The Ultimate Homemade Focaccia topped with rosemary and flaky sea salt. Crispy on the outside, light and fluffy on the inside, a.k.a. irresistibly delicious. Serve it alongside salads, soups, or pasta - or slice it in half to make a tasty focaccia sandwich. Or just... Eat it on its own; it's THAT good.
Add flour, instant dry yeast, and water to the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. If you're not used to working with high hydration dough, I recommend starting with the minimum amount of water recommended. Also, please keep in mind this dough is supposed to be wet and sticky - so don't freak out if it seems a little uncontrollable at first.
500 g tipo 0 flour, 1 g instant dry yeast, 360-400 g water
Turn the mixer on low and knead until it forms a very shaggy, sticky dough and is just combined; this step shouldn't take longer than a minute or so. Cover the bowl and let the dough autolyse/rest for 30 minutes.
After the 30 minute rest, add salt and olive oil to the dough. Start your mixer and knead for 10-15 minutes on low speed. Knead until the dough has come together and is beginning to let go of the sides of the bowl.
12 g sea salt, 20 g olive oil
Grease a large baking bowl with olive oil. Transfer your kneaded dough into the greased baking bowl and place it in a warm spot (ideally at 75°F/24°C) for 45 minutes.
After 45 minutes, you want to perform the first coil fold. See the pictures above for reference. Then, place the dough back to proof for another 45 minutes before performing a second coil fold.
Next, leave your dough to proof for another 1-2 hours before transferring it to the fridge for 24 hours (up to 48 hours). The total amount of folds: 2. Total proof time before placing the dough in the fridge: 2.5-3.5 hours.
Day 2: Final proof
Take the dough out of the fridge and dump it in an oiled, non-stick baking pan (9×13 inches/23x33cm).
Gently stretch the dough to flatten it out in the pan. It doesn't matter if the dough isn't covering the whole pan yet, as long as it's somewhat even throughout.
Cover the baking pan and proof at 75°F/24°C until approximately doubled in size. The final proof typically takes 1-2 hours, but look less on the clock and more on how the dough looks.
Assembly and Bake
Preheat your oven to 430°F/220°C 30-45 minutes before you plan to bake the focaccia.
When the focaccia has doubled in size: drizzle a generous amount of olive oil over the doughs' surface. Use your fingers to poke dents all over the dough. Sprinkle on fresh rosemary and flaky salt on top.
Bake for 18-25 minutes, until deep golden brown. Remove from the oven, drizzle with additional olive oil and let it cool for about 15 minutes before serving.