Step 2
When you’re ready to bake, brush the inside of a 9-by-13-inch baking sheet with oil. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and transfer to the prepared pan. Using your hands, spread the dough out as much as possible, adding oil to the dough if needed to keep it from sticking. (Don’t worry if the dough doesn’t yet cover the full pan; it will once it relaxes and rises.) Place the dough in a warm place and let rise until about doubled in bulk. The rising time will vary considerably depending on the season. (In the summer, it may take only 20 minutes for the dough to warm up and rise; in the winter, it can take 1 hour or more.) When the dough is ready, it should be room temperature, spread out on the sheet and fluffy.
- Step 3
Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Using your palms, pat down the focaccia to an even thickness of about 1 inch, then, using your fingertips, dimple the entire dough. Drizzle it with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle the entire surface of the focaccia evenly with the sea salt and herbs, if using.
- Step 4
Bake, rotating once front to back, until the top is uniformly golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the focaccia on the baking sheet to a wire rack to cool, then slide out of the pan. Enjoy it hot. (Focaccia deteriorates in quality after the first day. If there is some left over, wrap it tightly in plastic and store at room temperature for another day. Day-old focaccia is delicious in soup.)
Tip
- To make a focaccia garden, prepare your vegetables as the dough rises in Step 2. Be creative in working with what you have: Peppers make great petals. Tomatoes do, too, but you might want to drain them before you put them on the dough. Chives and scallions make great stems. Experiment with olives and seeds, purple potatoes, and red onions. Whatever your fancy, cut your decorations a little thick, about ⅛ inch, and dip any fresh herbs in lemon water to keep the colors vibrant as they bake. Arrange the vegetables over the focaccia after you dimple the dough in Step 3. Press them into the dough gently, then drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, and proceed with the rest of the recipe. You may need to increase your baking time, depending on your amount of decorative toppings.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
mdurphy
Also check out the recipe David Tanis has for the Zuni Cafe focaccia. It's not as wet a dough, and the EVOO and rosemary incorporated into the dough make it especially delicious. And you can make it with about 1/3 whole wheat flour with no problems.
Thomas L
Am I missing something here? I followed this recipe to a T and it did not turn out well - the focaccia did not rise. I suspect a lack of proofing in Step 1 is to blame. I used a newly opened jar of active yeast that has not expired, and tested it after I saw how the recipe turned out - it was alive. I will make again and proof the yeast in step 1 but I don't currently recommend this recipe.
Alexa Weibel, Senior Staff Editor, NYT Cooking
The dough is indeed a very wet, sticky dough. We had three staff members cook it to great results. While it's difficult to troubleshoot at a distance, I wonder if letting the dough rest and rise longer might help in the future. If your kitchen environment is on the colder side, it can take the dough much longer to rise at lower room temps.
Bake and bike
I read through comments and saw that someone suggested resting on your counter for the majority and then resting in the fridge for the last couple hours. This made it work perfectly. I would also suggest that you go light on the salt in the dough and that you mix the salt in fully before you add the yeast so that you don't kill the yeast. With these slight alterations the recipe works out great.
Egleston Cookery
I've been making this once a week for awhile now, as written. It's important to understand and read your dough throughout the process. 24 hr. in the fridge, transferred to baking sheet to rise (in my New England/Boston winter it's about 1.5 hr proof - dough needs to be at room temp. before baking. The tell tale sign of a good rise are the bubbles you'll see on the surface. Highly recommend - Happy baking everyone!!
Pooja
I used this recipe to make focaccia for the first time and it is a major hit! I've sent it off to friends and they've compared it to high-end restaurant quality focaccia. Here are my adjustments (my house temp is set to 69F, fridge set to medium) - after mixing, I let the dough rest covered for thirty minutes. I then refrigerate for 48 hours. When ready to bake, I let it sit out for another thirty minutes. I don't add the extra oil in step 3, the first 2 tbspns are plenty. So fluffy. So yummy.
Mindy
I use 50% whole wheat.
Ferguson
Thank you for the notes. Several people have mentioned that it is too salty. I suspect that it is the NYTimes/Kosher salt problem again. The NYTimes recipes calling for kosher salt use Diamond crystal kosher salt which because of its structure measures differently from Morton's which is what I can find where I live. I am going to gamble and use 1/2 to 2/3rds of the salt.
Alexandra
If you use the flour weight it will be easy to adjust. I would start with half the weight for whole wheat or white whole wheat flour and use all-purpose flour for the rest. You may need a little more water to get the loose sticky dough you are looking for. I have made this with half all-purpose and the rest spelt flour and it was great.
