This pillowy black pepper focaccia is the easiest beginner bread, since it's a true no-knead dough and doesn't even require stretches-and-folds or a stand mixer. I love it torn and dunked into soup or sliced horizontally and built into sandwiches.
For My Friends Intimidated by Bread, I Recommend This Focaccia
If you're a focaccia-lover, this one takes my basic overnight focaccia to the next level with freshly ground black pepper mixed right into the dough for punchy (but not overpowering) flavor in every bite. By not kneading or even doing stretches and folds, we handle the dough very little to resist the urge to add more flour, which is the sure-fire way to end up with a dense, flat loaf. (Yes, I've made focaccia crackers by accident. No, I don't want to talk about it.)
Instead, this high-hydration dough gets a long 12 to 16 hour rise overnight in the fridge, with only 10 minutes of actual hands-on time, which is why I call it my lazy baker bread. Bonus: this keeps the focaccia fluffy, airy, and soft for dayyys!
I added a quick 10 minutes at the very beginning to activate the yeast, which will tell you if your yeast is ready to rock n roll, or if it's expired. Honestly this is far better than finding out hours later when your bread didn't rise. This is also why I prefer using active dry yeast over instant yeast for focaccia. And just two tablespoons of sugar gives the yeast a jump-start on fermentation, and takes the edge off the black pepper's spice.
Let's Bake Black Pepper Focaccia Together
For the full step-by-step directions, scroll down to the recipe card.
Baker's Schedule
I like to fit this overnight dough into my day, rather than the other way around, so here's the schedule I follow.
Day One Morning - Mix & let rise at room temp
Day One Mid-Morning - Move the dough to the fridge
Day Two Morning - Press the dough in the pan & proof
Day Two Early Afternoon - Bake & enjoy fresh focaccia
My Tips for Punchy Pepper Flavor
- At first I tested whole peppercorns in the dough, but it was wayyy too spicy.
- I highly recommend using freshly-ground black pepper here. While pre-ground pepper is convenient it isn't nearly as fragrant or flavorful. So while it takes a few minutes to crank it all out, I promise it'll be worth it.
- I crack my pepper in a bowl then transfer it to the measuring spoon to avoid spilling it everywhere.
- In testing, one teaspoon of pepper tasted bland and two teaspoons edged towards overpowering, so one and a half teaspoons was the sweet spot. But feel free to go to either end, depending on your spice level preference.
Black Pepper Focaccia
developed & tested by:
Equipment
Ingredients
Focaccia Dough
- 2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast (one packet)
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1¾ cups warm water (between 105-115°F or 40-46°C)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 cups all purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoons salt (use fine sea salt or table salt)
- 1½ teaspoons freshly-ground black pepper
Topping
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- freshly-ground black pepper
Instructions
Day One
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the active dry yeast, granulated sugar, and warm water. Set aside for 10 minutes, until it's foamy on top. If it's not foamy, your yeast might be expired.
- Stir the olive oil into the foamy yeast mixture.
- Add the flour, salt, and black pepper on top, and mix with a large wooden spoon or silicone spatula for a minute, until there's no visible pockets of dry flour and it forms a soft, wet dough.
- Cover the mixing bowl tightly with plastic wrap (to retain moisture so it doesn't dry out) and let it rise at room temperature for 1-2 hours (to jump start fermentation).
- Transfer the bowl to the fridge for 12-16 hours (for slow, cold fermentation).
Day Two
- Generously grease a 9x13 inch baking dish with butter.
- Dump the dough from your mixing bowl onto the center of the baking dish. Use your fingers to gently press the dough into all the edges and corners of the baking dish. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and let it rise at room temperature for 4 hours, or until it's puffed up and jiggles on top when you shake the baking dish.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C).
- Lightly coat your fingers in olive oil (don't skip this, or else the dough will stick all over your fingers!) Use your fingers to press dimples into the dough, pressing all the way to the bottom of the baking dish. Aim to have the dimples spread about 1 inch apart from each other, all over the surface of the dough.
- Drizzle two tablespoons of olive oil over all the dough, and sprinkle a few more cracks of freshly ground black pepper on top.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes on the center rack, or until the focaccia is golden brown and puffed up. Cool for at least 20 minutes before slicing.
Notes
- Rise: Be sure to cover your bowl tightly with plastic wrap, to avoid it drying out in the fridge overnight, which can diminish its ability to rise.
- Topping: You can also sprinkle a little flaky sea salt and chopped rosemary with the black pepper on top just before it goes in the oven for even more flavor.
- Reheat: I like to slice mine in half horizontally and toast each side to build sandwiches or slather with pesto or avocado for breakfast. You can also reheat it in the microwave for about 15 seconds.
Nutrition
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