Just as Naples is the capital of Italy’s thick-rimmed wood fired pizza pies, Bari and its surrounding Pugliese towns are known for a beloved regional flatbread, focaccia. An olive oil-rich dough is baked in iron pans at places like Panificio Fiore on Strada della Città in Bari Vecchia, then sold by the slice. The pan is drenched in oil before the soft dough is stretched into place, so when it all goes into the oven, the dough practically fries in the pan as it bakes, rendering the bottom and sides crispy and pleasantly oily.
To get the unique texture of Focaccia Pugliese, you need to bake with intense heat from underneath. Since the conditions of Puglia’s bakeries are difficult to replicate in a home oven, I suggest cooking the dough quickly on a stovetop, then transferring it to the oven. You will get the best results by using a frying pan or skillet with only metal and no plastic or wood parts for baking the focacce. If you have enough all-metal 10 to 12-inch diameter pans for all 3 focacce, you can prepare them simultaneously. Otherwise, set the dough aside in the refrigerator to prevent it from over-fermenting at room temperature while you work one piece of dough at a time.
This recipe features cherry tomatoes and olives, but you can use sliced onions, sliced potatoes, or raw tomato sauce seasoned with salt and herbs instead. If you don’t have a mixer, you can mix longer by hand to the recommended consistency.
Makes 3 (10 to 12-inch) focacce
- 350 grams filtered water
- 300 grams farina di semola rimacinata (freshly milled if you can get it–I like Tumminia flour from Sicily, available from Gustiamo; Caputo brand is another option but budget a longer rising time)
- 200 grams bread flour
- 100 grams boiled, riced, and cooled potato
- 2 grams active dry yeast
- 12 grams sea salt
- 5 grams sugar
- 155 grams extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for oiling bowls
- 500 grams (about 1 pound) cherry tomatoes
- 3 teaspoons dried oregano
- About 30 black olives, pitted
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the water, farina di semola rimacinata, bread flour, potato, yeast, salt, sugar, and 50 grams of olive oil. Mix on low for 2 minutes, then increase the speed to medium and mix until smooth and slightly tacky, 18 to 20 minutes.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, allowing it to gently release from the bowl, and cut it into 3 equal pieces weighing about 330 grams each with a dough scraper or knife. Shape each piece into a ball and place each in a bowl generously greased with olive oil. Brush lightly with olive oil and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside to rise at room temperature until the dough has nearly doubled in size (2 to 6 hours, depending on your kitchen temperature and the freshness of the flour–see ingredients list).
Pour 25 grams of olive oil in a cast iron pan and make sure it covers the bottom and an inch up on the sides, turn one of the doughs into the pan. Using greased fingers, carefully push and stretch the dough into the shape of the pan, taking care not to tear it.
Gently press ⅓ of the halved cherry tomatoes, cut side down, and about 10 olives into the dough, distributing evenly. Cover the pan with a cloth and set aside to proof for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425ºF and place a baking stone or steel set on the middle rack in the oven to preheat as well.
Remove the cover and sprinkle dried oregano over the dough. Season with salt. Drizzle 10 grams of olive oil over each pan. Using greased fingertips, press into the dough around the tomatoes and olives to form dimpled impressions.
Place the pan on a stove top and heat over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes, or until the oil starts to bubble and crackle. This will create a crispy and oily crust that cannot be achieved in most home ovens. Check the underside of the dough, gently lifting with a heat-proof spatula. It should be a very dark golden color. If it has not browned, cook 30 seconds to 1 minute more.
Transfer the pan onto the pre-heated baking stone or steel. Bake until the Focaccia has a dark golden crispy crust, about 17 minutes; focacce brown irregularly so having darker spots mixed with lighter parts is normal.
Transfer the Focaccia to a wire rack and allow to cool for 5 minutes before slicing.
Repeat with the remaining two dough balls.
Recipe from Food of the Italian South.
Having just returned from Puglia, I can’t wait to try this. Unfortunately most of the best eateries were closed in mid-August. I guess I’ll just have to go back 🙂
I love your tasting rome cookbook and I can’t wait to try this recipe! However, we don’t have a stand mixer… is there a way to make this focaccia without one ?
Thanks in advance!
I love your cookbook Tasting Rome and I can’t wait to try your new South Italy Cookbook!
I’m wondering if there’s a way to make this recipe without a stand mixer?
Thanks!
yes! the cookbook shares tips on how to do it if you don’t have a stand mixer, but basically just mix by hand longer!
Help! I’ve made this recipe twice now and followed the directions to a T. Both times my dough didn’t rise, what could be happening?!??
Hi Felicia, the issue could be inactive yeast. it should grow by 1.5 to 2 times original size but most likely the yeast is old or has gotten wet and died and therefore is no longer active. could that be it? If you’re using fresh yeast, then try leaving to rise longer. let me know!
also, is the semola super fine? it should be very fine.
is the potato a must? I dont have any at home but really want to do this tonight!
also – can I use chiffon flour instead of durum? also dont have it..
Love your blog! thanks:)
Hi! the potato you can probably get away with skipping but tbh never tested. you absolutely cannot swap out durum. sorry about that but the hydration, mixing, final outcome, are all based on using hard wheat flour
Hi Katie! Wondering if I can use semolina in place of the semola rimacinata?
they don’t behave in quite the same way. they hydrate differently but you can try it. recipe is developed with farina di semola rimacinata and not tested with semolina so can’t say for sure what result will be. lemme know how it turns out!
Thanks Katie. I used Bob’s Red Mill semolina flour and it turned out really well. Thank you for sharing a delicious recipe. I’ll definitely try it again with the semola rimacinata when I can get it.
do you have to proof the yeast prior to adding it to the mix, or is it just added dry?
you add it dry!
Hi – I have the same problem as one of the entries above. I’ve tried this twice now and it didn’t rise properly. My yeast is new and works fine for other baking. I’m using Active Dry yeast, not instant or quick rise – is that right? Also, the quantity of yeast to flour seems very low. Is it really only.2 grams? Thx
Hi Deborah! Yes active dry yeast is correct and 2 grams should do the trick but I have found that instant dry yeast of the same brand works really differently depending on where I’m using it (perhaps more connected to how it was stored in transit and at the supermarket than to the actual location of use). If you extend the fermentation time do you get any activity. I recently baked the cover focaccia and it took 6 hours to rise in a cool kitchen instead of the 2 or 3 the recipe calls for.
Hey Deborah, circling back here because I think I know what the issue may be. I made several batches of dough using Caputo brand farina di semola rimacinata and they took between 4 and 6 hours to rise. This flour is widely available in North America but it doesn’t produce great results. When I bake with artisan flour, the dough is so much more active and rises in 2 to 2.5 hours. Conventional flour, like Caputo is, for lack of a better word, dead. If you are able to get freshly milled or at least something from a smaller mill (the US and Canada have a growing number of amazing options) the dough should rise more reliably. Let me know how it goes!