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I get so weak 🥴 when it’s freshly baked. The aroma stimulates my appetite! I have no problem controlling myself from store-bought but can’t resist when it comes straight out from the oven! Freshly made bread is addictive… simple as that!
Thanks goodness, I’m not alone with this delicious addiction! Many of my followers share the same weakness which encourages me to share more tasty recipes! I think of Artisan, Brioche, Onion Buns, French Baguettes 🥖, Challah, and many others.
Another one that I enjoy baking is Ciabatta Bread! This Italian loaf has a nice crunchy crust along with a soft, airy and chewy crumb. Its mild flavor with a slight tangy taste in the background, makes it the perfect pairing for soups 🥣 or any sauce you want to dunk it in. It also makes great sandwiches.
During the pandemic 😷, I tried many recipes I’ve never made before and this featured recipe is one of them. It’s a long process… actually it takes 2 days! It starts by making a pre-fermented dough called Biga. Then on day 2, the dough is completed and rest for 24 hours. The following day, it’s finally baked.
Biga is an Italian pre-fermented dough that is incorporated in the “main” dough. Besides Ciabatta Bread, it’s often used to make pizza 🍕 dough, giving that airy texture. It also adds complex flavors and aromas that are not found when dough is made with just yeast. One more plus about biga is it helps to preserve the baked goods longer…
After the biga is done, it rests at room temperature for 24 hours…
During the colder months ⛄ of the year, my kitchen is cold so to let the dough rise, or in this case, let the biga ferment, I place it in my oven. What I do is to turn the heat to 350ºF just for a couple minutes, then turn it off, make my biga and then transfer the bowl to this cozy spot.
On day 2, the dough is made, using the fermented biga. Like most bread recipes, the yeast has to be proofed for 10 minutes. I like adding a small amount of honey 🍯 because yeast loves sweet! The other alternative is to use powdered sugar.
While the yeast mixture is proofing, the dry ingredients are mixed together. Can seasoning be added to it? Absolutely! In the video 🎥, I use my homemade Italian seasoning but rosemary, oregano, or chives are other delicious options!
When proofing time is up, the next step is to add the biga and dry ingredients to the bowl of a stand mixer although that can be done by hand 🖐. Using a dough hook attachment, it’s processed until shaggy and somewhat lumpy dough forms. It will be insanely sticky and it’s normal. The bowl is covered and the dough proofs for 30 minutes.
Thirty minutes later, we’re ready to do “stretch-and-fold” …
With wet hands and starting at the top of our bowl at 12 o’clock, we slide our fingers under the dough then stretch it and fold it down over to the opposite side of the bowl which is 6 o’clock 🕕. The bowl is turned 90º which is a quarter turn and repeat again; slide our fingers under the dough then stretch it and fold it over the opposite side.
We’ll repeat until we did TWO complete rotations with the bowl which is 8 stretch-and-fold motions. When the first stretch-and-fold set is done, the bowl is covered and back to its cozy spot, resting for 30 minutes ⏳.
After the first set, this 8 stretch-and-folds has to be performed 3️⃣ more times, allowing the dough to relax 30 minutes between each, always covering during the resting time. This “stretch-and-fold” step helps the dough to develop the gluten and create some elasticity.
Finally, when all the 4 “8 stretch-and-fold” sets are done, the dough is pulled under to form a ball and placed in a large clean bowl, lightly oiled. It’s covered and transferred to the refrigerator for 8 to 24 hours ⏰.
The following day, we’re ready to bake. After brining the dough back to room temperature, it’s dropped onto a well-floured work surface. With floured hands, it’s gently stretched to a 7×12-inch rectangle before being cut 🔪 in half, lengthwise, using a floured bench scraper.
Now, it’s either kept as two loaves 🍞 or can be cut into smaller pieces to make buns… your choice! The loaves/buns are placed on a large cutting board lined with a floured parchment paper. The tops are floured before being covered to proof for 2 hours.
An hour later, one oven rack is position at the very bottom of the oven while the other rack is in the center. A large baking sheet is placed on the middle rack, upside-down, and then the heat is turned to 450ºF – the oven has to be smoking hot 🔥! If you have either a flat cookie sheet or a baking stone, use that instead of the upside-down baking sheet.
Two hours later and we’re ready to bake 👩🍳👨🍳!
Carefully but quickly, the loaves/buns sitting on the parchment paper is slid onto the upside-down baking sheet. Using a large roasting pan, about 4 cups of ice cubes 🧊 are dropped in it before placing the pan on the bottom rack.
The bread is baked for 20 to 22 minutes or until the tops are light golden brown and the internal temperature reaches 200ºF. They’re transferred onto a wire rack to cool for at least 45 minutes before slicing and serving.
Now do what I say not what I did. I don’t know what in the world I was thinking 🙄 but I sliced them way too soon! Although the texture was still okay and not gummy (thank goodness), I lost the light, airy and chewy results I was looking for. We still enjoyed the loaf and buns but it was not the classic outcome.
This Ciabatta Bread is simply amazing! It pairs perfectly with soups, stews, pastas, or use it to make delicious sandwiches 🥪! The leftovers can be stored, covered, on the counter for up to 5 days or in the fridge for a full week…
Bon Appétit! 🍽
Check out these other delicious bread recipes… 😀
– Pull-Apart Garlic Bread
– Indian Naan Bread
– Dinner Rolls
– Easy Zucchini Bread
– Cheesy Breadsticks
– Mediterranean Olive Bread
– Man’oushe – Lebanese Flatbread
– Mexican Cornbread
– Pumpkin Chai Bread
and for even more bread recipes 🍞🥨, click on this link… Recipe Category • Bread & More
For ingredient amounts, directions, and much more, visit ➡ https://clubfoody.com/ciabatta-bread/
Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel 📽 by clicking on this link… Club Foody YouTube
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