Easy Peasy Ciabatta
Make two tasty ciabatta loaves in about 4 hours
Servings 2 loaves
Ingredients
- 300 g all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp table salt
- 1 tsp instant yeast
- 240 g slightly warm water
Instructions
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl
- Pour the water into a larger bowl
- Stir in about two-thirds of the dry ingredients to make a slurry
- Incorporate the rest of the dry ingredients, being sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl
- Cover and let rest at room temperature (about 72F or 22C) for 1 hour
- Now begins a series of three stretch and folds with a 30 min rest in between. Wet your hands and fold each side of the dough into the middle. The technique here isn't critical, as long as the dough is being stretched a bit. The entire process should take well less than a minute.
- Cover and let the dough rest for 30 minutes
- Perform the second set of stretch and folds
- Cover and let the dough rest for 30 minutes
- Perform the final set of stretch and folds
- Cover and let the dough rest for 30 minutes
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Sprinkle the dough liberally with flour, and use a bench knife to flip the dough over (floured side down).
- Gently stretch the dough into a rough rectangle; do this by pulling the dough from beneath (use the bench knife if needed)
- Gently roll the rectangle into a log, sealing the edge by pressing down gently
- Cut the log in half, and gently transfer each piece to a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Pull the dough ever so slightly to make an oblong shape when you transfer the dough.
- Preheat the oven to 420F / 215C, placing a baking tray or other pan with water below to create steam
- Place the bread into the oven, spraying them with a bit of water if possible
- Bake the bread to a golden brown, checking every five minutes or so after 20 minutes of baking have passed
- Remove the baked loaves to a cooling rack
- Serve or use after at least 20 minutes of cooling
Notes
1. Filling a tray with water is not necessary if you using a Dutch oven to bake the loaves. To do this, you can bake the loaves one at a time (or cut the recipe in half). Preheat Dutch oven and then carefully place the loaf with the parchment paper into the Dutch oven and the cover it with the lid. Be very careful not to burn yourself. Remove the lid of the Dutch oven after about 20 min.
2. You can make ciabatta rolls by cutting the dough into 4 or 5 rough pieces. Be care not to over handle the dough, however.