Black pepper focaccia is soft and fluffy bread with a crispy crust and mild spicy kick. This bread recipe is easy to make at home, great for sandwiches or as a side with soup or salad.
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two sugar bugs has some homemade bread recipes, but I am hoping to expand this category in the coming year. We are a bread loving family and there is nothing more intoxicating than the smell of fresh bread baking! Don’t be fooled, I have been baking bread since I was a little girl and I will share my several decades of tricks with you!
Black pepper focaccia is more simple to make at home than you think. The kneading is the most challenging part as the dough is quite wet and sticky, which is what helps it to bake up with a light texture.
The homemade focaccia has a mild spicy flavor {which you can amp up}, but it’s very family friendly.
💗 why you need this Italian bread recipe
Texture ~ it’s soft and fluffy. Just begging to be dipped in soup, poached egg yolks or made into a sandwich.
Easy dough ~ whisk the dry ingredients, add the water and olive oil and mix.
Simple ingredients ~ I bet you have everything you need in your kitchen right now!
🛒 ingredients and substitutions
Please scroll to the printable recipe card at the end of this post for the full list of ingredients and baking directions.
- Bread flour ~ bread flour has a higher protein content, which means you will get more gluten formation and a taller, airy interior in your homemade focaccia.
- Sugar ~ just a small amount to help the yeast do it’s best work.
- Kosher salt ~ adds balance to the bread and keeps it from lacking flavor. If you only have table salt use half the amount.
- Yeast ~ gives the focaccia it’s rise and helps the bread to get light and fluffy. I use active dry yeast.
- Black pepper ~ you can’t have black pepper focaccia without it! In my testing, 1 teaspoon of pre-ground black pepper was sufficient and gave a nice subtle spicy flavor. With freshly cracked pepper, more was needed for the same level of spice.
- Olive oil ~ the olive oil flavor does come through, so like olive oil cupcakes, be sure to use one with a flavor you like.
- Water ~ you want warm water, between 100 - 100°F, so that the yeast will activate. If the water is too hot, it can kill the yeast and if it’s too cold, it will not activate it. I use my Thermapen to quickly check the temperature.
- Parmesan cheese ~ adds a little flavor to the bread. Pecorino and asiago are also great choices.
- Herbs ~ also adds flavor. I used thyme {it’s my favorite!}, but rosemary, oregano, chives or a combination of your favorites will work. You can also leave off the herbs all together.
- Flaky sea salt {not shown} ~ for finishing the baked focaccia and adding flavor. I like this Murray River Salt.
💭 how do I get my bread to rise in a cold house?
If your kitchen is cold like mine, you can create a warm spot! I usually create a warm environment in our Breville Smart Oven. A regular oven also works. Preheat the oven to the lowest temperature setting {ideally less than 200°F, you really don't want it warmer than about 90°F in there}. Leave the oven on for 2-3 minutes, then turn off the oven, but leave the door closed. When the dough is ready to rise, place it in the barely warm oven.
If using this method, make sure you remove the unbaked dough from the oven before preheating it to bake!
Remember to pin this recipe to Pinterest! Use the button on the recipe card or the share buttons on the side or bottom of this page.
🥣 how to make one bowl bread dough
Add the bread flour, active dry yeast, granulated sugar, black pepper and kosher salt to a bowl and mix with a fork to combine.
In a spouted measuring cup add the warm water and olive oil.
Then drizzle the mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until the dough comes together. It will be a wet dough. Let the focaccia dough rest in the bowl for 5 minutes.
On a well floured surface, knead the dough for about 5 minutes or until smooth in texture. {I use between 2-4 tablespoons of flour for kneading}. The dough is VERY wet and sticky and I HIGHLY recommend using a bench knife to assist in this process! If you don't have a bench knife, try wetting your hands with a little water. King Arthur Baking has some good tips for kneading wet dough.
When the dough is smooth, take 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil and grease an 8x8 baking pan. Use the bench knife to transfer the dough to the oiled pan and turn the dough to coat it with the oil. Cover it with a tea towel and place in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size, about 30-40 minutes.
Once the focaccia has doubled, use your clean fingers to spread the dough to cover the entire bottom of the pan.
Cover with the tea towel and place back in your warm spot to rise another 30-40 minutes.
🥖 how to prepare the focaccia bread for the oven
Towards the end of the second rise, preheat the oven to 425°F.
Combine olive oil, shredded parmesan cheese and chopped fresh thyme. When the second rise is complete, spread the parmesan olive oil mixture over the dough. Then use your clean fingers to dimple the dough.
Place in the preheated oven and bake until golden. If you’d like to test the bread by temperature, it should be 190°F on a thermometer. Remove the black pepper focaccia from the oven and brush with one more tablespoon of olive oil and then sprinkle with flaky sea salt {another few cracks of pepper can be done here, if you want a more spicy bread}.
Cool for 10-15 minutes, then slice and serve.
💬 frequently asked questions
how do you serve focaccia bread?
You can serve focaccia warm or at room temperature. It’s great for breakfast, served with soup or salad for lunch or made into a sandwich.
what is the difference between focaccia and ciabatta?
