Sourdough ciabatta, or ciabatta made using sourdough. This is one of the easiest sourdough recipes around. You need a little patience, but it’s definitely worth it! They’re ideal to prepare in advance.
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Why this Recipe Works
You need a little time to make these fantastic sourdough ciabattas, but it’s incredibly easy! This is partly because you don’t have to shape the bread.
It’s also a wonderful process to let the bread rise and ferment slowly. The result is delicious, fluffy, soft sourdough ciabatta.
Baking with Sourdough
I make these sourdough ciabattas using my own sourdough starter. Perhaps you have a sourdough starter lying around in your refrigerator cupboard, too. But have you ever used it to bake ciabattas? This recipe is inspired by one from Alexandra’s Kitchen, and it’s a real hit! You can use your leftover discard to make these sourdough discard crackers.
Delicious Sourdough Ciabatta Recipe
These ciabattas are deliciously crispy on the outside and light and airy on the inside — just as they should be! They can be eaten at any time of day, here are a few of my favorite toppings for inspiration:
How to Bake Your Own Ciabatta
Making these sourdough ciabattas takes time, but trust me, it’s easy! Most of the time is spent letting the dough rise, so you can easily prepare it the night before and enjoy your homemade ciabatta the next day.
In this recipe, I make eight small ciabattas, which are perfect for breakfast or lunch. Alternatively, you can choose to make two long ciabattas, which are ideal for snacks or to accompany a delicious cup of soup or salad. Happy baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does the dough rise?
After the initial autolyse stage of the dough (first 30 mins) and stretch and folds, the dough needs to rest and rise for about 4-6 hours at room temperature followed by 12-24 hours in the refrigerator.
What is Italian flour?
We are referring to Italian type 00 flour, it’s an ultra fine milled type of flour that can be substituted with bread flour.
How do these ciabattas rise in the oven?
Steaming by putting a bowl of water in the oven makes the ciabatta rolls nice and soft and light. The top doesn’t bake hard right away, but is given the opportunity to expand slightly during baking. If you have an oven with a steam function, you can of course use it.
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Ingredients
- 350 gram lukewarm water
- 15 gram salt
- 100 gram active sourdough starter
- 300 gram wheat flour (preferably with 12% protein content)
- 150 gram Italian flour (or fine bread flour)
Equipment
- Baking sheet + rack
- Baking paper
INSTRUCTIONS (how to make this recipe):
- Pour the water into a large bowl and mix in the salt. Then add the sourdough starter, followed by the flour.
- Mix until everything is well combined and there is no loose flour left in the bowl. Cover with cling film and leave to rest for 30 minutes. Then perform four sets of stretch and folds, with half an hour between each set.
- Next, place the dough in a large, rectangular container, preferably transparent. This will allow you to see how far the dough has risen. Mark a line on the container and, once the dough has risen by about 75% after 4–6 hours in a warm place, put the container on top of the refrigerator and leave the dough to rise for a further 12–24 hours.
- Once risen, sprinkle some flour over the dough in the container and plenty of flour on the countertop. Turn the dough out onto the countertop. Carefully stretch it out into a rectangular sheet. Using a dough scraper or large knife, cut the dough in half vertically so that you have two long rectangles.
- You can then cut each piece into four pieces and shape them into eight small ciabattas. Alternatively, you can choose to make two long ciabattas, in which case you can skip this step.
- Spread the dough on a rack covered with baking paper (not a baking tray). Leave to rise for another hour — because the dough has already had a long rise, it will not grow much larger during this time.
- Preheat the oven to 230 degrees Celsius / 445 Fahrenheit with top and bottom heat. Place a baking sheet under the rack (place the rack in the middle of the oven). Slide the ciabattas onto the rack in the oven, then immediately add some water to the baking sheet underneath to create steam. Close the door quickly.
- Bake the rolls for about 15 minutes until golden brown. Leave to cool for a moment and enjoy!
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