My best focaccia
Ingredients:
Pre-ferment*:
125g high protein bread flour
125g tepid water
2g dried instant yeast
Dough:
All the pre-ferment
400g high protein bread flour
350ml tepid water
2g dried instant yeast
12g fine sea salt
Toppings:
Extra virgin olive oil
Flaky sea salt
Bake in a deep 34cm x 24cm baking tray
Method:
In a small mixing bowl, combine the pre-ferment ingredients and stir with a spoon until there are no more dry lumps. Cover with clingfilm or a damp tea towel and leave at room temperature for 4-5 hours. The surface of the dough should have lots of small bubbles.
For the main dough, combine the preferment with the remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix with your hands until there are no more bits of dry flour but it is still a shaggy mess. Cover it with a damp tea towel or cling film and set a timer for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, wet your hands lightly with water. Imagine the bowl like the face of a clock. Dive your hands into 12 o’clock and pull the base of that edge of the dough up and into the center. Repeat at 3 o’clock, then 6 o’clock and then 9 o’clock. Set another 30 minute timer and repeat. Do this another 2 times for a total of 4 stretches and folds.
After the stretches and folds are complete, tip the dough into an oiled sealable glass or plastic container with a tight fitting lid (oil the inside of the lid as well). A rectangular shape is preferable as this makes it similar shape to the pan you will bake it in so when you tip it into the baking dish you will need to handle it less and therefore keep the bubbles inside. The sealable container should be about double the volume of the dough to give it room to grow overnight.
Place it into the refrigerator and chill the dough for at least 8 hours but up to 14.
The following day, line your baking tray with baking paper (unless its nonstick) and brush liberally with olive oil. Tip your dough into the dish and pull on the edges, gently, so they touch the edges of the baking dish. It might pull back a bit but as it relaxes and warms up it will eventually fill the baking tray. Cover the tray with a damp tea towel and allow to sit at room temperature for 2-3 hours. At this point you should see some larger bubbles on the surface and if you shake the pan the dough should be very jiggly.
Preheat your oven to 250C conventional (230C fan-forced).
Drizzle about 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil all over the dough and use your finger tips to make large dimples in the dough. Push strongly enough that you touch the bottom of the pan but not so strong that you tear through the dough. Sprinkle the top with flaky sea salt and then bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes until the top is deeply golden and crusty.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 5 minutes before removing from the tray and placing onto a cooling rack. If you can stand it, its best to allow the dough to come to room temperature before cutting into it so it retains its moisture.
*A pre-ferment is a commonly used technique called a “poolish” in French or a “biga” in Italian where a small bit of dough gets mixed and is allowed to ferment before the bulk of the dough is later mixed. It helps to develop bigger flavour in less time.
