Sourdough Ciabatta Rolls Recipe

Soft and chewy inside, crisp and golden outside, these sourdough ciabatta rolls are perfect for sandwiches, sides, and soaking up sauces. It's a fun way to switch up your sourdough baking and put your starter to good use!

Prep Time:20

Cook Time:20

Other Time:1 2

Email This Recipe

Get this recipe link emailed straight to your inbox!

Ingredients

To Feed Your Starter:

▢ 40 grams sourdough starter
▢ 40 grams unbleached all-purpose flour
▢ 40 grams non-chlorinated water

Dough:

▢ 85 grams ripe sourdough starter, once it’s active and bubbly, weigh 85 grams of the fed starter 
▢ 235 grams non-chlorinated water
▢ 8 grams fine sea salt
▢ 335 grams unbleached bread flour
▢ All-purpose flour, for shaping
▢ Olive oil, for the pan

Instructions

Feed Your Starter (4 to 12 hours wait time)

Feed your starter so that it’s at peak when you’re planning to make the dough. Around 4 to 12 hours before you want to make the dough is the general timeframe, but you know how long it takes your starter to reach peak after a feeding, so go with that. To feed your starter, mix all ingredients together in a clean jar. Cover loosely and let it rest at room temperature until it peaks. This usually takes about 4 to 12 hours; I like to do this the night before I want to make the dough, right before I go to bed.

Make the Dough (30 minutes wait time)

Add the active starter, water, and salt to a large bowl or container (glass or clear so you can see through the sides and bottom) and whisk to combine (it doesn't have to be fully integrated, but it should look milky). Add the flour and stir to form a shaggy dough (don’t knead it; some dry spots are fine).
Cover the container and let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Perform the Stretch and Folds (90 minutes wait time)

Wet your hands and perform your first set of stretch and folds. To do so, grab a piece of dough, gently stretch it up, fold it over, and then rotate the bowl 1/4 turn. Repeat this process 3 more times until you come to the point where you started. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, repeat the stretch and fold process. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest at room temperature for another 30 minutes. Repeat this process 2 more times, for a total of 4 sets of stretch and folds spaced 30 minutes apart.

First Rise/Complete Bulk Fermentation (6 hours wait time at room temperature, and then 12 to 24 hours in the fridge)

After the 4th set of stretch and folds, cover the bowl and let the dough rest at room temperature until puffed, about 6 hours. At this point, pop the dough into the fridge for 12 to 24 hours more. At the end of this step, the dough should be puffed to about 50-75% larger than its original size; the top of the dough should be slightly domed and bubbly; additionally, the bottom of the dough should look spongy.

Shape

Lightly brush a half sheet pan with olive oil. Flour your hands and your work surface.
Tip the dough out onto the floured surface. With floured hands, pat it into a rough square shape. Use a bench scraper to cut the dough into 6 equal portions, trying not to deflate the air pockets if possible.

Proof (90 minutes wait time)

Transfer the dough to the prepared tray, evenly spacing the rolls apart. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let the dough sit to proof until slightly puffed, about 90 minutes at room temperature.

Preheat and Bake

While the dough proofs, preheat the oven to 450F. We want it nice and hot, so let it heat up for at least 45 minutes to 1 hour.
Boil a kettle of water. Add a couple inches of boiling water to small casserole dish that’s safe for oven temperatures of 450F.
Remove the plastic wrap from the tray of dough, and bake the rolls. Put the dish of water on the oven rack next to the tray of rolls to provide steam. Don’t open the oven while baking until the 20-minute mark to check if they’re done. The rolls are done when they’re puffed, golden on the bottom, and sound hollow when you tap the bottom, about 20 to 25 minutes.
Cool for 10 to 15 minutes, then slice and enjoy.