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How to Make Fresh Homemade Ciabatta Bread
By Alexandra Stafford
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Last Updated: 02/23/2026
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This post will teach you how to make a crusty, open-crumbed loaf of ciabatta bread. Below you will find a detailed guide full of tips and tricks to help you make a loaf of ciabatta bread with a crisp, golden exterior and a light, airy crumb. Find video guidance below, too!
Originating from the Lake Como region of northern Italy, ciabatta means “slipper” in Italian and is characterized by a crusty exterior and a porous, chewy crumb. Traditionally, ciabatta is made with a poolish or biga, which is a small amount of flour and water mixed with a leavening agent, left to ferment for a short time. Ciabatta dough is wet and sticky, with hydration levels often 80% or higher.
The recipe below is made in this traditional style, using a poolish that ferments for 3 to 4 hours and has an overall hydration of 82%. A few sets of stretches and folds make the dough completely manageable to work with, and the loaves emerge from the oven with a light and airy crumb full of amorphous holes.
This bread is perfect for halving and sandwiching with fillings of all kinds; its crustiness ensures it won’t get soggy if you pack it for the beach or a hike. It’s also, of course, an excellent dinner bread, served alongside a pool of olive oil to dunk into at will.
How to Make Ciabatta Bread, Step by Step
The first step of the recipe calls for making the poolish. To do so, gather your ingredients: flour, water, and instant yeast. SAF is my preference.
Whisk together 50 grams flour and 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast.
Add 50 grams water.
Stir to combine. Cover the bowl and let sit for 3 to 4 hours or until…
… the surface of the dough is dimpled with air pockets.
Add 360 grams water. (This part is really fun … the poolish bubbles up as a unit and floats on top of the water… it really feels alive!)
Stir to combine; then add 12 grams salt and stir again to combine.
Add 450 grams flour, preferably bread flour.
Using a spatula, stir until you have a sticky dough ball. Cover and set aside for 30 minutes.
With wet hands, perform a set of stretches and folds, by grabbing one side of the dough, and pulling it up and to the center. Rotate the bowl a quarter turn, and repeat the grabbing and pulling. Do this until you’ve made a full circle. (Watch the video for more guidance. I employ a sort of “slap and fold” technique, which is helpful with this very wet dough.) Cover the bowl.
Thirty minutes later, repeat the stretching and folding.
If time permits, repeat this stretching and folding twice more at 30-minute intervals. This is what the dough looks like after the third set of stretches and folds:
This is what the dough looks like after the 4th set. Feeling the dough transform from a sticky dough ball to a smooth and elastic one is really cool.
Transfer the dough to a straight-sided vessel and let it rise at room temperature until…
… it doubles in volume. (Note: If you don’t have a straight-sided vessel, you can simply let the dough rise in a bowl.)
Then, punch down (deflate) the dough — I like to remove the dough from the vessel …
… and ball it up using wet hands.
Return the dough to the vessel; then transfer to the fridge.
The dough will likely double in volume overnight in the fridge.
Remove the dough, turn it out onto a work surface…
… then ball it up.
Divide the dough into two equal portions. Ball up each portion. I like to do this with very little or no flour — I find I get better tension with less flour.
Sprinkle a work surface liberally with flour. Place the balls top-side down (the smooth side); then sprinkle the balls liberally with flour. Cover with a tea towel and let rest for 2.5 hours. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
After the 2.5 hours… the dough balls will look like this:
Turn the balls back over…
… then carefully transfer them to a parchment-lined sheet pan.
Bake at 425ºF for 20-25 minutes or until nicely golden:
Let cool at least 20 minutes before slicing.
How to Make Ciabatta Rolls
Follow the recipe in the recipe box below until the step where you remove the dough from the refrigerator; then sprinkle a work surface with flour. Turn the dough out, sprinkle the surface with more flour, and pat it into a rectangle.
Divide into 8 portions.
Transfer to a sheet pan, cover with a tea towel, and let stand for 2 to 2.5 hours.
Transfer the pan to the oven, and bake at 425ºF for 20 to 25 minutes.
Let cool for at least 20 minutes before halving or slicing.
How To Make Fresh Homemade Ciabatta Bread
- Total Time: 24 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 8 rolls 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This post will teach you how to make a crusty, open-crumbed loaf of ciabatta bread. Below you will find a detailed guide full of tips and tricks to help you make a loaf of ciabatta bread with a crisp, golden exterior and a light, airy crumb. Find video guidance below, too.
