Ciabatta

A recent invention

Ciabatta is one of the few major bread traditions with a precisely documented origin. Baker Arnaldo Cavallari of Adria, Veneto, developed and trademarked it in 1982, explicitly to provide an Italian bread suitable for sandwiches — at a time when the French baguette was dominating European café culture. Ciabatta means “slipper” in Italian — the flat, elongated loaf resembles an old shoe.

High-hydration dough

Ciabatta is made with unusually wet dough — 70–80% hydration (the flour weight equals the water weight, roughly). This creates a very slack, almost batter-like dough that is folded rather than kneaded in the conventional sense. The high water content produces the characteristic large, irregular holes (alveoli) in the crumb.

Biga pre-ferment

Authentic ciabatta uses a biga — a stiff preferment of flour, water, and a small amount of yeast left to ferment overnight. The biga develops complex flavour and helps structure the gluten network to hold the large holes. Without biga, the crumb tends to be smaller and more uniform.

Regional varieties

The original Veneto version is relatively mild. Ciabatta from Tuscany includes more olive oil. Ciabatta from Lake Como (ciabatta di Como) is slightly different in flour ratio. Wholemeal ciabatta (ciabatta integrale) has a nuttier flavour and denser crumb.