Focaccia Genovese, or fügassa, is a thin, generously seasoned Ligurian focaccia with characteristic dimples that hold extra virgin olive oil and brine before baking. This recipe is designed for a 30 × 40 cm (approximately 12 × 16 in) baking pan and adapted for home preparation.
Pour the 236 g water at room temperature into a large bowl. Add the 9 g liquid malt extract and stir with a spoon or small whisk until the malt is evenly dispersed in the water.
Crumble in the 8 g fresh yeast and stir again. Add the 430 g strong Italian type 00 flour and begin mixing with a spatula or directly with your hand.
Once no dry flour remains, add the 9 g fine sea salt and continue working the dough in the bowl.
Transfer the dough to the work surface and knead by hand. It will be fairly rough at first, but as you continue kneading it will gradually become smoother and more elastic.
Add the 21 g extra virgin olive oil a little at a time. The dough may initially become slippery and appear to separate. Continue kneading until all the oil has been absorbed and the dough is once again cohesive, smooth and elastic.
Shape the dough into a ball, cover it with an upturned bowl or a clean kitchen towel and leave it to rest for about 30 minutes. By the end of the rest, it should feel more relaxed and easier to handle.
Gently flatten it with your hands without pressing out too much air. Bring the edges towards the centre one at a time, then turn the dough over so that the seam is underneath.
Cover again and leave to rest for another 30 minutes. It does not need to double in size; look instead for dough that feels more relaxed and soft and has increased slightly in volume.
Pour the 15 g extra virgin olive oil into a 30 × 40 cm (approximately 12 × 16 in) rectangular baking pan and use a pastry brush or your fingers to spread it evenly across the bottom and into the corners.
Transfer the dough to the pan and begin gently stretching it with your fingertips. Stop when you feel the dough resisting; do not try to force it all the way into the corners at once.
Cover the pan and leave the dough to rest for about 20–30 minutes. When you return to it, the dough should have relaxed and should stretch much more easily.
Use your fingertips to gently ease the dough towards the edges and corners until it covers the entire pan. Work carefully and try to maintain an even thickness.
If the dough springs back as you stretch it, stop. Cover it and give it another 10 minutes to rest, then continue. Forcing the dough at this stage can cause it to tear.
Once the dough covers the entire pan, cover it and allow it to rest again. It is ready for the next stage when it looks more relaxed and slightly puffy and the surface no longer appears taut from stretching.
Pour the 30 g extra virgin olive oil over the dough and gently spread it across the surface with your fingers, taking care not to press down on the dough.
Using your index, middle and ring fingers together, hold your fingers at a slight angle and press firmly into the dough without tearing it. Continue across the entire surface, leaving a little space between each set of dimples.
Prepare the brine by pouring the 90 g water at room temperature into a small bowl. Add the 5 g fine sea salt and stir until the salt has completely dissolved.
Pour the brine over the focaccia, allowing it to collect in the dimples together with the olive oil. Do not remove the liquid from the indentations; it should remain on the surface during the final proof.
Leave the focaccia uncovered in a place protected from draughts.
As a guide, allow approximately 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours at 22–24 °C (72–75 °F), but pay attention to the dough rather than relying only on the clock. It should look puffier and more relaxed while the dimples remain clearly visible. Some of the liquid on the surface will also have been absorbed.
If your kitchen is cooler, the dough will need longer; on a warm day it may be ready sooner. There is no need to wait the full 2 hours if the dough already shows these signs.
Meanwhile, preheat the conventional oven thoroughly to 230 °C (450 °F) so that it has reached temperature by the time the focaccia is ready to bake.
Place the focaccia in the preheated conventional oven at 230 °C (450 °F), positioning the pan on the first rack from the bottom.
Bake for approximately 18–20 minutes, checking towards the end. The bottom should be properly baked and the surface should be evenly golden, with clearly defined dimples and slightly deeper colour around the edges.
If the bottom is already well baked but the surface needs more colour, move the pan to the centre rack for the final few minutes. If your oven browns the focaccia evenly, there is no need to move it.
Remove the focaccia from the oven and leave it in the pan for a few minutes. Carefully release it from the pan, transfer it to a wire rack and allow it to cool slightly before cutting.
