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Easy Ciabatta Bread

7/7/2020

26 Comments

 
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Here is an easy ciabatta bread recipe. Ciabatta means slipper because of the shape of the bread. This bread is crunchy and brown on the outside and bubbly and fluffy on the inside, perfect for great sandwiches or even as a daily bread served with a little extra virgin olive oil. 

Makes 2 Ciabatte 

Ingredients
  • 400g of strong white bread flour + extra for dusting
  • 300g of warm water  
  • 6g of fresh yeast or 3g of dried yeast 
  • 10g of sea salt

Method
  1. To start, pre-measured all of the ingredients. In a bowl add the water and the yeast and with one hand mix well until all the yeast dissolves. Now add all the flour and hold the bowl with one and before using the other one to mix well for 5 minutes until there are no more bits of dry flour and it forms a very shaggy dough. Add the salt and mix again for 1 minute scraping off all the dry flour from the sides of the bowl. The dough will be very sticky at this point but don't worry. Once you mix the shaggy dough, instead of trying to wipe the sticky dough off your hand with towels, or rub it off under running water, just grab a handful of dry flour and rub it back and forth on your hands. The dry flour absorbs excess liquid, and the dough comes right off. Put all the crumbs back into the dough. Cover and let it rest for 1 hour.
  2. ​TIP. We suggest keeping the dough in a warm and wet environment for the best result. Usually in bakeries is often used a dough proofer which is a warming chamber used to encourage fermentation of dough by yeast through warm temperatures and controlled humidity. You can do the same at home leaving the dough inside your oven or microwave at 25-27°C with a cup full of hot boiling water inside to help to create humidity. Cover the dough at all times and once you put the cup of boiling water inside the oven or microwave do not open it until the next step so you won't lose any of the humidity and warm temperature. Change the water in the cup with new boiling water every time you open the oven for the next step. 
  3. After 1 hour from the first rest, start the coil fold technique. To make a coil fold to your dough, rinse your hands in water and gently lift the dough with both hands from the middle until one end releases from the bowl. Gently lower the dough to allow the loosened end to tuck under the middle, and repeat with the other side. The dough should now look like it is coiled over itself. Rotate the bowl 90 degrees, and repeat this process until the dough does not stretch very far anymore, and holds its shape. Repeat this coil fold 3 more times, resting the dough 45 minutes each time. The dough will strengthen more and more after each coil fold!  This technique is used in high hydration dough and it gives a better structure to the final dough. After the last set, cover and rest once more for 30 minutes.​
  4. On an open table heavily flour the top of the dough and your work surface. Gently or you might deflate the dough, turn the bowl upside down to release the dough onto the floured work surface. Now sprinkle the top of the dough with some more flour.
  5. Flour the scraper and divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Always with the help of the scraper try to gently separate one ciabatta from the other. Do not worry if they don't have a perfect shape, try not to handle the dough too much as you want to keep as much air in as possible for the perfect light texture. 
  6. Line a large baking tray with baking paper next to the ciabatte and transfer them into the tray by sliding your fingers under each end of the ciabatta and quickly transfer it, keeping some space between the two ciabatte. Let them rest for 15 minutes.
  7. Turn the oven on to  230°C (fan) and place a small baking pan or a deep tray at the bottom of the oven and place a small deep tray at the bottom of the oven. Once the oven reaches the temperature, put your ciabatte in the middle of  the oven and straight after add half a glass of cold water into the small deep tray at the bottom and quickly close the oven. This will produce steam which helps the bread to rise and create a better crust.
  8. ​Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown on top. Do not be afraid of the colour when baking bread, the ciabatta needs a proper crust or the structure of the crumble will collapse.  
  9. Once the ciabatta is out of the oven, let it cool down on a cooling rack for at least 2 hours or even better overnight before enjoying.​
Watch the recipe video
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26 Comments
Supriya Kutty link
28/6/2021 03:11:47 pm

Bread is something that I need it most of the time with everything. Thank you so much for sharing this post so that we also try making it out.I will surely try making in the way you have given.

