Focaccia in the UK: what it is, how to order it, where to find it
Quick answer
Focaccia is a flat, dimpled bread rich with olive oil, salt-crusted on top and soft inside. It is eaten as a snack, a side, or split for a sandwich, and the Ligurian version from around Genoa is the benchmark: thin, oily and salty. In the UK it turns up as a bread basket, a starter and a lunch, and the good version is generous with oil and light in crumb.
Calories and nutrition
- Calories
- 300
- Protein
- 7 g
- Carbs
- 40 g
- Fat
- 12 g
- Salt
- 1.2 g
240–370 kcal
Portion: One piece, about 100 g.
Oil content varies; the Genoese style is oilier and higher in fat.
Estimates for a typical portion, based on standard UK and USDA food composition data. Actual values depend on the recipe and the restaurant.
What focaccia is
A wet, well-proved dough is spread in an oiled tin, dimpled all over with the fingers, flooded with more olive oil and coarse salt, and baked until golden. The dimples hold pools of oil that fry the surface; the inside stays soft and open. Genoese focaccia is thinner and oilier; the Puglian version, focaccia barese, is thicker and often topped with tomato and olives. Rosemary is a common addition. Good focaccia is unashamedly oily and salty, which is the point; a dry, bready one has missed it.
How to judge it
The top should be golden and crisp with visible pools where the oil sat, the crumb soft and airy, and it should taste generously of good olive oil and salt. A dense, dry focaccia was under-proved or under-oiled. Made fresh that day is far better; focaccia stales fast. Warm from the oven with nothing on it is how it is best.
How it is eaten
In Liguria it is a morning snack, sometimes dipped in cappuccino, which surprises outsiders. As part of a meal it is a bread to tear and dip in oil, or split and filled with mortadella or cheese for a sandwich. It is not a pizza base, though the dough is related.
Where it is done well in the UK
Italian bakeries and delis, and restaurants that bake their own bread, make the best focaccia. Our directory lists areas with the most Italian restaurants and delis.
How to order it
Eat focaccia warm and fresh; it stales quickly. A good one is generously oily and salty, not dry and bready. Torn and dipped in olive oil is the simplest way. Split and filled with mortadella it is a fine sandwich.
Where it's done well
UK councils with the most focaccia specialists, by restaurant name, in our directory.
Restaurants near you
Search by postcode or use your location to find restaurants likely to serve focaccia near you.
Make it at home
Serves 8 · 120 min
Ingredients
- 400 g strong white flour
- 320 ml warm water
- 7 g instant yeast
- 8 g salt
- extra virgin olive oil, generous
- coarse sea salt, rosemary optional
Method
- Mix the flour, water, yeast and salt into a wet, sticky dough. Leave covered for two hours until doubled and bubbly.
- Oil a baking tin generously. Tip in the dough and stretch it to fill; leave to prove for another hour.
- Dimple all over with oiled fingertips, pour over more olive oil so it pools in the dimples, and scatter coarse salt and rosemary.
- Bake at 220°C for 20 to 25 minutes until golden. Brush with a little more oil out of the oven and eat warm.
Do not be shy with the oil; it fries the surface and is what makes focaccia. A wet dough gives the open crumb.