P
Italian · Bari
Focaccia Barese all'Olio e Pomodorini
Bari's focaccia — dramatically different from Ligurian focaccia in every way. The dough contains boiled potato (patata lessa) for extraordinary internal softness, olive oil in generous quantities both inside and below in the pan, and the entire surface is dimpled deeply with fingers before topping with cherry tomatoes (cut-side down, pressed in), dried oregano, and coarse salt. Baked at maximum temperature on an olive-oil-soaked baking tray, the base fries in the oil while the top bronzes.
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I
The Market List
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500 g
strong white flour (tipo 0)
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
100 g
375–400 ml
water
at 28–30 °C
Your own market
7 g
dried instant yeast
Your own market
1 tsp
sugar
Your own market
10 g
fine salt
Your own market
60–75 ml
extra-virgin olive oil
4–5 tbsp, for the dough
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For the pan and surface
45–60 ml
extra-virgin olive oil
3–4 tbsp, for the baking tray
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30 ml
extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbsp, drizzled over the surface before topping
Your own market
For the topping
300 g
1 tsp
dried oregano
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 tsp
coarse sea salt
Your own market
Each tap is counted, so the stockist sees the demand Provenance sends them.
II
The Method
1
Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water (28–30 °C). Combine the flour and riced potato in a large bowl, then pour in the yeast liquid and the 60–75 ml of olive oil. Mix until a very soft, shaggy dough forms; add the fine salt and continue mixing until cohesive. The dough will be markedly wetter than standard bread dough. It is done when it clears the sides of the bowl and pulls into loose, slack strands.
2
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and leave to rise until doubled in volume. The crumb's entire character — airy, feather-soft, staying fresh for two days — is decided here: a rushed or cold proof produces a dense, bread-like result instead.
3
Pour the 45–60 ml of olive oil into a 30 × 40 cm baking tray and tilt to coat the base entirely. Tip the dough onto the tray and, using wet hands, press and stretch it to fill the tray evenly. Do not roll. Cover loosely and prove again until the dough is visibly puffy and the surface quivers when the tray is nudged.
4
Heat the oven to its maximum temperature with the rack positioned on the lowest level. Drizzle the remaining 30 ml of olive oil evenly across the dough surface. With wet fingers, dimple the surface forcefully and deeply at close intervals — the dimples must remain open and hold visible pools of oil; shallow impressions will close in the oven and the pooling effect is lost.
5
Press the cherry tomato halves cut-side down into the dimples, flush with the surface, so the cut face is in full contact with the dough. Scatter the dried oregano and coarse salt over the entire surface. The tomatoes are correctly placed when no cut surface is visible from above.
6
Bake on the lowest rack for 15 minutes, then transfer to the middle rack and continue baking until the top is deep bronze and the base — lifted at one corner with a palette knife — is visibly crisped and golden from frying in the pan oil. The underside should sound hollow and dry when tapped.
7
Remove from the oven and allow to rest in the tray for five minutes before cutting. The focaccia is eaten warm, within two hours of baking.
III
Quality Hierarchy
01
Reserve — Stone-milled Puglian tipo 0 flour; single-estate Coratina extra-virgin olive oil from the Murge plateau, pressed within the season; home-grown or DOP cherry tomatoes from the Barese hinterland; freshly dried wild oregano from Puglia.
02
Estate — Good-quality tipo 0 or bread flour; a named southern-Italian extra-virgin olive oil of recent harvest; ripe, flavourful cherry tomatoes from a farm or market; dried oregano of known provenance.
03
Market — Standard supermarket strong white flour; a reliable supermarket extra-virgin olive oil (not light or pure); cherry tomatoes chosen for ripeness over uniformity; standard dried oregano.
04
House — Any available strong white flour; any olive oil to hand; cherry tomatoes from ambient stock; dried mixed herbs in place of oregano — the character of the dish is still present, though the base will be less crisp and the crumb less open.
IV
Sensory Tests
◇Sight. Dough has visibly doubled and the surface trembles when the tray is shaken — proof is complete.
◇Sight. Dimples remain open and hold pools of olive oil after pressing — depth is sufficient.
◇Sight. Top surface is deep bronze and the cherry tomatoes show caramelised, darkened edges with juice pooled into the surrounding dough.
◇Touch. Base corner lifted with a palette knife feels rigid and dry, not soft or oily-wet — the frying of the base is complete.
◇Sound. Underside tapped gives a hollow, dry knock — the base is through-crisped.
◇Where it lives or dies. The dish lives or dies in the second proof: the dough must double fully in the pan before the oven is considered; under-proofing collapses the crumb to a dense, bread-like mass and no amount of olive oil or high heat can recover it.
Pillar V
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VI
What to Pour
The pairing
Wine
From British Columbia
Wine
Without alcohol
GT's Synergy Organic Kombucha — Gingerade
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Non-alcoholic
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The whole pairingPillar VII
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Sourced through Provenance