Ciabatta

Name: Ciabatta
Total time: 3 h 30 min
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 500g strong white bread flour; 7g sachet fast action dried yeast; 2 tsp salt; 400ml warm water; 2 tbsp olive oil

A wet, airy dough gives ciabatta its big holes and crisp crust. Easy work, but it needs time.

Time3 hr 30
LevelMedium
Costabout £0.90 a head
Oven230°C (210°C fan)

2 loaves

Ingredients

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500 gstrong white bread flour
7 gsachet fast action dried yeast
2 tspsalt
400 mlwarm water
2 tbspolive oil

Method

1
Mix the flour, yeast, salt, water and oil in a large bowl with a wet hand until combined and very sticky.
2
Cover and rest for 30 minutes, then stretch and fold the dough over itself a few times. Repeat twice more at 30 minute intervals.
30 min
3
Cover and leave for a final 1 hour until bubbly and doubled.
60 min
4
Heat the oven to 230°C (210°C fan) with a tray inside. Tip the dough onto a floured surface and cut in half.
5
Gently stretch each half into a slipper shape without knocking out the air, and lay on floured baking paper.
6
Slide onto the hot tray and bake for 25 minutes until golden and hollow sounding underneath. Cool on a rack.
25 min

Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.