Notes:
- As always, for best results, use a digital scale to measure the flour.
- I find a bench scraper particularly helpful for this recipe.
- I also really love using a straight-sided vessel (with lid) both for letting the dough rise and storing it in the fridge.
- Water: This is a very high-hydration dough, and depending on the flour you are using and your environment (if you live in a humid environment, for instance), you may need to reduce the amount of water. If, for example, when doing your stretches and folds, the dough never came together in a cohesive ball, I would reduce the water by 50 to 60 grams next time around.
- Flour: I have had success using all-purpose flour, but if you can get your hands on bread flour (I use King Arthur Flour Bread Flour, which is 12.7% protein), that is ideal. All flours absorb water differently. Through troubleshooting with people all over the world, I have learned that the type of flour being used plays a critical role in how the dough turns out, and often the amount of water needs to be reduced, especially if you live in Canada or abroad. You can make the recipe once as written or add the water slowly, mixing as you do, until the dough resembles the dough in the video.
- Tunneling: A common problem with ciabatta is tunneling: large gaping holes running through a loaf of bread. If you end up baking a loaf of hollow ciabatta, try lengthening the final proof. Why? Because when under-proofed dough enters an oven, the remaining energy in the yeast leads to fast and furious gas production. This explosion of gas breaks the gluten structure of the bread, causing the tunnel to form.
Ingredients
For the sponge:
- 50 grams (about 1/3 cup) all-purpose or bread flour
- 2 grams (1/2 teaspoon) instant yeast, SAF is my preference
- 50 grams (about 1/4 cup) water, lukewarm or room temperature
For the ciabatta dough:
- 360 grams (about 1.5 cups) water, lukewarm or room temperature
- 12 grams (about 2 teaspoons) salt, kosher or sea salt
- 450 grams (about 3.5 cups) bread flour, see notes above
Instructions
- Make the poolish: In a large bowl, whisk together the 50 grams flour and the 2 grams (1/2 teaspoon) instant yeast. Add 50 grams water and stir with a spatula until combined. Cover the bowl with a tea towel or cloth bowl cover and set aside for 3 to 4 hours or until the dough’s surface is dimpled with holes.
- Make the dough: To the bowl of the poolish, add the water. The sponge should release from the bowl and parts of it, if not all of it, will float. Add the salt and stir briefly. Add the flour, and stir until you have a wet, sticky dough ball — dough will be very sticky. Cover with a tea towel or cloth bowl cover and let sit for 30 minutes.
- Stretches and folds: With wet hands, grab one side of the dough, and pull up and to the center. Rotate the bowl a quarter turn, and repeat the grabbing and pulling. Do this until you’ve made a full circle. (Watch the video for more guidance. I employ a “slap-and-fold” technique, which is helpful when handling these wet doughs.) Cover the bowl. If time permits, repeat this process three more times at 30-minute intervals for a total of 4 sets of stretches and folds over the course of two hours. If you are short on time, know that doing just one or two sets of stretches and folds is totally fine.
- Let it rise: Transfer the dough to a straight-sided vessel, if you have one, or leave it in the bowl if you don’t. Cover the vessel with a towel and let rise until doubled in volume. Punch down (deflate) the dough — if your dough is still in the bowl, you can deflate it using wet hands right in the bowl; if your dough is in a straight-sided vessel, it may be easier to turn the dough out onto a work surface and ball it up using wet hands to prevent sticking. Return the dough to the vessel, cover it with an airtight lid, and transfer it to the refrigerator immediately for at least 12 hours. The dough can remain in the fridge for as long as 48 hours.
- Portion, shape, and proof:
- For Ciabatta Loaves: Turn the dough out onto a work surface. I prefer to do this step without flour, but absolutely sprinkle your surface lightly with flour as needed to make the dough manageable to work with. Using a bench scraper or your hands, shape the dough into a tight ball; then use the bench scraper to divide the dough in half. If you want perfectly even balls, each portion will way roughly 455 grams. Again, use the bench scraper or your hands to ball up each portion into a tight ball — see video for guidance. Sprinkle your countertop liberally with flour. Place the balls top-side (smooth side) down onto the flour. The seam-side will be on top now, and it may split open — this is fine. Sprinkle the top surface of the balls liberally with flour. Cover with a tea towel and let rest for 2.5 hours.
- For Ciabatta Rolls: Sprinkle a work surface with flour. Turn the dough out onto the work surface, sprinkle the dough with more flour, and pat it into a rectangle. Using a bench scraper, divide into 8 portions. Transfer each portion to a parchment-lined sheet pan, cover with a tea towel, and let stand for 2.5 hours.
