Sourdough Focaccia with Rosemary & Sea Salt

If the everyday loaf is the exam, focaccia is the open-book version. No shaping skill required, no scoring anxiety — just dimples, olive oil and flaky salt.

Ingredients

• 100g active sourdough starter
• 400g water, lukewarm
• 500g strong white bread flour
• 10g fine sea salt
• Lots of olive oil (don't measure, be generous)
• 2 sprigs rosemary, leaves picked
• Flaky sea salt for the top

Method

1. Mix. Starter into water, then flour and salt. Mix until combined — it will be wetter and stickier than bread dough. That's the point. Cover, rest 30 minutes.
2. Fold. Three sets of stretch and folds, 30 minutes apart, with wet hands.
3. Bulk. Leave covered until doubled and full of bubbles — 4–6 hours warm, or overnight in the fridge for deeper flavour (my preference).
4. Pan. Slick a 23×33cm tray with a properly generous glug of olive oil. Tip the dough in, fold it over itself once, then leave it 1–2 hours until it relaxes and fills the tray.
5. Dimple. Oil your fingers and press firmly all the way to the bottom of the tray, everywhere. Scatter rosemary and flaky salt into the craters.
6. Bake. 220°C fan for 22–25 minutes until golden and crisp at the edges.
7. Finish. More olive oil over the top the second it comes out. Eat warm.

Make it yours: cherry tomatoes pressed into the dimples, olives, thin potato slices, or grapes with rosemary if you're feeling Tuscan.