Servings 8
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Flour. Use a strong Italian type 00 flour suitable for yeasted doughs. Absorption can vary from one flour to another, so pay attention to the consistency of the dough as you work it. Do not add extra flour simply because the dough initially feels soft or slightly sticky; it will develop more structure as you continue kneading.
Proofing. The times given are a guide and may vary depending on the temperature of your kitchen and the activity of the yeast. Watch the dough as well as the clock: before baking, it should look relaxed and slightly puffy while retaining its characteristic dimples.
Pan. The quantities in this recipe are designed for a 30 × 40 cm (approximately 12 × 16 in) rectangular baking pan. Using a significantly different pan size will change the thickness of the focaccia and may also affect the baking time and final result.
Storage. Focaccia Genovese is at its best when freshly baked, but it can be kept at room temperature for about 2 days. Allow it to cool completely, then store it in an airtight container or wrap it well to prevent it from drying out.
Freezing and reheating. For longer storage, freeze the focaccia after it has been baked and cooled completely, preferably cut into portions and placed in freezer-safe bags. Allow it to thaw at room temperature, then reheat it for about 3–5 minutes in a preheated oven at 200 °C (390 °F) before serving. The dry heat helps restore the texture of the surface and bottom. Avoid the microwave, as it tends to soften the focaccia and can make it rubbery.
Fügassa has been part of Genoese life for centuries, although its history does not begin with a precise recipe resembling the one we know today. Flat doughs made from flour and water and cooked close to a fire belong to a much older tradition found throughout the Mediterranean. The word focaccia itself is linked to the Latin focus, meaning hearth or fireplace.
To find a concrete reference in Genoa, we have to go back to the Middle Ages. In 1392, an inventory belonging to a baker included the words “pala una magna pro fugacis”: a large peel used for focaccias. We cannot know how closely those focaccias resembled modern fügassa, but the document shows that they were already part of the work of Genoese bakers by the end of the fourteenth century.
Focaccia also appears in accounts of Genoese social life. During the Middle Ages, it was eaten on important occasions, including religious ceremonies, weddings and funerals. According to historical accounts, the custom became intrusive enough for Bishop Matteo Gambaro to prohibit its consumption in church during services.
The fügassa we recognise today would develop much later. Baking methods, available ingredients and eating habits changed over the centuries, and focaccia changed with them. By the nineteenth century, descriptions begin to show preparations closer to the modern version.
Its history is therefore better understood as a series of changes rather than something that began on a particular date or with a single inventor. Focaccia remained on Genoese tables long enough to evolve alongside the city itself.
It is difficult to separate the history of fügassa from the history of the Port of Genoa. This was a place where inexpensive food that could be eaten quickly made practical sense during long working days.
Among the narrow streets near the port were bakeries and sciamadde, popular establishments whose name evokes the flame of the oven. Farinata, savoury pies and focaccia came out of these places, which belonged to the everyday food culture of the streets rather than to formal dining.
On the quays worked the camalli, the dock workers who loaded and unloaded goods from ships. A piece of focaccia could be bought and eaten quickly without having to leave work for long. Fügassa therefore became part of the early hours of life around the port as well, providing a substantial breakfast for people whose working day had already begun.
Part of focaccia's connection with Genoa was built in precisely these places: its bakeries, its sciamadde and a working port where focaccia was not something reserved for special occasions but everyday food.
That morning tradition has not disappeared. Genoese bakeries still sell focaccia early in the day, and some people eat it with coffee, milk or cappuccino.
And yes, some even dip the focaccia directly into their cappuccino. What may seem like an unusual combination elsewhere is simply part of local food culture in Genoa.
Perhaps this small detail says more than anything else about the place fügassa occupies in the city. It is not simply something served at the table: it is everyday food, bought from the bakery and eaten whenever the occasion arises, starting in the morning.
Centuries of history have not produced an unchanging recipe. Focaccia has evolved, just as ovens and dough-making methods have changed. Yet Focaccia Genovese has retained an identity strong enough to remain closely associated with Genoa.
The professional baking tradition has also sought to protect its defining characteristics through the Focaccia Genovese collective trademark, created to safeguard and promote fügassa and the knowledge of the bakers who continue to make it.
It is the latest chapter in a history that belongs to more than recipe books. From the focaccia peel recorded in a fourteenth-century inventory to the bakeries of Genoa today, fügassa has remained above all what it has long been for the city: everyday food.