- Preheat the oven: After the dough has proofed for 2 hours, heat the oven to 425ºF.
- Bake:
- For Ciabatta Loaves: When the dough has finished proofing, gently flip each ball over — I find a bench scraper to be helpful here. Then use both hands to stretch each ball out gently into a rectangular shaped “slipper”. Transfer to a parchment-lined sheet pan. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for 20 – 25 minutes or until the loaves are golden all around.
- For Ciabatta Rolls: Remove the towel, transfer the pan to the oven, and bake for 20 – 25 minutes, or until the loaves are golden all around.
- Cool: Remove pan from oven. Transfer ciabatta rolls to a cooling rack. Let cool for 20 to 30 minutes before slicing.
- Prep Time: 24 hours
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Yeast
- Cuisine: American, Italian
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
488 Comments on “How to Make Fresh Homemade Ciabatta Bread”
Does it actually take 24 hours for the prep time?
It’s not active work, but yes, you start the day before, make the poolish, let it sit overnight, then proceed.
Hi Alexandra:
I’m going to give this recipe a shot because I haven’t had great results getting good crumb from my Cooke’s ciabatta recipe lately (probably because I didn’t have my scale). I noticed that in the video you stretch and fold and then do some slapping – and you speed it up to indicate that you do it for a while. However the instructions here only mention doing a couple folds in each stretch-and-fold session Personally I’ve only ever made ciabatta by doing a good ten minutes of kneading to develop the gluten, so I’m wondering whether just following the blog will be enough for gluten development? I feel like I should really manipulate the dough for a good ten minutes, but I could be totally wrong. It’s so hard to know with ciabatta, because it can be fussy…
Ciabatta can be fussy indeed. I don’t think you need to work the dough for a good ten minutes. But I do enjoy doing the slap and folds at the end of each set of stretches-and-folds because you really notice the dough transform. Are you still without a scale?? I do feel that for best results a scale is always best when measuring. If you don’t have a scale, the video may be helpful for referencing the texture of the dough at the various phases.
I had given up on making my favorite bread, I was reading your description of deception and sounded just like my experience. I followed your recipe and I am so happy with the result… Highly recommend this recipe and yes I used the scale, my dough got yo be a little too wet so I dunk my finger in flour instead of water during the slap and fold
Great to hear this, Ana! Thanks for sharing the tip about flour during the slap and folds, too…helpful for others whose dough might be on the wet side.
Made this twice in the last month and about to go for a third round today. Consistently great! What would you recommend for freezing? Either the dough or the baked bread. It would be nice to have some at the ready when I don’t have the patience to wait a whole day!
Great to hear, Ellen! I would freeze the baked bread. It freezes beautifully.
I made this Ciabatta today and it came out perfect,very happy! Thank you for the great recipe,and tips.
Great to hear, Deb! Thanks so much for writing 🙂
Hi, this is such a great recipe/instructions, my ciabatta worked out so well!! Waited very patiently to cut into mine and now that I have, I have started making some more already! Thanks so much!
Wonderful to hear this, Elysia! Thanks so much for writing 🙂 🙂 🙂
Haven’t tried the recipe, but looks great and comments are stupendous. I didn’t quite understand the pop-up texts in the video stating “Can use flour as needed” and “Again, can use flour as needed” appearing when working with the dough on the wooden board. Is this additional flour in reference to the dough sticking to the board or in reference to the stretching of the dough, i.e., it the dough were too wet. Thanks
Hi Robert! Sorry for the confusion: the pop-up texts regarding flour refer to additional flour if the dough is sticking to your work surface or hands.
Loved this recipe; made the two large loaves, will make the individual rolls next time. And your focaccia is another new go-to for me.
A question if you see this…will try your peasant sandwich loaves soon. Have made my own loaf breads for years, but the last batch was fluffy inside, crispy outside, so very tough to slice.
Have seen that buttering the top before baking makes for a softer crust…?
Thank you!
Hi Andrew! Great to read all of this. I think buttering should help keep the crust softer. I’m not sure what else you can do there… I’ll think on it.
Hi, I made this recipe a few times. I somehow get different results because I use different types of flours. However, the question yhat I wanna ask since I dont seem to get right results sometimes. Is the oven with or without ventillation? I almost always use the non ventilation setting when I bake bread but my ciabatta needs to be turned in order to have a nice color all over. I dont mind that. If I use the ventilation at the temperature above, the ciabatta get a little bit too dark and the crust a bit hard. So, please, what is the setting you use it this case?
