Sweet & Savory BBQ Chicken Focaccia (Detroit-Style!)
What happens when you take the bubbly, olive-oil-drenched goodness of a classic Italian focaccia, cross it with a thick, crispy-edged Detroit-style pizza, and top it with tangy BBQ chicken?
Pure, unadulterated carbohydrate magic.
If you have a jar of sourdough discard sitting in your fridge begging to be used, this is the recipe that will crown you the ultimate weekend baking champion. It’s thick, it’s pillowy, it’s sweet, it’s savory, and yes—it has those iconic, cheesy, crispy edges we all fight over.
Grab your mixing bowls, and let’s make the pizza-focaccia hybrid of your dreams.
Why This Recipe Works
- The Sourdough Discard Secret: Even though we use active dry yeast to handle the heavy lifting (literally), the sourdough discard adds a beautiful, subtle tang and creates an incredibly tender crumb.
- The Lamination Trick: Instead of just slapping BBQ sauce on top, we actually fold it into the dough. This creates gorgeous, sweet, caramelized ribbons of sauce woven right into the bread.
- The Detroit-Style Crisp: Baking this in a 9×13 pan ensures the cheese melts down the sides, creating that legendary, crispy cheese crust.
This isn’t just pizza, and it’s not just bread—it’s an absolute experience. The sweet heat of the BBQ sauce cuts through the rich cheddar and mozzarella, while the sourdough focaccia base stays impossibly fluffy on the inside and crunchy on the bottom.
If you make this recipe, be sure to take a picture of those crispy cheese edges and tag me @littlebbanghouse! Happy baking!
BBQ Chicken Pizza Focaccia
Created by Sue Mun
Makes One, 9×13 inch Pan
Ingredients:
For the Focaccia Dough:
- 120g sourdough discard
- 440g white bread flour (12% protein content or higher)
- 360g warm water
- 6g (1.5 teaspoons) active dry yeast
- 5g (1 teaspoon) honey, or sugar
- 15ml (1 tbsp) olive oil
- 10g (2 teaspoons) fine sea salt
For Lamination:
- 1/2 cup of your favorite BBQ sauce (I used Kinder’s Brand)
For the BBQ Chicken Topping:
- about 1 cup of your favorite BBQ Sauce (I used Kinder’s Brand)
- 8 oz shredded cooked chicken
- 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh basil
Instructions:
Make the Focaccia Dough:
- Mix water and yeast and honey together and let it sit for 5 minutes (only if using active dry yeast)
- Then mix in the sourdough discard and oil.
- Then mix in the bread flour and salt together until a shaggy dough forms.
- Cover and rest for 15 minutes.
- Stretch and fold the dough until it can’t stretch over anymore. Rest again for 15 minutes.
- Stretch and fold the dough. Rest again for 15 minutes.
- Stretch and fold again and rest for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
Make the BBQ Chicken:
- In a medium bowl, mix together the cooked and shredded chicken, 1 cup BBQ sauce, and the thinly sliced red onions. Set aside in the fridge.
Assembly/Bake:
- Generously oil up a 9×13 inch baking pan. Gently place your proofed dough into the pan.
- Drizzle about 1/4 cup of your favorite BBQ sauce on top.
- Gently fold the dough into thirds like a book. Then flip it over so the seam is at the bottom. Dimple the dough in the pan so the dough fits the entire bottom of the pan.
- Cover and proof for 45 minutes.
- Drizzle about 1/4 cup of BBQ sauce on top.
- Dimple the dough so the dough is even throughout the pan. Do a final proof for 45 minutes.
- Bake at 425F for 12 minutes.
- Take the focaccia out and top with the BBQ chicken topping mixture and sprinkle on top the mozzarella and cheddar cheeses.
- Bake for another 15 minutes until golden brown.
- Garnish with fresh basil leaves and more BBQ drizzle on top. Slice and serve while its still hot!
