chili crisp loaf pan focaccia

my platonic ideal of a snack with heat, sweet, toasty, warm, and savory flavors

when i recently stumbled upon a loaf pan focaccia recipe‚ i got seriously excited and immediately starting brainstorming this recipe. focaccia is one of my favorite breads to make, but in its typical full sheet tray, 500 grams of flour format, it’s one that’s a bit hard to fully enjoy at it’s best (aka fresh) in a two person household. so, shrunk down and spiced up, this recipe is literally the snack-y bread of my dreams.

one “loaf” is perfect as a light bite for 2 people (or up to 4 if it’s like a pre-dinner nibble) and has enough going on flavor-wise to be eaten plain. however, it’s also great dipped into a runny yolked fried or poached egg, or halved and toasted up as a vehicle for cheesy scrambled eggs.

flavor-wise, i took inspiration from these chinese wild garlic pancakes; shout-out to my friend xueci for this great recipe! i made the focaccia dough a little bit sweet and topped it with savory sliced scallions, nutty toasted and ground sesame, and warm five-spice, punched up with chili crisp for a bit of heat. if you wanted to make this a plain loaf pan focaccia or do your own thing with the toppings, the recipe will work (i made a more traditional one topped with green olives and flaky salt and it was super tasty), so feel free to adapt and enjoy. watch me make this recipe here.

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serves 2 - 4 as a snack

1 teaspoon active dry yeast

2 teaspoons honey (substitute: 2 teaspoons granulated sugar; for a less sweet dough, halve to 1 teaspoon)

90 grams lukewarm water

120 grams all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

2 tablespoons raw sesame seeds

1 teaspoon five-spice powder

1 scallion

1 tablespoon chili crisp

1/2 teaspoon flaky salt

1. add yeast, honey, and water to a bowl. mix to combine and let sit for 10 minutes. add flour and salt and mix into a sticky dough with no dry spots. cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rest for 15 minutes; at this point you could also place the covered bowl in the fridge and let it rest overnight or for up to 12 hours before continuing.

2. use damp hands to lift the far edge of the dough up, slapping the bottom of the dough into the bowl and then folding the top down onto itself (see the video for a visual on this). turn the bowl 90 degrees to the left (or right) and repeat. repeat twice more so the bowl has done a full 360 degree turn; the dough should be looking smoother and feeling tighter. cover and rest for 15 minutes.

3. repeat the lifting, folding and turning for a whole 360 degree rotation of the bowl (that’s four lifts, folds, and turns) and then rest another 15 minutes. you can skip this second folding if you rested the dough in the fridge overnight.

4. add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a loaf pan, using your hand to rub the oil up the sides of the pan and around the bottom. transfer the dough to the pan, flipping so the dough is covered in some olive oil on both sides. use your already slightly oiled fingers to gently stretch and dimple the dough in the pan. if it doesn’t reach the edges yet, that’s okay. cover and let it rest for 1 hour.

5. while the dough is resting, slice the scallions on a bias and add to a small bowl with the five-spice. toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan over medium heat until fragrant and just turning lightly golden, about 3 minutes. transfer approximately half to a mortar and pestle and pound until they are ground into smaller pieces. add the pounded and whole toasted sesame seeds to the bowl with the scallions, mix, and set aside.

6. once the dough has rested, sprinkle with the chili crisp and all but one tablespoon of the scallion-sesame mixture, then use your fingers to dimple the dough all over and press the toppings into the dough. the dough should now be filling out the pan. cover and let rise another 30 minutes or until the dough has grown in size by about a quarter or a half. preheat oven to 200°C/400°F while the dough is rising this last time.

7. before you transfer the loaf pan to the preheated oven, scatter the reserved scallion-sesame mixture over the top. drizzle with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and top with flaky salt. bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the loaf sounds hollow when you tap it with your finger.

8. remove the loaf pan from the oven and let cool for at least 15 minutes. run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the loaf, then remove. i find a spatula helps here if the bottom has stuck a bit. slice or cut into large chunks and enjoy.