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overnight potato focaccia
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Overnight Potato Focaccia

The fluffiest overnight potato focaccia! Made with mashed potato & the crispy skin then cold proved overnight for next level flavour.
Prep Time45 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Proving Time1 day
Total Time1 day 55 minutes
Course: Bread, Lunch
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 6 People
Author: Ben Racey

Equipment

  • Stand Mixer
  • Potato Ricer
  • Dough Scraper
  • 9" x 13" Baking Tin
  • Cooling Rack
  • Small Ovenproof Dish
  • Sieve

Ingredients

Focaccia

  • 2 Potatoes (Around 300g In Total) See Notes
  • 1½ tbsp Vegetable Oil
  • 475 g Water 25.5°c/78°f
  • 4 g Dried Active Yeast
  • 530 g Strong White Bread Flour
  • 14 g Maldon Sea Salt
  • 20 g Olive Oil

Rosemary & Garlic Oil

  • 120 g Olive Oil
  • 6 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary
  • 6 Cloves Garlic Peeled

Instructions

Rosemary & Garlic Oil

  • Preheat an oven to 160°c/140°c fan (320°f/285°f).
  • Place the olive oil, rosemary & garlic into a small ovenproof dish, cover with foil then bake for 30-40 minutes or until the garlic is soft.
  • Leave to cool completely then pass the oil into a container, through a sieve.
  • Store in the fridge until ready to use.
    The oil can be made several days in advance & should be stored in the fridge.

Focaccia Dough

  • Preheat an oven to 200°c/180°c fan (390°f/355°f).
  • Place your potatoes onto a baking tray, drizzle with the vegetable oil then bake in the preheated oven until the skin is crispy & the inside is soft. This will take around an hour.
    Use a sharp knife to check that the potato is cooked all the way through.
  • Let the potatoes cool slightly then cut in half & scoop out the flesh. Use a potato ricer (or fork) to mash the potato then weigh out 185g.
    Chop the crispy potato skin into small pieces then add into the mash potato. Leave to cool to room temperature.
  • Next, add the yeast & water to the bowl of a stand mixer then whisk together.
  • Add in the flour, mix with the dough hook until just combined then cover & leave to autolyse for 30 minutes.
  • Next, add in the potato, salt & olive oil & mix on a medium speed until the dough passes the windowpane test. This will take around 15 minutes.
  • Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled mixing bowl & leave at room temperature for 1 hour. During this hour, coil fold the dough every 15 minutes.
  • Cover the bowl with clingfilm & place in the fridge for at least 24 hours (no more than 48).

Baking

  • Grease & line a 9”x13” baking tin then pour in 2 tbsp of the rosemary oil.
  • Tip the dough into the tin & gently spread it out with your hands. Don't worry if it doesn't completely fill the tin at this point.
  • Cover the dough loosely with clingfilm (or an upside down tin) & leave at room temperature for 1½ - 2 hours, until the dough has risen slightly & is very bubbly.
  • Whilst your dough is proving, preheat an oven to 220°c/200°c fan (430°f/390°f).
  • Once the dough has risen, spoon 2-3 tablespoons of rosemary oil over the focaccia & use your fingers to dimple the dough all over, making sure that the dough reaches all corners of the tin.
  • Sprinkle the focaccia with a generous amount of Maldon salt then bake until a deep golden brown, 25-30 minutes.
  • Once baked, brush the focaccia with 1 tbsp of rosemary oil, leave to cool in the tin for 30 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely before serving.

Notes

1. To Bake In An Aga - Bake the bread on the grid shelf which is placed on the floor of the roasting oven. The bread will take 25-30 minutes to cook.
2. Mashed Potatoes - To get 185g of mashed potato, we’ll need to cook a couple of raw potatoes that weigh around 300g in total. This ensures that we will have enough, any extra can be eaten or saved for something else.
3. Dough Hydration - This dough has a high level of hydration which means that it will seem very sticky. This is normal & the dough will get easier to work with as it is kneaded. – I recommend using a stand mixer.
4. Cold Prove - For the best flavour, make sure to give the dough at least 24 hours in the fridge, but no more than 48.
5. Yeast - You can use either fast action yeast or dried active yeast for this recipe, the amounts are the same for both. I’ve found that dried active yeast produces a more active/bubbly dough.
6. Flour - For most of my bread recipes, I use a Canadian strong white bread flour from Shipton Mill. You can use any bread flour but I get the results using this.
7. Baking Tin - The tin I use to cook the bread in, is a 9”x13” Nordic Ware tin. Any tin of this size will work, it’s best to use one that is at least 2.5” deep.