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Focaccia
No-knead, dimpled & drenched in olive oil — the easy next bread, and the one built to dunk
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- 4 cups (500 g) bread flour (AP works)
- 1¾ cups (400 g) warm water — a very wet dough, that's right
- ½ tsp instant yeast (for the overnight rise — 1½ tsp for same-day)
- 2 tsp salt
- olive oil — 2 Tbsp in the dough, plus lots for the pan & top
- flaky salt · fresh rosemary · optional: garlic, cherry tomatoes, olives, thin-sliced onion
- Mix — no kneading. Stir the flour, yeast, and salt together, add the water and 2 Tbsp oil, and mix to a shaggy, very wet, sticky dough. That's it — don't knead.
- Stretch & fold — 3–4 sets. Over the first hour, with a wet hand, grab one side of the dough, stretch it up, and fold it over the middle; turn the bowl and repeat 4 times (that's one set). Do a set every 15–20 min, 3–4 sets total. This builds strength in a wet dough without kneading.
- Rise. Cover and let it rise until doubled and bubbly — about 1½–2 hr at room temp, or (best flavor) overnight in the fridge, 12–24 hr.
- Oil the pan & stretch in. Generously oil a 9×13 (2–3 Tbsp — it shallow-fries the bottom crisp). Tip the dough in and gently stretch it toward the corners; if it won't reach, rest 15–20 min and stretch again.
- Proof, then dimple. Cover and proof 45 min–1 hr until puffy and jiggly (if it came from the fridge, give it 1½–2 hr to wake up). Oil your fingers and press dimples all the way to the bottom, all over — deep dimples are the whole point.
- Top & bake. Drizzle more olive oil over (it should pool in the dimples), then flaky salt, rosemary, and any toppings. Bake at 450°F, 20–25 min until deep golden. A brush of oil out of the oven, then cool a bit and cut in squares.
Low salt — salt at the end and taste as you go; broth, cheese, and canned goods already bring salt.
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