No Knead Tomato Focaccia

Slices of tomato focaccia on a wooden cutting board showing the crumb cross section.

5 from 12 votes

A great recipe for No Knead Tomato Focaccia that is sure to please the pickiest of eaters. This recipe does take some time to prepare (mostly hands-off) but the final baked focaccia will be worth the wait. The base recipe needs just 5 ingredients that you probably have in your pantry right now!

Prep Time15

Cook Time25

Rise time18

Total Time18 40

Course: Appetizer, Breakfast, Brunch, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: Servings

Author: Luay Ghafari

Cost: $10

Equipment

1 9x13 Baking pan or sheet

Ingredients

For the Dough

4 cups All-purpose flour - 520 grams - Bread flour can also be used
2 tsp Kosher salt - 10 grams
2 tsp Instant yeast - 7 grams
2 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil - 28 grams
2 cups Lukewarm water - 473 grams

For Baking and Garnish

¼ cup Extra virgin olive oil - for greasing the tray and for oiling the dough
1 cup Cherry tomatoes - Sliced in half
2-4 tbsp Fresh rosemary - Or thyme, oregano, marjoram
½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano - Grated
Flaky salt

Instructions

Mix. To a large bowl, add the flour, salt, yeast, olive oil and room temperature water. Mix with a wooden spoon until all the flour is hydrated. The mix should be shaggy but not sloppy.
Rise. Drizzle some olive oil over the top of the dough, cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a tight-fitting cover and refrigerate overnight at least 18 hours.
Deflate and shape. At least 2 hours before you want to bake the focaccia, take the bowl out of the fridge and uncover it. Using your hands or a dough scraper deflate the dough slightly and transfer the dough to a generously oiled baking tray (9x13) or sheet pan. Shape it loosely by grabbing each end and folding it over like you would a letter. Flip the dough over so the seams are on the bottom. Cover the tray with a towel and set aside for 1.5-2 hours.
Dimple. Preheat your oven to 425F/220C. The dough should now have spread covering the surface of the baking tray. If not, you can help it stretch to the edges by carefully easing it to the corners. Drizzle more olive oil over the dough and start dimpling with your fingers, covering the entire surface. This creates valleys and mountains in the dough and you should also see air bubbles forming.
Dress. Nestle your cherry tomatoes into the dimples, press in your rosemary and sprinkle your cheese. You can save some of the cheese to sprinkle on after the baking.
Bake. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown. Every oven is different, so your focaccia may need more time. Sprinkle some flaky salt when the focaccia comes out of the oven. Let the focaccia cool for 30 minutes before cutting into it.

Notes

See the blog post above for a detailed step-by-step with photos.

Other Additions: Kalamata olives, confit garlic cloves, sliced onions, green onions, flaky sea salt.

Some important tips:

Don’t Hurry the process. Allow the dough to rise in the fridge for at least 18 hours and you’ll need 2-4 hours for the second rise. The timing will depend on the temperature in your kitchen and how active the dough is. That being said, plan ahead!
This recipe uses Instant yeast. But if you only have active dry yeast, you can bloom it in lukewarm water for 5 minutes before adding it to the dry ingredients.

Short on time? Make the dough in a stand mixer with a dough hook and knead on medium speed for 6-8 minutes. Let the dough rise for 1 hour and then proceed with the preparation and baking steps (starting at step 3).

Nutrition