Ana
I made this with 100% whole wheat flour (I used King Arthur’s organic whole wheat) and changed the amount of active dry yeast to 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon. I did not add the extra olive oil before baking because the dough was quite well coated with oil already. Otherwise, I followed the recipe and it was delicious! I served it with Spanish tortilla (the egg and potato kind). I briefly reheated the leftover focaccia in a low oven the next day and it was still great.
Debra K
As other have written (and I unfortunately failed to read), this recipe when followed precisely is wrong. The dough is never really stiff enough to be called a dough, and pours into the pan after resting for 48 hours in the refrigerator. I would suggest looking elsewhere for a recipe.
Bake and bike
I have made this recipe a lot, and I really like it. It does need a small amount of sugar so that the yeast will be active, and you need to go light on the salt in the dough. Also make sure to rest it on the counter for the majority of your resting time and just have it in the fridge for the last few hours.
Katie
A lot of people seemed to struggle getting their bread to rise. What worked for me was proofing in the middle rack of the oven (with the oven turned off) and a cake tin filled with boiling water on the bottom rack for about 45 minutes
Irene
Other foccacia recipes I’ve seen call for 2-1/2 tsp of yeast for about 3 cups of flour, but this only calls for 1/2 tsp. Anyone know why? I really should have asked about this before I made the dough! I hope my first lockdown bread turns out o.k.
Chris H
As others have noted. A very wet dough. I think I may proof it a little next time before putting in the fridge. I gave it about 3 hours to rise after 24 hours in the fridge and it did not rise. Bubbles were present, so it was fermenting. Unfortunately it wouldn't come out of the pan easily so we had to enjoy it torn. The kids liked it, but I'll have to retry the recipe.
MaryS
Nope. Experienced baker here, and I followed the directions except for cutting the recipe in half for an 8” square pan. Edible, but barely.
Anne R.
Very easy and turned out delicious. Had no problem with the rise or sticking to the pan. I did use a full packet of yeast, proofed in the warm water with a bit of honey per others.. I took it out of the refrigerator a few hours before baking, then moved to the sheet pan and proofed it in my oven for an hour. Also used garlic infused olive oil. Then baked. A hit at our dinner party!
Katherine
I mixed the olive oil into the dough, added a teaspoon of sugar to the yeast, and did the rising all at once in a warm place for 6 hours. The dough was still too wet to dimple, but it came out wonderfully. Sprinkled with Egyptian Dukkah before baking.
Gleaner
Note the pan size: it is a quarter sheet pan and not a half sheet (cookie sheet size). This may explain why the result is a flat focaccia.
Ed With 3 Ten Inch Tyrants
I didn't find this recipe very tasty. Try Claire Safitz's which is incredibly tasty and versatile.
Grant B
Like @Thomas L I followed the recipe very closely and the end result was a bread that was as flat as a pancake. I knew something was up when I tried to dimple the dough before putting it in the oven and it was like trying to dimple water. I did not even add the final 2 tablespoons of oil as the dough was so wet!
Pat Johanson
Does this need high altitude adjustments? Just over 5k here.
Kait
I use 400g of unbleached flour and bloom the yeast in the warm water with 1tsp of honey and it turns out perfectly every time
Dalia
Needs more tweaking. I’ve made it twice. The first time, like others, it didn’t rise even though the same yeast I used worked for a brioche loaf I had made the day prior. I increased the yeast to 2 tsp the second time and added a pinch of sugar- much better! My only downside with this recipe is that both times the bottom gets nice and crispy, but it sticks to my pan! I’m going to give it a 3rd go and see if parchment paper will help prevent this.
Nicoleta
Use less salt if you’re not using kosher salt.
Monica
This comes out more like a chewy, pizza crust texture than a tall, pocket filled bread. Definitely proof the yeast separately and add some sugar. I'm not much of a breadmaker, but my guess is more yeast (based on other recipes) would help... mine did not double when rising. Other good suggestions from the comments: use butter to prevent sticking to the pan, halve the salt. Toppings add a lot here.
Andrew
Make sure if you are bulk fermenting overnight you take it out around 4 hours prior to baking. This allows plenty of time for the dough to warm up to the surroundings and then start to ferment again. If it is too cold the outside will crisp well before the inside is cooked and the bread won't rise.
Jamie
Proofing the yeast in 107F water
Barrett
I found this recipe to be unusual, but I did enjoy the flavor and texture of the final product. My dough did not rise (ever), and when I went to make indentations with my fingers after 1.5 hours of rising in a warm spot, it just stuck to my fingers—no indentations were made whatsoever (it looked more like pancake batter). I baked it for 25 minutes. There are some air bubbles after baking, but this isn’t what I’m used to when it comes to focaccia. It was also impossibly stuck to the pan.
Laura
The recipe is perfect. Two tips. First, the water must be "baby bath" warm. It means you should be able to put your finger in it without feeling discomfort. Second, let the dough rest for half an hour before putting it in the fridge
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