April 15, 2021

Easy Ciabatta Rolls Recipe

This Easy Ciabatta Rolls Recipe can be made in one day and takes about 4 hours from start to finish. With only 4 ingredients, these ciabatta rolls can be made whenever you need a roll or bun for burgers, sandwiches, and more!

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ciabatta rolls on a cutting board, oe cut in half
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If you need rolls or buns for your meal, make this Easy Ciabatta Rolls Recipe. This is a great recipe for beginner bread makers and the only hard part is waiting for the dough to rise. The instant yeast does most of the work to create bubbly and delicious bread.

Ingredients Needed to Make This Easy Ciabatta Rolls Recipe

I love simple recipes and this one only has four ingredients: water, instant yeast, flour, and salt. That’s it! Most bread starts with simple ingredients, what the dough creates depends on proof time (rest/rise time), folding, shape, heat, etc.

Ciabatta starts with sticky and wet dough and turns into a bubbly creation once it’s been folded a few times and stretched to a rectangle. I’ll walk you through the steps and you’ll be enjoying your fresh, homemade ciabatta rolls in no time!

four baked ciabatta rolls on a cooling rack

Tools Needed to Make Ciabatta Bread at Home

To get a good crunchy crust on your ciabatta rolls, a baking stone is a must-have. I personally use the round version because I also like to make pizza on it and the rectangle version is nice because it’s a little larger and easy to maneuver bread on.

The other tool I highly recommend is a bench scraper to help with forming the bread and cutting your rolls.

How to Make Ciabatta Rolls

Activate the Yeast and Start the Dough

  • Mix the warm water and yeast in a large mixing bowl and let the mixture sit for 8-10 minutes.
  • Add the flour and salt and stir everything together. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow it to sit for 1 hour.

Fold and Stretch the Dough Three Times

  • After an hour, wet your hands and fold and stretch the dough four times all the way around the dough. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and rest for 30 minutes.
  • Repeat this step 2 more times for a total of 3 stretch and fold sessions and an hour and a half of resting time.

Cut and Shape the Rolls

  • Gently remove the dough from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Carefully stretch the edges of the dough ball out to make a rectangle about ¾” thick or so.
  • Using a scraper/chopper or a sharp knife, cut the rectangle into 5-6 even-sized squares. Place the squares on a piece of parchment paper, cover with a towel or plastic wrap and allow to rest one more time for 40 minutes.

Bake The Rolls on a Baking Stone

  • Preheat the oven and a baking stone at 420°F. About 15 minutes before the end of the final proofing, boil 2 cups of water and place a pan or bowl with the boiling water at the bottom of the oven to create steam.
  • Carefully transfer the parchment paper with the dough squares onto the baking stone. Bake for 20 minutes and then remove the rolls and place them on a cooling rack to cool.
homemade ciabatta roll cut in half

What to Use These Rolls For

Because of the airy interior and lightly crunchy exterior of these rolls, ciabatta can be used for many things. Here are a few ideas:

  • Burgers (shown below)
  • Sandwiches or Paninis
  • French Toast
  • Toast for breakfast
  • Dip in olive oil and balsamic vinegar
  • Croutons
  • Bread for Soup
homemade ciabatta bread with an impossible burger and toppings

More Recipes to Check Out

ciabatta roll cut in half on a cutting board
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ciabatta rolls on a cutting board

Easy Ciabatta Rolls

Make this Easy Ciabatta Rolls Recipe any day of the week and have fresh homemade bread perfect for burgers, sandwiches, and more!
5 from 46 votes
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Stretch, Fold and Proof Time: 3 hours 10 minutes
Total Time: 3 hours 40 minutes
Servings: 6 rolls
Calories: 192kcal
Author: EmilyFabulous

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 1 cup warm water (room temp, not too hot)
  • 1 teaspoon instant yeast
  • 2½ cups all-purpose flour (properly measured)
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Instructions

  • Place the warm water and yeast in a large mixing bowl and mix together. Let the mixture sit for 8-10 minutes until there is some nice bubble action happening.
    yeast and water in a bowl
  • Once the yeast is active, add the flour and salt and stir everything together. I use a silicone spatula which made scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl easier. The dough will be wet and sticky and a little shaggy. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow it to rest for 1 hour. TIP: I placed mine in the oven with a bowl of hot water, but you can also leave it on the counter if it's warm enough in your house.
  • After an hour, wet your hands and fold and stretch the dough four times all the way around the dough. Pull up two corners, stretch lightly and fold over the top of the dough ball. Repeat this 2 more times. Cover the bowl again with the plastic wrap and rest for 30 minutes. Repeat this step 2 more times for a total of 3 stretch and fold sessions and an hour and a half of additional resting time.
    ciabatta dough after third rest (1)
  • By now the dough should have doubled in size and be nice and bubbly. Carefully remove the dough from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. TIP: lightly flour the top of the dough and your hands for easier transfer. Carefully stretch the edges of the dough ball out to make a rectangle about ¾" thick or so. Try not to squish the dough or all of that air you worked so hard to create inside will get out.
    ciabatta dough pressed out into a rectangle
  • Using a scraper or a sharp knife, cut the rectangle into 5-6 even-sized squares. Place the squares on a piece of parchment paper, cover with a towel or plastic wrap and allow to rest one more time for 40 minutes.
    While the dough is proofing a final time, preheat the oven and baking stone at 420°F. You can preheat the oven for the full 40 minutes to ensure your oven is nice and hot. About 15 minutes before the end of final proofing, boil 2 cups of water and place an oven-safe pan or bowl with the boiling water at the bottom of the oven and to the side so the steam has a chance to reach the bread.
    ciabatta dough cut into rectangles and places on parchment paper
  • Once the dough has rested for 40 minutes, carefully transfer the parchment paper with the dough squares onto the baking stone. You can also have the paper and dough on a baking sheet and place the baking sheet right on top of the baking stone. Bake for 20 minutes and then remove the rolls and place them on a cooling rack to cool.
    baked ciabatta rolls on a cooling rack

Video

Notes

  • If you live in a dry climate, you may need to add a little more water in step 2 to ensure the dough is wet, sticky, and shaggy looking. Add 1 tbsp at a time until you are satisfied with the texture. 

Nutrition

Calories: 192kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 5.6g | Fat: 0.5g | Saturated Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 390mg | Potassium: 70mg | Fiber: 1.6g | Sugar: 0.1g | Calcium: 10mg | Iron: 3mg

Any nutrition calculations are only estimates using online calculators. Please verify using your own data.

Did you Make This Easy Ciabatta Rolls Recipe?

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