EASY CIABATTA ROLLS RECIPE

These Ciabatta Rolls have a thin crispy crust and very light ,soft crumb with lots of open pores.

WHAT YOU WILL LOVE ABOUT THIS CIABATTA ROLLS RECIPE

• We can make this ciabatta rolls with only four basic ingredients; flour,water, salt and yeast.
• The method of making this ciabatta rolls is so relaxing and easy to do.
• We don’t need any kneading or we don’t need to have any special equipments to make this ciabatta bread.
• The actual manual work we need to do will be only less than 30 minutes (while preparing the dough(5 minutes) and while folding and shaping (20 minutes)
• The resulting ciabatta rolls are super delicious with amazing flavor, big open crumb and a thin crispy crust.

We actually have a quicker version of making ciabatta bread with step by step video.And this ciabatta rolls recipe is modification of the same ciabatta bread recipe.

In this ciabatta rolls recipe, we are lightly upgrading the taste of our ciabatta bread.

We are not using a “biga” or “poolish” (a preferment usually added in ciabatta bread dough) and so it will be so much easier for us to make this ciabatta rolls.

What is the purpose of biga

The purpose of using a “biga” or “poolish” (a preferment usually added in ciabatta bread dough) is to add complexity to the bread’s flavor and is often used in breads that have open crumb like baguettes, pizza,focaccia etc.

In this method of making ciabatta rolls, we aren’t using “biga” or “poolish” but we are able to achieve a very similar or even better ciabatta rolls using our long cold fermented ciabatta bread dough.

What are the benefits of cold fermented dough

Slow fermentation in a cool place results in a better gluten structure.This leads to the formation of open crumbs and big bubbles.

When fermented at cold temperatures, yeasts produce carbon di oxide and other molecules very slowly and steadily.As the fermentation takes longer, the result is a more complex combination of flavor.

INGREDIENTS

• Flour: 350 g or approximately 2 and 3/4 cups (loosely packed)
• Water :280 ml or approximately 1 cup +3 tbsp-1 tsp
• Yeast :1 tsp
• Salt :1 tsp

HOW TO MAKE CIABATTA ROLLS

Ciabatta Rolls or ciabatta buns can be made in six simple steps.

1.PREPARE THE DOUGH

Into a bowl add the water, salt and yeast.Stir to dissolve the salt and yeast in water.Then add the flour and combine them all together. Make sure there are no dry patches of flour left behind and our dough forms a smooth homogenous dough.

2.PROOF THE DOUGH

Cover the bowl with a plastic film and let the dough sit and rise at room temperature or on the counter top for 2 hours.

After 2 hours of fermentaion,take the bowl and let the dough cold proof in fridge.

HOW LONG TO KEEP THE CIABATTA ROLLS DOUGH IN FRIDGE

We can use the dough on the next day or after 24 hours of proofing in fridge.

Though this dough can be used even on the fifth day ,for getting the best results, I recommend to use the dough anywhere between 24 hours to 72 hours in fridge.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF COLD FERMENTED OR RETARDED DOUGH

At cool temperatures, yeast produces carbon dioxide more slowly, so refrigerating the batter allows yeast to leaven at a slow and steady pace, providing more time for a more complex-tasting combination of flavor compounds to develop.As a result we get a more flavorful dough.

3.STRETCH AND FOLD THE DOUGH

Take the dough out of fridge.

Now the gluten strands in our bread dough are good and developed.All that we need to do is to weave the gluten threads in such a way that it gets a better structure to hold all those air bubbles inside themselves.

We are going to stretch and fold the dough three times in every 30 minutes.

To stretch and fold the dough, lightly damp your fingers in water(this will prevent the tendency of dough to stick to our hands) and pull up on the side of the dough and fold it back down on itself.Turn the bowl 90 degrees and repeat.Do this until you have stretched and folded all 4 sides of the dough.We will do this for three times in every half an hour.

HOW TO DEAL WITH STICKY CIABATTA DOUGH.

