Socca

Ingredients

• 300 g chickpea flour (farine de pois chiche)
• 750 ml water
• 3 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for the pan
• 1 tsp fine salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil, for coating the skillet
• 1 tsp black pepper, freshly cracked, to finish
• Optional variation
• 1 tsp fresh rosemary needles, scattered on batter just before baking

Method

1. 1
   Whisk the 300 g chickpea flour into the 750 ml water gradually, eliminating lumps. Add the 3 tablespoons of olive oil and 1 teaspoon of salt and whisk until smooth. Leave the batter uncovered at room temperature for a minimum of 2 hours — overnight is better. The batter is ready when any surface foam has subsided and the flour is fully hydrated; it should pour like thin cream with no gritty residue.
2. 2
   Place a 30 cm cast-iron skillet in the oven and heat at 275 °C for 20 minutes. The pan must be genuinely blazing before the batter goes in; this is where the dish lives or dies — an insufficiently hot pan produces a cakey, pallid result instead of the defining contrast of charred crust and custardy interior.
3. 3
   Remove the skillet carefully. Add the 2 tablespoons of olive oil and swirl to coat the base and sides completely. Pour in enough rested batter to reach exactly 3–4 mm depth — no more. Return immediately to the oven and bake for 8 minutes.
4. 4
   Transfer the skillet to the grill (broiler) at maximum heat for 2–3 minutes. The socca is done when the surface shows a leopard-spotted pattern of dark blisters and charred patches, the edges have pulled away and crisped, and the thin centre remains slightly moist and creamy beneath the char.
5. 5
   Slide the socca onto a board. Using a spatula, slash it into rough, irregular pieces — it is never cut neatly. Shower immediately with freshly cracked black pepper. Serve at once; socca degrades rapidly once cool and cannot be reheated.