Focaccia and ciabatta are both Italian breads. Focaccia bread tends to be softer and baked as a flatbread, while ciabatta bread is baked as a loaf and has a chewier texture.
👩🏻🍳 tips for the homemade focaccia bread
I know I am a broken record here, but measure your ingredients correctly. For less dishes to wash, use a food scale and skip the measuring cups! This is the scale that I use and love.
In my opinion, a bench knife is a necessity for this recipe! The wet and sticky dough is MUCH easier to knead with the help of one. I have several of these plastic bench knives; they are inexpensive and helpful in the kitchen.
When you spread the dough to cover the bottom of the pan after the first rise, be gentle to not remove too much of the air the dough gained, which will result in a more dense homemade bread.
Be careful when creating the dimples in the dough after the second rise. You want to push through to the bottom of the dough, but don’t break through and tear the bottom of the dough.
Don’t be afraid of the extra olive oil used before and after baking! It’s part of why this focaccia with black pepper tastes SO GOOD.
Remember your oven is different than mine and the baking time may be slightly different. I use this oven thermometer to ensure my oven is at the temperature I think it is.
The finished black pepper focaccia will have a slightly firm, crusty outside and a soft and fluffy interior with an irregular crumb pattern.
🫙 how to store
Homemade bread is best eaten the day it is made. If you have leftovers, store it in an airtight container or tightly wrapped in plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 3 days. Parmesan, pecorino or asiago cheese are all hard cheeses and are considered safe at room temperature for a few days.
Black pepper focaccia can also be frozen. Wrap tightly and store in an airtight container or zip-top bag in the freezer for up to two months. Allow to defrost before serving.
Remember to snap a picture and tag me @twosugarbugs on Instagram if you make this Copycat Black Pepper Focaccia. It warms my heart to see you bring these recipes to life! Thank you for being here and happy baking!
🥯 more easy bread recipes
If you make this recipe {or any recipe!} from two sugar bugs please come back and leave a review and a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating. I read every comment, and I LOVE hearing from you!
📖 recipe
Fluffy Black Pepper Focaccia
recipe created and tested by:
I highly recommend using weight (metric) measurements when available for more accuracy and the best results.
Please note
When using 2x or 3x ingredients, the grams in parenthesis DO NOT adjust, you will have to manually do that.
Ingredients
- 2 cups bread flour (240g) + more for kneading
- 1 teaspoon active dry yeast (5g)
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar (10g)
- 1 teaspoon black pepper*
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup warm water 105-110°F (240mL)
- ¼ cup olive oil divided (50g)
- 1 tablespoon parmesan cheese shredded**
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme*** chopped
- Flaky sea salt
Instructions
- Add the bread flour (2 cups/240g), active dry yeast (1 teaspoon/5g), granulated sugar (2 teaspoons/10g), black pepper (1 teaspoon) and kosher salt (½ teaspoon) to a bowl and mix with a fork to combine.
- In a spouted measuring cup add the warm water (1 cup/240mL at 105-110°F) and olive oil (2 tablespoons/25g). Then drizzle the mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until the dough comes together. It will be a wet dough. Let the focaccia dough rest in the bowl for 5 minutes.
- On a well floured surface, knead the dough for about 5 minutes or until smooth in texture. (I use between 2-4 tablespoons of flour for kneading). The dough is VERY wet and sticky and I HIGHLY recommend using a bench knife to assist in this process! If you don't have a bench knife, try wetting your hands with a little water.
- When the dough is smooth, take 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil and grease an 8x8 baking pan. Use the bench knife to transfer the dough to the oiled pan and turn the dough to coat it with the oil. Cover it with a tea towel and place in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size, about 30-40 minutes.
- Once the focaccia has doubled, use your clean fingers to spread the dough to cover the entire bottom of the pan. Cover with the tea towel and place back in your warm spot to rise another 30-40 minutes.
- Towards the end of the second rise, preheat the oven to 425°F. Then combine 1 tablespoon of olive oil/15g, the shredded parmesan cheese (1 tablespoon) and 2 teaspoons of chopped fresh thyme.
- When the second rise is complete, spread the parmesan olive oil mixture over the dough. Then use your clean fingers to dimple the dough.
- Place in the preheated oven and bake until golden, about 16-20 minutes. If you’d like to test the bread by temperature, it should be 190°F on a thermometer.
- Remove the black pepper focaccia from the oven and brush with one more tablespoon of olive oil and then sprinkle with flaky sea salt (another few cracks of pepper can be done here, if you want a more spicy bread).
- Cool for 10-15 minutes, then slice and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutrition information is based on third-party calculations, is an estimate only and may not be entirely accurate. Actual nutritional values will vary based on brands used and portion sizes.
Mary Jo Cary says
This recipe is delicious! Crispy crust and a nice fluffy interior)
I followed the recipe as written. The only recommendation I have is in step 6, sprinkle the grated Parmesan on top of the focaccia and then sprinkle the olive oil on top. ( mixing the two together and trying to spread made a very uneven topping. )
Sue says
This focaccia was a great match with some garden veggie soup! Perfect crisp outside with fluffy inside! Thank you for this recipe.
Tasia says
Hi Sue, so happy to hear you loved this focaccia bread! Thank you for coming back to leave a review.