Hi Catalina! I do not use ventilation (which I’m assuming is the same as the convection setting?) when I bake any of my breads. That said, if you are looking for more color, the ventilation perhaps at a lower setting is good option. Alternatively, you could use the non ventilation setting but raise the temperature. You can start at a higher temperature, then adjust after 10 minutes if the bread is browning too quickly.
I just realized I didnt let you know that this recipe is great and the ciabatta is very good. My only concern is about the crust since that is in most cases influenced by the baking temperature.
I really really love long fermented doughs (pizza, focaccia, ciabatta are among my favorites) so waiting is not a problem for me. Thank you ever so much for this great recipe!
I’m not familiar with instant yeast. I’ve been using starter. Can I use the starter instead of instant yeast and if so how much would I use?
Hi Will! Use this sourdough ciabatta bread recipe.
Perfect! I love ciabatta but normally have to drive a while to find a store that sells it. I made this recipe last night and it tasted equally as good as the loaf I normally buy. This is the perfect recipe! If you like ciabatta, then make this recipe and you won’t be disappointed. I didn’t change a thing!
Great to hear, Kirk! Thanks so much for writing and sharing your experience 🙂
Hi Alexandra, I’ve been making your focaccia for years and it’s my go to. I can do it without having to look at your recipe anymore 😅 I’d love to try ciabatta but I’m quite confused. Written it says to do the stretch and fold 4x but in your video, it says 3. Which one should I follow? I’m so new to bread and I’m so scared of messing it up 🫠
Can’t mess it up! Three or four times is fine, but shoot for 4. Good luck!
In regards to the sponge, you make mention that parts, if not all of it should release from the sides of the bowl and float. I was trying to pre-test it using the float test that is used for sourdough starters, but every time I dropped a spoonful in to water it immediately sank. After 5 and a half hours, it was still sinking so I decided to go for it anyway and pour the remaining water in the bowl. Only parts of it in the middle floated, but the sides didn’t release. I am wondering why all of it did not release and float, and how this will affect the overall final result of the bread? I measured everything on a scale and used all purpose flour for the sponge. I am using bread flour for the dough.
Did the sponge look bubbly? Or similar to the video and photos? Is it possible that your yeast is old?
I almost followed your recipe. After putting it in the fridge, I checked it after 3 hours to find that my dough had already doubled in size. Now that I’m shaping it into a loaf, I discovered I used 6 grams of yeast.
I think it’s going to be okay, though. The bubbles are nice and large and the ball is holding it’s shape surprisingly well. Looking forward to eating!
Wonderful! Hope the final product turned out great. Thanks for writing 🙂 🙂 🙂
Hi. Have made your ciabatta several times now with great success.
Even my husband has become a bread baking enthusiast and he fancies himself as a ‘top rated ciabatta baker’!!😂👏🏻👏🏻
I’m curious to know whether you have ever made an olive ciabatta version of your recipe. We are keen to try.
Thank you.
So great to hear, Sally! Love this. I have not tried adding olives, but I would suggest adding them after the second set of stretches and folds or rather right before the third set: sprinkle them over the dough, use the stretches and folds to incorporate them, then let the dough rest. Repeat with the fourth set of stretches and folds. I might start with 1 cup sliced olives?
Hi there-I’m really looking forward to making your ciabatta. I’m imagining lots of uses…I’d like to add some garlic confit. Should I do it between the folds? Thanks in advance.
I think with garlic confit, you could add it right at the beginning when you add the water. Between the stretches and folds would also work.
I’ve tried a number of ciabatta recipes, and this is my hands-down favorite! I make it into 8 large rolls that are perfect for a 1/3 lb burger or a deli sandwich, which freeze well so I always have them on hand. I LOVE that they only take about 20 minutes of total work!
My tip for handsomely square ciabatta rolls: After the long second rise, transfer them onto a tray of semolina flour. Then lift them out one by one, with four fingers hooked into the four corners of the roll (I use index/ring on each hand), and gently stretch them into a square as you transfer them to the baking sheet. They should come out the exact right size for frozen hamburger patties!
So great to read all of this, Geoff! Thanks so much for writing and sharing your shaping technique. I’m going to try! I love the idea of more evenly/handsomely shaped rolls.
