Recipe 6 min read

Sourdough Focaccia al Pomodoro with Slow-Roasted Tomatoes and Fresh Basil

A springtime sourdough focaccia topped with slow-roasted tomatoes, garlic and torn basil. Rich flavour, open crumb, and a crisp olive oil base.

Photo by Vicky Ng on Unsplash
Photo by Vicky Ng on Unsplash

There is something about the smell of slow-roasted tomatoes and warm olive oil coming out of the oven at the same time that makes you want to pull up a chair and not go anywhere for a while. This is a spring bake that earns its place on the table without trying too hard: sourdough focaccia al pomodoro, topped with jammy, caramelised tomatoes, thinly sliced garlic, and torn basil scattered on at the end so it stays bright and fresh.

Focaccia al pomodoro is a Ligurian classic, though versions of it turn up all over Italy in slightly different forms. What makes this one worth baking at home is the base: a properly fermented sourdough focaccia dough with genuine depth of flavour, a crumb that is open and pillowy inside, and a bottom crust that goes golden and slightly crisp in a pool of good olive oil. It is not a thin pizza base and it is not a thick, bready slab. It sits somewhere in the middle, and that is exactly where you want it. April is a good moment for this one , the first decent tomatoes are starting to show up at the market, and the longer daylight hours make it easier to plan a bake around your day rather than racing against the clock.

Prep30 mins
Ferment6–10 hrs
Cook45 mins
Total8–12 hrs
Yield1 tray (serves 6)
DifficultyIntermediate

The Dough

  • 450g strong white bread flour
  • 50g wholemeal flour
  • 375g lukewarm water (split: 350g + 25g)
  • 100g active sourdough starter (at or just past peak)
  • 10g (2 tsp) fine sea salt
  • 50g extra virgin olive oil, plus more for the tin and dimpling

Slow-Roasted Tomatoes

  • 500g mixed tomatoes (cherry, vine, or a mix , halved)
  • 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tsp caster sugar
  • Flaky sea salt and black pepper

To Finish

  • A generous handful of fresh basil leaves
  • Extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
  • Flaky salt, for the top

Baker's Tips

  • The olive oil in the dough is not optional , it coats the gluten strands and keeps the crumb tender rather than chewy. Add it after the autolyse stage so it does not interfere with initial hydration.
  • Roast your tomatoes low and slow (150°C for about an hour) before you even think about topping the focaccia. They need time to collapse and concentrate. Do this while the dough is bulk fermenting and you will barely notice the extra effort.
  • If your bakes have been inconsistent lately and you are not sure whether the issue is your starter, your timing, or your shaping, the DoughRise Coach is genuinely useful for this , you can describe exactly what went wrong and get a personalised diagnosis rather than sifting through generic forum advice.

METHOD

  1. Mix the dough (autolyse). Combine both flours with 350g of the water in a large bowl. Mix until no dry flour remains, then cover and leave for 45 minutes. This short rest lets the flour fully hydrate before anything else happens.
  2. Add the starter and salt. After the autolyse, pour your active sourdough starter over the dough and work it in with your hands, squeezing it through until fully incorporated. Dissolve the salt in the remaining 25g of water and add that too. Mix until the dough feels cohesive.
  3. Add the olive oil. Drizzle in the 50g of olive oil gradually, working it into the dough with a folding and squeezing motion. It will look like it will never come together , it will. Give it 3 or 4 minutes of patient mixing until smooth and slightly glossy.
  4. Bulk fermentation with folds. Cover the bowl and leave at room temperature (ideally around 24°C) for the bulk fermentation time, roughly 5 to 7 hours depending on your kitchen temperature. Perform 4 sets of coil folds over the first 2 hours, spaced 30 minutes apart. After that, leave it undisturbed. The dough is ready when it has grown by 50 to 75 per cent and feels airy and jiggly when you move the bowl.
Why this works

Coil folds build gluten structure without degassing the dough the way punching would. You are strengthening the network while keeping the fermentation gases intact. The olive oil, added after initial mixing, lubricates the gluten strands rather than inhibiting their formation , which is why the order of operations matters here.

  1. Roast the tomatoes. While the dough is bulk fermenting, preheat your oven to 150°C (130°C fan). Place the halved tomatoes cut-side up on a lined baking tray, scatter over the sliced garlic, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with the sugar, and season well. Roast for 55 to 65 minutes until they are shrunken, jammy, and starting to caramelise at the edges. Leave to cool.
  2. Pan the dough. Pour a generous amount of olive oil into a 30x40cm baking tin (do not be shy , you want a puddle, not a film). Tip the bulk-fermented dough into the tin and gently stretch it towards the edges. It will spring back. Cover and leave for 30 minutes, then stretch again. Cover and leave for another 30 to 60 minutes until the dough has relaxed fully into the tin and looks puffy.

INTO THE OVEN

  1. Dimple and top. Preheat your oven to 230°C (210°C fan). With well-oiled fingers, press firmly across the entire surface of the dough to create deep dimples. Do not tap , really push down, all the way to the base of the tin. Scatter the roasted tomatoes and garlic across the top, pressing them gently into the dimples. Finish with a good pinch of flaky salt.
  2. Bake. Bake on the lower-middle shelf for 22 to 26 minutes until the top is deeply golden and the edges are pulling away from the tin. The base should be crisp and bronzed when you lift a corner with a spatula. If the top is colouring before the base is done, drop the tray to the lowest shelf for the final 5 minutes.
  3. Rest and finish. Transfer to a wire rack and leave for at least 10 minutes before cutting , the crumb needs time to set. Tear over the fresh basil, drizzle with a little more extra virgin olive oil, and serve warm. It also keeps well at room temperature for a day, and a quick 5 minutes back in a hot oven brings it back to life.

Want to dial in this recipe for your flour or batch size? Use the free DoughRise Hydration Calculator to calculate exactly the right ratios and make the dough work for you.

Happy baking! Find everything you need at doughrise.store

Photo by Vicky Ng on Unsplash

breadfermentationfocacciaItalian bakingrecipesourdoughspringtomato