ciabatta

Intial mix, it can really be this wet.

Ciabatta is one of those breads that is really satisfying for me to make at home.  It's kind of magical--turning what starts out looking like kindergarten paper mâché paste into a lovely artisan loaf of bread.  It's also one of those breads you can never really get anywhere else, at least in my experience.  I'm not sure if my version is truly authentic, but it's WAY better than the facsimiles served at chain restaurants, and even some of nicer places I've seen it offered.

After a first "turn" in the bowl, it's starting to have some structure

I mainly use the formula from Artisan Bread Bakers Across America, a pretty coffee-table type book that is a great read, but also has some very reliable recipes.  I make two changes:  I use sourdough starter for my initial biga stage, and I use a lot more wheat flour than called for.  I also tend to make my biga a bit wetter than their version, and depending on my sourdough activity level I sometimes don't let it ferment for a full day.

The key to ciabatta is starting with a ridiculously wet dough--more of a batter--and then doing several turns until it starts to gain structure.  While this is somewhat of an advanced technique, it's not really that different from the no-knead recipes out there, it just takes a minimal effort during the long rising process.

I generally do my first few turns right in the bowl, dusting it with flour and using a bowl scraper to flip the mixture up and over itself a few times.  I do this "turn" three times every 30 minutes.  The fourth/last turn involves dumping the dough out onto a heavily floured counter.  It's still very close to being a liquid at this point:

Now, I use a metal bench knife and slide it under the (floured) edges, and fold the dough over itself a couple of times:

after the fold on the bench

It has a last rise, untouched, for another 45 minutes to an hour.  Then the dough is divided and GENTLY folded into rustic loaves for a final proof.  This is a simple three-fold like a letter, and I put the seam-side down on a cloth.  Dust this cloth with a LOT of flour, it can be sticky at this stage still, and will also give you the classic ciabatta look after baking.


These rise for about 45 minutes or so, in the meantime preheat your oven (with a baking stone) to 450 degrees.  When ready to bake, carefully lift or tip them out of their cloche and give them a stretch as you put them on the peel.  You can also add some finger pokes to make the overall thickness of the loaf somewhat even.  This is an excellent occasion to use parchment paper--it makes sliding the sticky loaves into the oven painless.  (Otherwise, you'll have to use a lot of flour to prevent sticking).  For whatever reason, I have found that if you are gentle with the initial shaping,  but rougher with this final handling, you end up with the lovely rustic open holes you are looking for.

Let these bake until well browned, let them go a little longer than you think as the inside can be pretty wet if you don't.  For these smaller loaves, 25-30 minutes is about right.


I like the smaller loaves as they are great sliced horizontally for a sandwich.  They also freeze quite well, and will thaw in a few minutes while you're making dinner, making a perfect accompaniment for a salad or soup.