Overnight Focaccia with Parmesan - Easy No Knead Recipe

Overnight Focaccia with Parmesan - make focaccia in your sleep with my super easy no knead, no sugar recipe for the best ever focaccia!

What if I said you could make focaccia while you sleep? That's what you will be able to do with my Overnight Focaccia recipe. Honest.

I have to come clean, cooking with yeast is not really my thing. Never has been. Quite frankly, I'm just not good at it...put the dough in a warm spot to let it rise, blah blah blah...I never really got it right. I would come back to my bowl full of dough expecting big things and was always disappointed.

That was then...cue drumroll...but now I have the magic formula......

Refrigerator + patience = bread!!!! Or in this case parmesan focaccia bread! Total game changer. Plus. PLUS. You don't even have to knead it!!!!

Ingredients you will need for this recipe

• plain/all-purpose flour
• dry yeast
• water
• fine salt
• olive oil
• fresh parmesan

*Please see the recipe card below for exact quantities and detailed instructions

How to make this recipe

1. Mix together flour, yeast, and salt in a large bowl.
2. Add lukewarm water and mix to form a wet dough.
3. Coat the top of the dough ball with olive oil.
4. Cover with glad wrap/cling film and refrigerate overnight.
5. Remove glad wrap/cling film.
6. Scrape the dough into the center to deflate it.
7. Tip the dough into the prepared tin and pull it into a roughly rectangular shape.
8. Allow dough to rise at room temperature until it fills the tray.
9. Press dimples into the dough with your fingers.
10. Gently brush olive oil over the surface of the dough, top with parmesan, and bake.

My top tips for making this recipe

• The dough needs to be in the fridge for at least 18 hours, but longer is ok too. I have left it for 24 hours with the same result.
• You will need a pretty big bowl for this recipe, at least 14 cups/3.5 L.
• This dough is very wet and loose when it comes out of the refrigerator so I find it easiest to just use gravity to pour it out into the middle of the prepared tray. Trying to lift it out is just too tricky!
• The second rise (at room temperature) will take 2 - 4 hours, depending on the temperature in your kitchen. For me, the temperature inside at home here has been between 19c and 21c during the testing of this focaccia recipe and the second rise was ready at about the 3 - 3.5 hour mark.
• I find the easiest way to get my 500ml (2 cups) of lukewarm water is to put ½ cup of boiling water into a measuring jug, then top it with 1 ½ cups of room temperature water. I then give it a test and adjust from there.

Serving suggestions and ideas for add-ins

• I sometimes add fresh herbs and garlic into the olive oil that goes on just before baking:
  • 1 ½ teaspoon fresh rosemary leaves
  • 1 tablespoon fresh sage leaves
  • ¼ cup firmly packed fresh basil
  • 2 fresh garlic cloves
  • add these to a mortar and pestle with 3 tablespoon of olive oil and grind to a smooth-ish paste then brush onto the dough before sprinkling with parmesan and baking.
• A traditional way to eat focaccia is to dunk it in olive oil and then dukkah (a blend of nuts, spices, and seeds), or with just a herb dipping oil.
• What else to eat this overnight focaccia with? Anything and everything as far as I'm concerned! We have even eaten this focaccia as a bread accompaniment on a curry night, it was great for soaking up the curry sauces like a sponge! My BFF christened it focaccia-naan!

Other recipes you may enjoy

Super Soft Flatbreads - quick & simple soft flatbread recipe, made with yoghurt and done in 20 minutes.

Cheesy Herb and Garlic Flatbread - an easy recipe for flatbreads stuffed with mozzarella, garlic, and herbs.

Overnight Focaccia with Parmesan

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Overnight Focaccia with Parmesan - make focaccia in your sleep with my super easy no-knead, no sugar recipe for the best ever focaccia!

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Prep Time: 22 hours

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 22 hours 35 minutes

Servings: 12

Calories: 194kcal

Author: Lee-Ann Grace

Ingredients

• 525 g plain/all-purpose flour (3½ cups)
• 7 g dry yeast
• 2 teaspoon fine salt
• 500 ml lukewarm water (2 cups)
• 4 tablespoon olive oil (divided)
• 3 tablespoon grated fresh parmesan cheese

Instructions

• Mix together plain/all-purpose flour (525g/3½ cups), dry yeast (7g), and fine salt (2 tsp) in a large bowl then add lukewarm water (500ml/2 cups) and continue to mix to form a wet dough.
• Coat the top of the dough ball with olive oil (1 tbsp), cover the bowl with glad wrap/cling film, and refrigerate overnight or at least 18 hours.
• Line a 20cm x 30cm x 2½cm (8" x 12" x 1") baking tin with baking paper and set aside.
• Remove glad wrap/cling film and scrape the dough into a ball in the center of the bowl to deflate it. I use a plastic dough scraper for this, but a silicone spatula would work too.
• Tip/pour the dough straight out of the bowl into the middle of the prepared tin and pull it into a rectangular shape towards the edges of the tin.
• Allow dough to rise at room temperature for 2 to 4 hours until it roughly doubles in size and fills the tray.
• Meanwhile preheat the oven to 210c/410f.
• Coat your fingers in a little olive oil and press dimples into the dough with your fingers. Gently brush remaining olive oil (3 tbsp) over the surface of the dough, sprinkle grated parmesan (3 tbsp) evenly over the dough.
• Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until cooked through.

Notes

• The dough needs to be in the fridge for at least 18 hours, but longer is ok too. I have left it for 24 hours with the same result.
• You will need a pretty big bowl for this recipe, at least 14 cups/3.5 L.
• This dough is very wet and loose when it comes out of the refrigerator so I find it easiest to just use gravity to pour it out into the middle of the prepared tray. Trying to lift it out is just too tricky!
• The second rise (at room temperature) will take 2 - 4 hours, depending on the temperature in your kitchen. For me, the temperature inside at home here has been between 19c and 21c during the testing of this focaccia recipe and the second rise was ready at about the 3.5-hour mark.
• I find the easiest way to get my 500ml (2 cups) of lukewarm water is to put ½ cup of boiling water into a measuring jug, then top it with 1 ½ cups of room temperature water. I then give it a test and adjust from there.
• I sometimes add fresh herbs and garlic into the olive oil that goes on just before baking.
  • 1 ½ teaspoon fresh rosemary leaves
  • 1 tablespoon fresh sage leaves
  • ¼ cup firmly packed fresh basil
  • 2 fresh garlic cloves
  • add these to a mortar and pestle with 3 tablespoon of olive oil and grind to a paste then brush onto the dough before baking.

*Please note that the amount of calories per serve is provided as a guide only, as ingredients and cooking methods can vary greatly*