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Our Cooking Journey link
20/1/2023 09:57:26 am

Thank you! :) Feel free to share your recipe tagging us on Instagram and or Facebook, we would love to see the outcome!


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Rowena A Loughman
20/5/2025 02:31:02 pm

what temp. not celcius

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Gina Sgardelis
24/4/2023 01:48:56 pm

Will try this your instructions are easy to follow, thanks😊

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Our Cooking Journey
14/9/2023 08:48:16 pm

Thank you Gina! Enjoy!

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Lizzy
10/6/2023 01:46:00 am

The best ciabatta I’ve ever made!!!

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Our Cooking Journey
14/9/2023 08:48:45 pm

Thank you Lizzy!

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Gia
15/7/2023 07:44:16 am

Such a great recipe! Makes the best ciabatta bread everytime

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Our Cooking Journey
14/9/2023 08:49:13 pm

Thank you Gia!

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Pam
15/7/2023 01:01:50 pm

Love this recipe. A video would be very helpful to see how the bread looks at each step

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Our Cooking Journey
14/9/2023 08:50:09 pm

Thank you Pam - here you can find the video
https://vm.tiktok.com/ZGJWDnD45/

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Abby
5/10/2023 12:24:46 am

Can we use the same recipe convert the measurements from grams to cups? For the people who don’t have a sce available?

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Rozsa
18/11/2024 09:32:40 pm

Cups are approximate depending on the flour you use, but 400g flour is about 3-1/3 cup.

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Leo
25/12/2023 08:38:29 am

Buenas, he hecho muchas recetas de pan y está es con la que me quedo como mi favorita, sale muy bueno el pan. Muchas gracias por compartir

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Cecilia Andersson
24/3/2024 08:37:45 am

Perfect recipe. Made them yesterday evening and put them in a linen bag over night. Very nice texture. Lovely bread for sunday breakfast. I will use this recipe everytime I bake ciabatta. Thanks from Sweden

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Martine O'Malley
24/3/2024 09:50:03 am

J you for your very detailed explanation on the method will definitely give this a try. One of my favourite breads. 😊👍

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Claudia
27/3/2024 03:26:00 am

Can you give the recipe in imperial measurements?

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Hannah
31/3/2024 06:35:18 pm

Easily the best bread I've made! It was perfect! Thank you 😊

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Stephanie Rinner
7/5/2024 07:59:18 pm

I love this recipe, thank you so much for sharing it!!!

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Charmaine link
8/7/2024 12:59:17 pm

So I attempted this bread. Everything went well but when I had to pick the Dough up at the end it went flat 😂 I’m not sure why. Lots of air/bubbles present so not sure what went wrong. I also tried not to fiddle with it too much. It’s my first attempt at this type of bread but the recipe is quite easy to follow. Will try it again sometime.

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Jane
19/8/2024 02:00:36 pm

Will a high altitude affect bread making? Is there anything different that needs to be done at a high altitude; such as increase or decrease in baking temperature or length of baking time?

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Giovanni Pizzoferrato
17/10/2024 06:26:56 pm

TUTORIAL, WAS EASY TO FOLLOW, THANK YOU.

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Christine
4/11/2024 05:24:57 am

Wow- very descriptive and I am looking forward to trying. I got a little sad as it painted a picture of baking bread with my Father and him teaching me when I was a child. It’s a lost art and he’s no longer around. I regret that I haven’t baked bread with my own kids. I hope to change that soon with giving this a try. Thank you

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Paula Edwards
22/11/2024 11:16:28 am

Love this recipe! It's the 3rd type of bread I've made and it's given me a real love for making bread. I find the video super helpful too. Thank you!

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Christina
10/5/2025 02:50:23 pm

What a great recipe, just took them out of the oven and they're scrumptious! Never made bread of any kind before so this was super beginner-friendly and simple in terms of instructions. Cheers :)

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Rand link
21/5/2025 11:14:24 pm

First time making Ciabatta, I have made Focaccia and pizza many times, for Ciabatta, this was a home run. Perfect.

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