The Dimple Tip That Will Result In Better Homemade Focaccia - Tasting Table (2024)

FAQs

The Dimple Tip That Will Result In Better Homemade Focaccia - Tasting Table? ›

Concerning the question of how deep the dimples in your focaccia should be — they should be quite deep, roughly up to your first knuckle, as they will fill in a bit with the second rise. You can even press to the bottom of the pan, so long as you don't break through the focaccia.

actually dimpling helps to trap the olive oil. and any additional topping. and it stops the dough from rising too much. keeping your focaccia in its lovely.

Dimpling means pressing your fingers into the dough. (not all the way down) to create “dimples”. Thanks FRANK MAZZUCA. @familystyle for this video. * reduces the air in the dough.

Forgetting to add salt to the dough

The first is that salt brings out the flavors of other ingredients; this is especially important for focaccia flavored with herbs, olives, and other vegetables.

The heat of a baking steel is necessary for getting a crispy bottom on a focaccia pizza. The cheese and sauce on top of the dough insulate the pan too much for the bottom to get crispy otherwise.

Why is my focaccia not fluffy or chewy? It could be the type of flour you used. The best flour to use to make focaccia bread is bread flour which gives you fluffy baked bread. Or, it could also be because you did not knead the dough enough for the gluten to form a structure which can result in flat or dense bread.

Why is my Focaccia dense and tough? Not allowing the focaccia to proof long enough in the fridge will prevent enough gluten from being formed. This causes flat and dense focaccia once baked.

This focaccia is at its best when perfectly-proofed. You'll know it's ready through dimpling: when dimpled, the dimples should stay and the dough should be bubbly. If the dimples bounce back too quickly, or you aren't getting good sized bubbles, let the dough proof for longer.

Dimpling (aka poking holes) in focaccia helps to release gas and air, which helps your focaccia to maintain its signature flat look. At the same time, olive oil that's drizzled onto the foccacia is able to infuse into the dough for a truly wonderful flavour!

Use your favorite kind—I prefer extra virgin olive oil. Bread Flour or All-Purpose Flour: I tested this focaccia with both and prefer the bread flour variety. Both are great, but bread flour has a higher protein content so it yields a chewier texture.

How wet should focaccia dough be? ›

This dough will be very, very wet – almost like cake mix. If you can, wet your hands (to stop them sticking) and fold the dough over a little, just to see what a dough of this wetness (or 'hydration') feels like.

It might be cold dough. One of the most common mistakes is having a dough temperature that's too low for the starter to feed on all the flour in the dough, resulting in a crumb that's dense, with fewer openings. "Starter is happiest and most active at around 75 degrees.

Dimple the dough by gently pressing your fingers into the top of the dough. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes until golden brown on top. Rotate the pan 180°, then reduce the heat to 450°F/232°C and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes until golden brown on the top and bottom.

Focaccia is best served immediately, or within 12 hours of baking. After 12 hours the salt will start to dissolve and absorb into the dough, and the bread will start to dry out and become oily.

Give the dough 4 sets of stretches and folds (fold a side of the dough up and over to the other side, and then rotate the container to perform 4 folds per set), starting 30 minutes after mixing, and a set every 30 minutes after that.

A quick look at a good focaccia should immediately show you a top riddled with a series of shallow holes. These are the dimples — little pockets where the toppings and oil can pool and sizzle. During baking, these oily pockets will provide beautiful brown spots, aiding in the bread's bubbly and mottled appearance.

After the first rise, many recipes call for the baker to deflate — or "punch down" — the dough. It's an important step: When the dough is punched down, the yeast cells are redistributed. They form a closer bond with the moisture and sugar, which aids fermentation and improves the second rise.

Not enough water: This can leave you with dense, dry focaccia. For accuracy, measure out your ingredients using weight instead of cups to ensure you have the right ratio of ingredients.

Put the pan in the oven and bake for 20–30 minutes, until the top is a lovely golden and the internal temperature is 190-210°F (88–99°C). When your timer sounds, verify the internal temperature with your Thermapen ONE. Continue to cook if the temp is not high enough.

Transfer to the pan - The dough is transferred to an oiled pan and spread out slightly, and placed in a warm place. Rise focaccia in the pan - The dough rises a second time, uncovered, until doubled in size, puffy, and jiggly. This rising time depends on whether you started with room temperature or cold dough.

Should focaccia dough be very sticky? ›

That's okay, it should be wet and sticky! All bread flour absorbs different amounts of water due to varying protein content. Bread flour with 12-15% protein (ie 12-15g of protein per 100g of flour) is best for focaccia.

Scoring/ slashing your loaf allows your loaf to burst at the cut when it expands in the oven with oven spring. If you don't score your loaf it will burst at the weakest point and you might end up with a little ball of dough erupting from the side of your loaf.

Excess yeast causes extra air bubbles to form, creating holes in the baked bread. You prepared the recipe correctly. The interaction of the various ingredients and the preparation method used for French bread and sourdough bread are intended to create a bread which has a coarse texture and uneven holes.

The blossoms of most flowers will add a very light and subtle floral aroma. They can be showered on the finished baked bread for an appealing look. Whether in the dough or sprinkled on the top of the bread, they will give your baked goods a colorful look.