Making this ciabatta recipe goes against what you might have learnt about breadmaking. It needs a stand beater (or strong arms and a lot of elbow grease). The bread has an elastic texture and chewy crust.
Ciabatta rolls
(Makes 16 rolls or 4 loaves)
Ingredients
1kg hard flour
8g salt
6g sugar
10g dried yeast
about 900ml warm water
To finish
Olive oil, finely chopped oregano and marjoram or garlic or mint or chilli
Alternative cob loaf with seed mix
Use half wholemeal flour and half white; add a cup of mixed rolled oats, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds etc to the mix and sprinkle another cup over the top of the loaves before baking. You may need a little more water than the plain bread
Method
1. Put the flour, salt, sugar and yeast into the bowl of a stand beater fitted with the beater, not the dough hook. Stir the dry ingredients together on slow speed, then slowly pour in the warm water, increasing the speed each time the beater starts to struggle until you have reached top speed and the dough is slapping round in the bowl. The amount of water you need depends on the flour.
2. Continue to beat for 5-6min until the dough stops slapping and comes together away from the sides of the bowl and gathers round the beater.
(You may need to hold the machine so it doesn't fall off the bench). It will be a very soft mix and rather sticky.
3. Put a tablespoon of oil in a roasting tray and spread it round so the dough won't stick.
4. Tip the dough, with the help of a dough scraper or spatula, into the oiled tray, and spread it out a little. Put in a warm place to rise for half to three-quarters of an hour until doubled in size. Cover with a cloth or cling film if you are leaving it in the open. Preheat the oven to 220degC.
5. When the dough has doubled in size, spray and flour two baking trays.
6. Tip the risen dough on to a generously floured surface, using a well-floured scraper to help.
7. Sprinkle flour over and gently shape the dough into a rectangle - you don't want to disturb it too much as this dough is not knocked back or given a second proofing. The heavy beating and only one proof creates lots of little holes in the bread.
8. Dip the scraper or a knife in flour and carefully mark out how you will cut the dough into 16 rolls or four loaves.
9. Flouring the knife each time, cut the dough and place each roll or loaf carefully on the greased and floured baking sheets. They will be very soft - the Italians call them ''slippers''.
10. Put into the oven heated to 220degC, splashing some cold water on to a tray in the bottom to create steam. After about 7min turn the trays around. Cook for another 2-8min until the bread is done.
11. To tell if bread is cooked, tap the bottom and if it sounds hollow it is done.
12. Remove from the tray and put on to a cooling rack. Allow to cool a little.
13. While still warm brush with olive oil and finely chopped herbs such as marjoram and oregano, or garlic, or chilli.
• If you would like to request to a particular technique we haven't already shown, please let us know. Write to Cooking 101, Editorial Features, Otago Daily Times, P.O. Box 181, Dunedin or email odt.features@odt.co.nz with cooking 101 in the subject line.
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