Holy CRAP. I didn’t know I, as a normal human, could ever make bread this good. I am a bread rookie and just becoming more adventurous. When the grocery store was out of ciabatta, I decided to google it and stumbled upon this one. By the GRACE OF GOD! That’s how good this is! My husband is already asking me to make another batch. I live in Alabama and it’s pretty humid here; my first try turned out a liiittle too wet, but I’m going to reduce by 50g water per the troubleshooting next time and see if it’s EVEN BETTER next time. Thank you so much for the recipe!
Yay!!! How wonderful to read all of this Arianne! Thanks so much for writing 🙂
I’ll try this out and let you know how it goes. Is it possible to freeze to dough before before the final proof?
Thanks
Chris
I think you could. This is such a high hydration dough, however, that it worries me a little bit — I worry the freezing might compromise the texture of the finished ciabatta. That said: worth a shot!
I made this using all purpose flour and it turned out perfect! While I do have experience making bread I’ve never made ciabatta before and this recipe was so easy to follow and make correctly. This recipe was excellent and made the perfect bread for sandwiches, as a side of pasta or even just dipping in olive oil.
I made this using all purpose flour and it turned out perfect! While I do have experience making bread I’ve never made ciabatta before and this recipe was so easy to follow and make correctly. This recipe was excellent and made the perfect bread for sandwiches, as a side of pasta or even just dipping in olive oil. I will be making this again!
So nice to read all of this, Hannah 🙂 🙂 🙂 Thanks for writing.
Hi Alexandra, thanks for this recipe! I’m wondering how long the first rise (at room temp) usually takes before it doubles in size?
Hi Ruth! It all depends on the time of year and the temperature of your kitchen. In the summer it will rise more quickly than in the winter. I’d say around 2 hours on average.
Thanks Alexandra, that’s helpful to know!
Very nice video! The bread came out great. When you say 360 grams of water do you mean 360 milliliters? Metric liquid measure is usually in ml. But it was pretty close using grams, it’s the same as 1.5 cups US measure. Also the dough was quite sticky throughout the process, it stuck to my hands and the bowl. But it made no difference. Thanks for a great recipe! It took 25 hrs but well worth it. Will definitely make it again.
Great to hear, Marc! Thanks for writing. On my scale, when I measure in grams or milliliters, the amount is the same, so I just use all grams for consistency purposes.
This is a GREAT recipe. I make it a lot.
It might seem imposing at first but don’t let that keep you from doing it!
The only change I make is using half the salt (6 g) which seems more than enough.
The right flour is very important make sure to have the 12% version.
I find that leaving the dough in the fridge for days makes it better. One week is absolutely no problem.
Great to read all of this! Thanks so much for writing and sharing your notes 🙂
I’m trying out this recipe right now, but I had a question. When you cover the dough with a towel, do you keep it dry or dampen the towel? I’m very new to baking but I usually cover my pizza dough with a damp towel. What do you do here? Thank you!
Hi! I do not dampen the towel 🙂
What an amazing recipe. Will definitely give it a try. Yet I have one questio. Can we use active dry yeast instead of instant one.. if yes how much.
Await your reply. Thanks and regards
Kruti
yes! use the same amount.
I have made a fair amount of bread. This was my first try at ciabatta. I was looking for a recipe because we had just eaten some at a restaurant that was very good.
I watched your video and followed your instructions exactly (4 turns). It came out amazing!! I made it for a dinner we gave for two other couples. We went through the first loaf in one sitting. BIG HIT! I have already told some baking friends about your recipe. They want to make some, too. Thanks!
So nice to read this Marcia! Thanks so much for writing and sharing all of this.
First, I’m impressed with your devotion to your craft and all that you went through to perfect this recipe for others. I just pulled 2 loaves of Ciabatta out of the oven and they are perfect!! The crust is crunchy, chewy and the inside (for lack of a better word) is beautiful! Pretty time consuming for bread so to have it turn out so beautiful (because I watched your video and followed directions to the T) is magic and rewarding! I will be taking one of these loaves to friends for dinner tonight.
THANK YOU!!
I will find the time to make this bread again. It’s fun.
Awwww so nice reading all of this! Thanks so much for taking the time to write and share your experience. So glad it all turned out well, and I hope you do find time soon to make another batch 🙂 🙂 🙂
So this has ruined all other ciabatta for me. SO delicious, and the instructions are comprehensive and easy to follow. Amazing when eaten on its own or in recipes like bruschetta or chicken pesto sandwiches. Thank you for this recipe!
Great to hear, Hannah! Thanks for writing 🙂 🙂 🙂