Ciabatta
A proper vegan built around strong white bread flour, lukewarm water and active dry yeast — roughly 60 minutes start to finish, and rated easy to make. Below: the ingredients split into pantry staples and a quick shopping list, a built-in serving scaler, and the method in 7 steps.
You'll mainly reach for oven and whisk. At easy difficulty across 7 steps, it's a good one for a busy evening. As written, every ingredient resolved to a plant source.
What you'll need
Shopping list (1)
Pantry staples (you likely have these)
Diet: vegan — no meat, fish, dairy, egg or honey, based on every ingredient listed below.
Contains: Gluten
Allergen labels are informational and may not cover cross-contact; verify every package and consult a qualified professional for medical dietary needs. Diet labels are derived from the ingredient list on this page — how we verify diet and allergen labels.
Food-safety and allergen information is general, not medical advice. Follow current guidance from your local food-safety authority, verify product labels, and seek qualified advice for allergies or health conditions.
How to make it
- In a large bowl, whisk the yeast into the lukewarm water and let it stand for 5 minutes until it begins to froth, then stir in the olive oil.
- Add the flour and salt and mix to a very wet, sticky dough, then cover the bowl and leave it to rest for 15 minutes.
- With a wet hand or dough scraper, stretch and fold the dough over on itself several times in the bowl, then cover and repeat this folding three more times at 30-minute intervals during the first rise.
- Cover and leave the dough to rise at room temperature for about 2 hours total, until it is bubbly and roughly doubled in size.
- Tip the dough onto a very well-floured surface, divide it into two pieces and gently coax each into a rough rectangle, taking care not to knock out the air bubbles.
- Transfer the loaves to floured parchment, dimple the tops lightly, cover and let them prove for 30 to 45 minutes while you heat the oven to 230 C.
- Bake for 22 to 25 minutes until the crust is deep golden and the loaves sound hollow when tapped underneath, then cool on a wire rack before slicing.
You'll use: Oven · Whisk
Tips & common questions
How long does Ciabatta take to make?
About 60 minutes from start to finish — an estimate based on the 7 steps and 6 ingredients. Times vary with your kitchen and how much prep you do ahead.
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes — use the servings control above the ingredients and every quantity rescales automatically (fractions included). Cooking times stay roughly the same; very large batches may need a little longer.
Is Ciabatta vegan?
Every ingredient listed on this page resolved to a plant or mineral source in our ingredient ontology — no meat, fish, shellfish, dairy, egg or honey. Labels can still differ by brand, so check packaged items.
Related recipes
Adapted recipe — rewritten in our own wording from an open-licensed community cookbook, not yet independently kitchen-tested by Consomee. How we source, test & correct recipes.
Ciabatta is adapted by Consomee from the Wikibooks Cookbook, rewritten in our own wording and used under CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo: Ciabatta cut.JPG by Vincent Talleu, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons. We add the serving scaler, ingredient tools, timing and structure — how we source recipes.