Dill Pickle Focaccia Bread
Sometimes you just need to eat a whole jar of pickles, and for those occasions may we introduce our dill pickle focaccia. This simple bread recipe requires no kneading, and is packed with briny, salty, tart, and rich flavor all made with just a few simple ingredients. This pickle focaccia is perfect for sandwiches (and you don’t need to add pickles on that sandwich, the bread’s got it covered), but it’s also perfectly complete just on its own. No need for butter or oil or anything else, this fluffy, herby bread will quickly disappear with no additions.
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The Beauty of Focaccia Bread
You don’t have to be a baker to make focaccia- it’s a super simple bread to make, and an especially delicious one to eat. Focaccia is an Italian style of bread that is enriched with olive oil. It is fairly flat, with a dimpled surface. You can make a simple one with just a sprinkling of salt on top, or you can go all out with herbs, vegetables, and more decorating the surface. Some people even use focaccia as a canvas to make focaccia art out of different veggies. Focaccia is a “flat bread”, but not a flatbread. It is physically fairly flat, but unlike tortillas, pita or other flatbreads it is a risen bread, meaning it is made with yeast (either commercial yeast or a sourdough). Because of that it takes a little time, but is generally an unfussy bread that is very forgiving. My favorite use for focaccia is as a sandwich bread, or paired with a pot of brothy beans, but most of the time it doesn’t make it that far. My partner and I stand over the hot oven, cutting piece after piece of the warm bread until we’ve consumed an embarrassing amount of focaccia. This particular pickle focaccia was eating almost instantly. I managed to get one small sandwich out of it, with some homemade vegan deli slices and nothing else. It was all simple, beautiful, delicious.
Looking for Bread Recipes? Try one of these!
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- 4 Ingredient Fluffy Easy Flatbreads (Vegan, G.F. Optional)
- Garlic Yeasted Savory Zucchini Bread
- Garlic and Herb Vegan Nettle Breadsticks (Urtica dioica)
- Just Flour and Water Flatbreads (Oh, and Salt…)
Like Pickles? Try one of these recipes!
- Pickled Magnolia Blossom Sushi
- Swiss Chard Recipe: Ohitashi & Japanese Pickled Stems
- Pickled Maitake Mushrooms (Canning Recipe)
- How to Make Quick Pickled Magnolia Petals
- Maple Chili Foraged Bolete Bao
- Garlicky Lacto-Fermented Snap Peas Snack
Dill Pickle Focaccia Tips and Tricks
- We used the corichon pickles from Trader Joe’s in this recipe, which gave us about 3/4 of a cup of pickle juice for the dough.
- This is a no-knead focaccia, where an overnight proof in the fridge is used to develop the gluten. The flavor also develops over that time. If you are short on time, you could use a stand mixer to knead the dough, and opt for a 2-hour proof at room temperature instead.
- This recipe uses a whole jar of pickles- it’s excellent, but a bit unnecessary, if we’re perfectly honest. For a slightly milder pickle experience, feel free to top with half the jar if you prefer.
- Shape is up to you- I tend to prefer making a round focaccia, but rectangles can be better if you’re going to use it for sandwiches. We ended up making a circular loaf that’s around 12 inches in diameter.
- This bread makes an amazing sandwich with just the addition of vegan deli slices.
Dill Pickle Focaccia Bread
Ingredients
- 1 package (2 1/4 tsp.) instant yeast
- 2 tsp. granulated sugar
- 12 oz. jar cornichon pickles
- 1 tsp. salt
- 5 tbsp. neutral-flavored oil, plus more as needed
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp. dried dill
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl combine the yeast, sugar, and 1/4 cup of warm water. Mix, and set aside for 5-10 minutes until frothy.
- In the meantime, drain the pickles from the pickle juice. Add the pickle juice to a measuring container, and top off with water so you have 1 1/2 cups of liquid. Return the pickles to the jar for later use.
- Add the pickle juice water to the yeast, along with the salt and 2 tbsp. of oil. Mix. Next add the flour and dill and stir well until all the flour is incorporated into a sticky dough. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough inside. Cover with plastic wrap, and allow to prove in the fridge for 12-48 hours.
- After the dough has proved, lightly grease a metal baking tray. Transfer the dough onto it, and stretch it out slightly into your desired shape (circular or rectangular, depending on your pan). Let it rest for 2-3 hours. Towards the end of this second proving time, preheat your oven to 400 F (200C) and roughly chop the jar of pickles into small pieces.
- Before placing the bread in the oven, cover the surface of the dough with the chopped pickles. Use your fingertips to make deep pockets all across the surface of the dough, and top with the remaining 3 tbsp. of oil. Add flakey salt if desired, although I find the pickles add enough salt.
- Place in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, or until the bread is a golden brown. Remove from the oven, allow to cool, and enjoy.
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