Ciabatta recipe

This delicious ciabatta recipe makes a classic Italian ciabatta bread, flavoured with olive oil and salt, it's truly divine still warm from the oven.

With ciabatta, the open, hole-filled texture is achieved by making a softer and wetter dough than normal and using a slightly different method of kneading which incorporates plenty of air bubbles. Hot tip: instead of turning the dough out onto a floured surface, use floured hands to knead or ‘beat’ the sticky dough in the bowl, incorporating as much air as you can.

Serve warm with lashings of olive oil and balsamic as a delicious starter or side. Love baking your own bread? We've got loads more delicious bread recipes right here!

Please note, the nutritional information provided for this recipe is calculated as a whole recipe and not per portion, jar, or person.

Ingredients

• 7g sachet fast-action or easy-blend dried yeast
• 300g strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting
• 1tsp sugar
• 1tsp salt
• 1tbsp olive oil
• 225ml hand hot water

Method

1. Mix together the yeast, flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre and pour in the oil and water. Mix to a very soft and wet dough – the mixture should be almost like a thick batter.
2. Using floured hands ‘beat’ the dough in the bowl for at least 5 mins. Use a pulling and stretching action, slapping the dough back down into the bowl – this will help to create pockets of air. If the dough is too sticky add a little more flour.
3. Cover the bowl with oiled cling film and leave in a warm place for 1-1½hrs until the dough has doubled in size.
4. Transfer the dough to a floured surface and shape into an oblong loaf without re-kneading. Place on a floured baking sheet and cover and leave to rise for 30 mins. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6.
5. Uncover the dough and bake for 25-30 mins until crisp and pale golden.

Ciabatta bread is an Italian loaf traditionally made from wheat flour, water, salt, yeast and olive oil. It was first introduced in 1982 and had a rivalry with the famous French baguette. Ciabatta is often considered a different type of bread as it is made with no fat. It has a very chewy texture without the fat which makes it the perfect loaf for dipping into oils, sauces and mopping up leftovers.

Ciabatta dough can be very temperamental; if you add too much water it can become dense, if you add too much flour is can become dense. Its all about balance with this delicious bread so make sure you follow the recipe exactly.

Like all breads you can certainly overwork ciabatta dough. If you over knead the dough it can become tough and hard to work with. Leave it to rise for a little longer before shaping it - letting it rest will make sure the gluten hasn’t been overworked as well as the yeast. Over kneaded dough can lead to rock hard crust and dense bread.