Recipe hydration
Focaccia — Hydration Guide
Target 80%. Workable range 75–85%.
Why this hydration for Focaccia?
Focaccia is pan-baked flatbread with olive-oil-drenched crust, irregular large bubbles, and signature dimpled surface. 80% hydration produces the characteristic airy crumb. Top with olive oil, flaky salt, and optional herbs (rosemary) or toppings (tomato, olives). Bonci-style Roman focaccia uses 24h cold bulk; Genoese focaccia uses shorter 4-6h room temp proof. This formula follows the Genoese tradition — quicker schedule, still open crumb.
Flour mix: 100% bread flour.
What 80% hydration does for Focaccia
At its 80% target, Focaccia bakes up with a very open, holey, translucent crumb — the hallmark of a high-hydration hearth loaf, at the cost of slack, sticky dough that needs confident handling. That's why the style sits where it does on the scale — push it much drier and it tightens toward a sandwich loaf; push it much wetter and it slackens past what the hearth structure can hold.
Worked water math for a 500 g batch
| Flour | 500 g (100%) |
| Water | 400 g (80%) |
| Salt | 10 g (2%) |
| Levain | 115 g (~23%) |
The levain already carries some of that flour and water. The calculator below subtracts its contribution so the numbers you actually weigh at the bench hit 80% exactly.
How this flour mix drinks
Focaccia uses 100% bread flour. That's straight white bread flour, which handles predictably at 80% — add all the water up front and adjust only if a new bag of flour behaves differently.
Technique at 80%
Mix everything at once (no autolyse). 3-4 stretch-and-folds. 3h bulk at 76°F. Heavily oil a quarter-sheet pan (at least 3 tbsp olive oil). Transfer dough, gently stretch to fill pan. Proof 90 min. Dimple with oiled fingertips to create deep wells. Drizzle olive oil over, sprinkle flaky salt. Bake at 450°F for 22-25 min until golden brown on top and bottom.
Calculator pre-set to 80%
- Flour to add
- 450 g
- Water to add
- 350 g
- Salt
- 10 g
- Levain @ 100%
- 100 g
- Total dough
- 910 g
- Effective hydration
- 80%
How the math works
Total water = flour × hydration %. Your levain contributes 50 g flour + 50 g water — both count toward the totals. You add only the remainder as fresh flour and water.
Salt % is computed on total flour weight, not final-dough flour.
Focaccia hydration — FAQ
What hydration is Focaccia meant to be?
Target 80% — that's 80 g of water per 100 g of flour by weight. The workable range is 75–85% depending on your flour and handling skill.
How much water do I need for Focaccia?
Multiply your flour weight by 0.8. For a 500 g flour batch that's 400 g water, plus about 10 g salt (2%). The calculator on this page also subtracts the water your levain already contributes.
Can I make Focaccia at a lower hydration?
Down to about 75% gives a tighter crumb and much easier, less sticky handling — a good starting point if you're new to this style. Below 75% the open, characteristic Focaccia texture is largely lost.
Can I make Focaccia at a higher hydration?
Up to about 85% opens the crumb further but demands confident wet-dough handling (more folds, a well-floured bench, decisive shaping). Above 85% the structure usually slackens and the loaf spreads instead of rising.
The gear that makes the math work
A short, honest baking kit. The scale matters most — every weight on this page is in grams. The Dutch oven is what turns a good crumb into a great crust.
- Digital kitchen scale (0.1 g)View on Amazon →
- Dutch oven / combo cookerView on Amazon →
- Banneton proofing basketView on Amazon →
- Bread lameView on Amazon →
- Bench scraperView on Amazon →
- High-protein bread flourView on Amazon →
- Danish dough whiskView on Amazon →
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