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Classic Italian cuisine lovers will surely relate to the joy of baking a perfect loaf of ciabatta bread. It has a strong, sweet flavor and goes well with many Italian cuisines and soups. Try making your garlic bread with this freshly baked ciabatta. The Air fryer recipe makes it easy for all the beginners to try this out. So let’s get our kitchens ready to experience the marvelous aroma of Air fryer Ciabatta bread.
Ingredients Required
You will need:
- Bread Flour
- Instant yeast
- Olive oil
- Sugar
- Salt
- Water
Ingredient Notes
Bread Flour: Bread flour makes the Ciabatta bread more structured and gives it a chewy texture. You can use All-purpose flour, but it may yield a more tender bread.
Yeast: Yeast makes the bread rise by adding carbon dioxide to the flour during baking. It improves the texture, flavor, and overall volume of the bread.
Olive oil: Olive oil gives the bread a distinct flavor and aroma. You can use any other vegetable oil too.
Sugar: Yeast feed on sugar to release the carbon dioxide which makes the bread fluffy. It also imparts a sweet taste to the bread. Stevia sugar and other sugar alternates may give a great flavor but they may not make the bread as fluffy as it becomes with sugar.
Salt: Salt balances the overall flavor and improves the baking quality.
Water: Water is used to knead the dough. Use warm water to make the yeast work properly.
Honey or Maple Syrup (Optional). If you like a sweet taste in your bread, try adding a bit of honey or maple syrup.
How to make Ciabatta Bread?
1: Knead the dough
- In a mixing jug, add warm water, sugar and yeast. Stir well to mix the sugar.
- Cover and allow it for 15 minutes until the mixture rises and becomes foamy.
- In a mixing bowl, add flour, olive oil, and salt.
- Slowly add the yeast mixture and knead the dough until the ingredients are well combined.
- Cover the dough and allow it to rest for 45 minutes at room temperature.
2: Stretch and fold the dough
- The ciabatta bread dough needs to be stretched and folded at least four times before refrigeration. This makes the texture of the dough nice and soft. It also makes the bread have a crisp crust, wide-pore crumb, and an aromatic flavor.
- Stretch the dough from each side and bring it towards the center. A slight tearing of the dough may occur but that’s fine. Allow it to rest for 45 minutes.
- Repeat the stretch and fold again. Let the dough stretch as much as it is possible and let it sit for 45 minutes.
- Repeat the process 2 more times.
- Finally, cover the dough and allow the slow cooling process by keeping it in a refrigerator for at least 12 hours. The cooling in the refrigerator will impart a unique flavor and yeast can work better.
- It is best if you start preparing the dough in the evening and allow it to cool for the entire night. Bake it in the morning for the best Ciabatta texture.
3: Final Fermentation
- After 12 hours take out the dough from the refrigerator.
- Layer the air fryer basket with a sheet of butter paper. Dust it with a bit of flour.
- Shift the dough from the mixing bowl into the lined air fryer basket.
- Sprinkle some of the flour over the top layer of the dough.
- Insert the air fryer basket in the air fryer, without turning on the unit. This will continue the fermentation process, allowing the dough to rise further.
4: Air frying the Ciabatta bread
- Turn on the Airfryer at 400F and allow the Ciabatta to bake for at least 35 minutes.
- Check the bread in between for the crust’s color and texture. It should become nicely golden and crisp.
- When the Ciabatta is done, take it out and allow it to cool for a while at room temperature. The cooling down will soften the bread from the inside.
- Use this bread to make sandwiches or serve as a side with soups.
Air Fryer Ciabatta Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cups bread flour
- 1 tsp instant yeast
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 ¼ cups warm water
How to Make?
- In a bowl, combine warm water and sugar.
- Sprinkle instant yeast over the water and let it sit for 5 minutes until it foams.
- In a large bowl, mix bread flour and salt.
- Pour the yeast mixture and olive oil into the dry ingredients.
- Mix until it forms a sticky dough.
- Flour a surface and knead the dough for 8-10 minutes until it’s smooth and elastic.
- Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover it, and let it rise for 1 hour or until it doubles in size.
- Gently deflate the dough and shape it into a rectangle on a floured surface.
- Cover the shaped dough and let it rise for 30 minutes.
- Repeat 2 more times and then refrigerate it overnight for the perfect fermentation
- Take it out of the refrigerator and allow the dough to sit in the air fryer basket for at least 30 minutes for the final rise.
- Carefully place the shaped dough in the air fryer basket.
- Air fry at 400°F (190°C) for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
- Allow the ciabatta to cool for a few minutes before slicing.
