Sourdough Rosemary Focaccia
Sourdough rosemary focaccia uses 80% hydration freshly milled hard white wheat with a generous olive oil glaze, fresh rosemary, and flaky salt. Cold-retard overnight; press, dimple, and bake the next day.
Key Takeaways
- 80% hydration gives the airy crumb that defines real focaccia.
- Generous oil in the pan creates the crispy fried bottom.
- Cold retard 12–24 hours builds character with zero extra effort.
- Dimple deeply — wells trap oil and become flavor pockets.
- Bake until deeply golden; underbaked focaccia is gummy.
About this recipe
Focaccia is the most forgiving sourdough bread you can bake. No shaping, no scoring, no Dutch oven — just a hydrated dough poured into a generously oiled pan, dimpled with fingertips, and baked. The high hydration that makes other doughs frightening is exactly what makes focaccia perfect. Fresh milled hard white wheat keeps the focaccia mild and crowd-pleasing. The 80% hydration creates the open, airy crumb that defines proper focaccia, and the long cold retard delivers the deep sourdough character that pairs with rosemary, olive oil, and flaky salt. Use a generous quarter-cup of olive oil in the pan — the pan-fried bottom that results is a feature, not a bug. Bake until the top is deep golden and the edges are starting to crisp.
Prep: 30 min
Bake: 25 min
Hydration: 80%
Ingredients
- Freshly milled hard white wheat flour500 g
- Water (85°F / 29°C)400 g
- Active 100% hydration sourdough starter100 g
- Fine sea salt11 g
- Extra virgin olive oil (for dough)30 g
- Extra virgin olive oil (for pan and top)60 g
- Fresh rosemary sprigsas needed
- Flaky sea saltto taste
Instructions
- 1
Feed starter 6 hours before mixing.
- 2
Whisk water, starter, and 30 g olive oil in a large bowl.
- 3
Add flour and salt. Mix to no-dry-spots and rest 45 minutes.
- 4
Perform 4 sets of stretch-and-folds in the bowl, 30 minutes apart.
- 5
Bulk ferment at 76°F until risen 50% — about 4–5 hours total.
- 6
Pour 30 g olive oil into a 9x13 baking pan. Tilt to coat the bottom and sides.
- 7
Tip the dough into the pan. Cover and refrigerate 12–24 hours.
- 8
About 90 minutes before baking, pull from the fridge. Drizzle another 30 g olive oil over the top.
- 9
With oiled fingertips, gently stretch the dough to fill the pan. Let it relax if it resists.
- 10
Dimple deeply across the entire surface with your fingertips, pressing all the way down.
- 11
Press fresh rosemary sprigs into the dimples. Sprinkle flaky salt generously.
- 12
Let proof at room temperature 30–45 more minutes.
- 13
Preheat oven to 475°F (245°C).
- 14
Bake 22–28 minutes until deeply golden on top and the bottom is crisp.
- 15
Lift onto a rack with a spatula. Cool 15 minutes before cutting.
home grain milling tutorial — hydration, gluten development, and grain choice tips that make this recipe work.
Learn about this grain: Hard White Wheat guide — flavor, milling notes, baking tips, and four in-depth guides on hydration, storage, and common mistakes. Or browse more Hard White Wheat recipes.
Learn a technique
All guides →- Bulk Fermentation with Fresh-Milled FlourFresh-milled flour ferments faster than commercial flour. Watch the dough, not the clock, and end bulk fermentation when volume has grown 50–75%.
- Build & Maintain a Fresh-Milled Sourdough StarterA step-by-step guide to creating a robust whole-grain sourdough starter from scratch and maintaining it for weekly baking.
- Cold Retard & Bulk for Fresh-Milled SourdoughHow to time and temperature-manage bulk fermentation and cold retard for fresh-milled sourdough to develop flavor without overproofing.
- Fresh Milled Flour Hydration GuideHydration is the single variable that fixes more fresh-milled bread problems than any other adjustment. Bagged bread flour is engineered to behave predictably — milled to a uniform fine particle, aged for weeks, and stripped of the thirsty bran and germ. Fresh-milled flour is the opposite: it contains every part of the kernel, and the intact bran soaks up water slowly. The same recipe that produces a slack, sticky white-flour dough produces a dry, tight fresh-milled dough unless you increase the liquid. This guide explains why hydration matters more for fresh flour, how each grain behaves, how to read dough texture by feel, how to convert standard recipes, and how to troubleshoot the most common hydration symptoms.
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Related Techniques
Bulk Fermentation with Fresh-Milled Flour
Fresh-milled flour ferments faster than commercial flour. Watch the dough, not the clock, and end bulk fermentation when volume has grown 50–75%.
Build & Maintain a Fresh-Milled Sourdough Starter
A step-by-step guide to creating a robust whole-grain sourdough starter from scratch and maintaining it for weekly baking.
Cold Retard & Bulk for Fresh-Milled Sourdough
How to time and temperature-manage bulk fermentation and cold retard for fresh-milled sourdough to develop flavor without overproofing.
Fresh Milled Flour Hydration Guide
Hydration is the single variable that fixes more fresh-milled bread problems than any other adjustment. Bagged bread flour is engineered to behave predictably — milled to a uniform fine particle, aged for weeks, and stripped of the thirsty bran and germ. Fresh-milled flour is the opposite: it contains every part of the kernel, and the intact bran soaks up water slowly. The same recipe that produces a slack, sticky white-flour dough produces a dry, tight fresh-milled dough unless you increase the liquid. This guide explains why hydration matters more for fresh flour, how each grain behaves, how to read dough texture by feel, how to convert standard recipes, and how to troubleshoot the most common hydration symptoms.