Ciabatta dough is an extremely wet (high hydration) dough. To give you an idea, most bread recipes sit around 60% hydration while this ciabatta recipe is at almost 80% hydration. Because of this, the dough is not kneaded the same way other yeast dough is. Rather, it is allowed to slowly ferment with a series of brief stretch and folds.

Apply some water on hands will make it so much easier to work with the dough.

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF “STRETCHING AND FOLDING” THE DOUGH

The stretch and fold method serves two main purposes: 

• it layers the gluten to build structure in the dough, 
• it redistributes the heat within the dough

4.DIVIDE AND SHAPE THE DOUGH

Now after 2 hours (after three round of folding and proofing for half an hour)transfer the dough on to a well floured work surface.We need to take care not to deflate the air bubbles .Dust the top of the dough with some more flour.This dough is very sticky ..but we can handle it by dusting the dough with flour.

HOW TO SHAPE CIABATTA ROLLS

Stretch the dough from underneath ,to form a rectangle and then divide it into small squares or to any shape you prefer.

As in the video,I divided the dough into 6 approximate equal squares.

Now place each of these squares on to another well floured work surface .Dust the top of them with some more flour and cover them with a plastic film.

5.FINAL PROOFING

Let the shaped dough squares sit and proof for another half an hour.

6.BAKE THE CIABATTA ROLLS

After 30 minutes of proofing, take the proofed dough and then gently place them onto a parchment lined sheet.I have used my cooling rack for this.

Using a bench scraper would be of great help during this time.

Now they are ready to go into the oven.

Slide the parchment paper onto the preheated baking stone or onto the preheated inverted baking tray.

And spray with some water immediately .

Close the oven door.

Bake at 425F for first 15 minutes and then reduce the temperature to 375 F and bake for another 5-8 minutes.

It may seem the bread is done at 15 minutes of baking but we need to wait for another 5 minutes..to get that right flavor and crispy crust.

HOW LONG DOES CIABATTA ROLLS LAST AT ROOM TEMPERATURE

Properly stored, ciabatta bread will last for about 2 to 3 days at normal room temperature.

To maximize the shelf life of homemade ciabatta bread, cool thoroughly before storing and place in plastic storage bag or breadbox, or wrap in foil and store at room temperature.

Its better not to store them in fridge as the bread will dry out and become stale faster than at room temperature.

CAN CIABATTA ROLLS BE FROZEN?

Yes, they can be frozen.

To freeze ciabatta bread,Wrap tightly with aluminum foil or plastic freezer wrap, or place in heavy-duty freezer bag and freeze.Properly stored, it will maintain best quality for about a month.

CAN I DOUBLE THE CIABATTA ROLLS RECIPE

Yes you can double the recipe..

4 TIPS FOR MAKING THE BEST CIABATTA BREAD

1. Steam inside the oven during the initial few minutes of baking:This is the key to getting the perfect crispy, crackly crust on ciabatta bread. We can spray water inside the oven which will create a steamy environment or we can provide a steamy environment in oven by placing a baking pan with hot water on the bottom of the oven, just when we place the rolls for baking. 
2. To handle the sticky dough, (a)use wet hands while stretching and folding (b) dust the ciabatta dough with enough flour for shaping (b) use a bench scraper whenever necessary. This ciabatta dough is very sticky with 80% hydration . So a bench scraper is very helpful to help handle and transfer the dough. You can also use flour if needed during transfer.
3. Bake the ciabatta buns in a well hot preheated oven(425F).High baking temperature is one of the key factors for making crispy crusted ciabatta rolls.
4. Use Cold fermented dough:this will give porous ,light ciabatta rolls and this will impart an improved flavor to our bread as well.

Is Ciabatta Bread Vegan

Yes Ciabatta bread is pure vegan.

We use only four ingredients flour, water salt and yeast to make this ciabatta rolls, which are vegan.

This ciabatta rolls recipe is modified from our easy and faster ciabatta bread recipe.

WATCH THE VIDEO TO SEE HOW EASY IT IS MAKE CIABATTA ROLLS