Focaccia

Focaccia is pan bread you barely handle. King Arthur Baking: an 80% hydration dough that would panic a baker trying to shape a boule is the point — it is an amoeba on the bench, then a marshmallow in the pan ¹. Dimples are made with oiled hands, not a taut skin. Calvel’s linked operations still apply: mix, ferment, bake as conditions ².

It is a cousin of Ciabatta (wet dough, open Crumb) and of Pan bread (the tin does the holding). It is not a underproofed pizza, and it is not a failed bâtard you flattened.

Why it matters #

Open crumb here is hydration plus time in a box. King Arthur: there is no legal definition of “high hydration,” but they treat about 80% water-on-flour as a practical threshold for a reasonably open focaccia ¹. A dry formula will not dimple into holes no matter how long you wait.

Olive oil is flavor, pan fry, and a non-stick film. It is not water. In baker’s percent, oil does not count as Hydration: 700 g water and 50 g oil on 1,000 g flour is still 70% hydration — the oil softens, it does not hydrate gluten ³.

Mechanism #

Baker's percentage makes the formula readable. Flour is 100%, including any semolina you add to the mix ¹. Their professional white-bread / ciabatta examples already show how hydration jumps off the page ⁴.

Gas needs a wet, extensible network and a proof you can see. King Arthur’s focaccia teaching: wait until the dough in the pan is visibly very bubbly and jiggles like a marshmallow ¹. A freeform loaf overproofed at that stage would spread and lose height. The pan curbs that spread, so you can push the Final proof farther than you would a bâtard — not a license to forget every other pan loaf.

Dimple when the dough is ready, with oil on the fingers so you do not glue the surface shut. The dimples should remain as shallow wells, not fill in completely before the oven.

What to observe #

Variables #

Lever	What it usually does
Hydration	Wetter → more open, more stick, more need for the pan
Oil in dough vs pan	Dough oil tenderizes; pan oil fries the bottom
Proof in the pan	Short → tight crumb; they want visible bubbles
Flour protein	Enough to hold gas; this is still a wet lean dough
Oven heat	Needs to set a wet slab before it dries to a cracker

Failure modes #

Symptom	Likely causes	Still possible?
Tight, bready crumb	Low hydration, short pan proof	Sandwich it; next batch, wetter formula and wait for bubbles
Greasy, dense	Too much oil, underproofed, cool oven	Drain on a rack; proof longer next time
Collapsed pale slab	Far overproofed, or a pan too large for the dough	Eat as a snack; scale dough to the pan
Stuck, torn bottom	Not enough oil or parchment	Soak the pan; do not scrape hot aluminum into the crumb

Do not treat focaccia as a dump for overfermented country dough unless you accept a sour, slack slab. That is a use of leftovers, not this craft.