Focaccia with rosemary and sea salt
Focaccia is very hard to get wrong. The secret is two things: enough olive oil, and rising long enough for the dough to turn light and airy. You make the typical dimples with your fingers just before baking. They hold the oil, salt and rosemary and turn crisp in the oven.
- 7 g dried yeast (1 sachet)
- 350 ml lukewarm water
- 1 tsp honey or sugar
1 Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water with the honey. Leave for 10 minutes until foamy. No foam? The yeast is dead, so start again.
- 500 g strong white flour
- 8 g salt
- 3 tbsp olive oil
2 Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl. Add the yeast water and olive oil. Knead for 8 to 10 minutes by hand (or 5 minutes with a mixer) into a smooth, slightly sticky dough.
3 Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place for 1 hour until doubled.
- extra olive oil
4 Grease the Dutch oven generously with olive oil. Tip the dough in and gently stretch it out until it fills the pan. Leave to rise for another 30 minutes.
5 Preheat the oven to 220 °C.
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- coarse sea salt (e.g. Maldon)
6 Pick the rosemary leaves off the sprigs. Drizzle the dough with olive oil and use your fingertips to make deep dimples all over. Press right down until you almost reach the bottom. Scatter with rosemary and coarse sea salt.
7 Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden and crisp. The bottom should sound hollow when you tap it.
8 Leave to cool for 10 minutes before cutting. Best lukewarm or at room temperature.
Ingredients
Step 1
- 7 g dried yeast (1 sachet)
- 350 ml lukewarm water
- 1 tsp honey or sugar
Step 2
- 500 g strong white flour
- 8 g salt
- 3 tbsp olive oil
Step 4
- extra olive oil
Step 6
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- coarse sea salt (e.g. Maldon)
Method
- 1 Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water with the honey. Leave for 10 minutes until foamy. No foam? The yeast is dead, so start again.
- 2 Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl. Add the yeast water and olive oil. Knead for 8 to 10 minutes by hand (or 5 minutes with a mixer) into a smooth, slightly sticky dough.
- 3 Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place for 1 hour until doubled.
- 4 Grease the Dutch oven generously with olive oil. Tip the dough in and gently stretch it out until it fills the pan. Leave to rise for another 30 minutes.
- 5 Preheat the oven to 220 °C.
- 6 Pick the rosemary leaves off the sprigs. Drizzle the dough with olive oil and use your fingertips to make deep dimples all over. Press right down until you almost reach the bottom. Scatter with rosemary and coarse sea salt.
- 7 Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden and crisp. The bottom should sound hollow when you tap it.
- 8 Leave to cool for 10 minutes before cutting. Best lukewarm or at room temperature.
