Sourdough Discard Focaccia Recipe (3-Hr) – Easy & Airy
The jar of sourdough discard sitting in your fridge turns into a full pan of golden, olive-oil-dimpled focaccia here. A small amount of instant yeast does the actual lifting, since discard alone is too sluggish to raise a dough on its own, so you get the tang and depth of sourdough without an overnight starter feeding schedule. The result is a proper focaccia: crisp on the bottom, soft and open inside, with pools of oil and flaky salt on top.
Ingredients
- 500g (about 4 cups) bread flour
- 375g (1 1/2 cups) warm water
- 200g (about 3/4 cup) sourdough discard, unfed
- 1 tsp instant yeast
- 2 1/2 tsp fine salt, plus more for topping
- 5 tbsp olive oil, divided, plus more for the pan
- Flaky sea salt and fresh rosemary, for topping
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk the warm water and sourdough discard together until the discard is fully broken up.
- Add the bread flour, instant yeast, and salt. Mix with a spatula or your hand until no dry flour remains and a shaggy, sticky dough forms.
- Drizzle 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over the dough, cover the bowl, and let it rest for 30 minutes.
- With wet hands, fold the dough over itself from each side (stretch and fold) 4 times. Cover and repeat this fold every 30 minutes, 3 more times.
- After the final fold, cover and let the dough bulk rise until puffy and roughly doubled, about 1 1/2 hours.
- Coat a 9×13-inch pan generously with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Turn the dough out into the pan and gently stretch it toward the corners without deflating it too much.
- Cover loosely and let it rest 20 minutes, then stretch it the rest of the way to fill the corners.
- Cover again and let the dough do its second rise until puffy, about 30-40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over the dough. Oil your fingertips and press them firmly into the dough all over to make deep dimples.
- Scatter flaky salt and rosemary over the top, then bake for 22-25 minutes, until deeply golden on top and the bottom sounds hollow when tapped.
- Let the focaccia cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack to finish cooling before slicing.
Why This Sourdough Discard Focaccia Works
Bread flour’s higher protein content builds a strong gluten network during the folds, which is what traps the gas bubbles that give focaccia its open, airy crumb instead of a dense one. The sourdough discard adds tang and a slightly more complex flavor than a plain yeasted dough, even though it isn’t active enough to leaven the loaf by itself — that job still belongs to the instant yeast. Dimpling the dough right before baking, rather than earlier, keeps those trapped gas pockets mostly intact while still creating the little wells that fill with olive oil and turn golden and slightly fried at the edges.
Tips for the Best Sourdough Discard Focaccia
Use discard that’s a day or two old and still a little bubbly rather than a flat, dead-looking scoop straight from the back of the fridge — it doesn’t need to be active, but it shouldn’t smell overly acidic either. Don’t skimp on the olive oil in the pan; it’s what fries the bottom crust as the focaccia bakes, and a dry pan gives you a pale, sticking loaf instead. If your kitchen is cool, the rises will simply take longer — go by how puffy the dough looks rather than the clock.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Dimpling the dough as soon as it hits the pan, before it’s had its second rise, presses out most of the gas you spent hours building and leaves you with a flatter, denser bread. Under-oiling the pan is the second most common miss — it’s supposed to look like too much oil pooling around the edges. Skipping the stretch-and-folds and just kneading the dough once at the start also works, technically, but produces a tighter, less airy crumb than the fold method here.
What to Serve With It
Warm focaccia is good enough on its own with a shallow dish of olive oil and balsamic for dipping, but it also makes an excellent side for a bowl of soup or a base for open-faced sandwiches. Cut into smaller squares, it holds up well on a cheese or charcuterie board.
Storage
Store cooled focaccia in an airtight container or bag at room temperature for up to 2 days. For longer storage, wrap tightly and freeze whole or in slices for up to 2 months. Reheat in a 350°F oven for 8-10 minutes to re-crisp the crust — the microwave will leave it tough and chewy instead. Made this way, sourdough discard focaccia is one of the easiest uses for extra starter you’ll find.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use discard straight from the fridge? Yes — unfed discard works fine here since the instant yeast is doing the actual leavening. Just give it a quick stir before measuring.
Do I really need instant yeast if I’m using discard? For a same-day bake, yes. Sourdough discard on its own is too weak to reliably raise a full pan of dough within a few hours — the instant yeast is what keeps this recipe fast.
Can I make the dough the night before? Yes. After the stretch-and-folds, refrigerate the covered dough overnight, then let it come to room temperature and continue with the pan rise the next day.
Can I freeze the baked focaccia? Yes, well-wrapped focaccia freezes well for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature and reheat in the oven rather than the microwave to bring the crust back.
