Socca (Chickpea Flatbread) with Herb Salad & Yogurt

Socca, a specialty of Nice, France, is a thin pancake made from chickpeas with a crispy exterior and a soft, creamy interior. Its origins lie in Genoa, Italy, where it’s typically called farinata. Nowadays, there are countless global variations, and my version features lightly-broiled flatbread with a bright herb salad and garlicky yogurt sauce.

Socca is a chickpea flatbread traditionally baked in a wood oven with a thin and crispy exterior and a soft, creamy interior. This easy socca recipe requires less than five ingredients and very little active prep, so it's ideal for a quick lunch or weeknight dinner. 

While it’s difficult to replicate the classic wood-fired flavors at home, a cast iron pan, a broiler, and a bit of cumin for smokiness (thanks to a tip from David Lebovitz) yield a delicious result with a crispy texture.

Fast Facts

Nowadays, people serve it in lots of different ways, from a simple herb-flecked flatbread to a stuffing for sandwiches. Here, I serve it like a pizza crust (though if you want the real thing, try my 72 hour pizza dough!), topped with a simple salad and a dollop of garlic yogurt.

• Technically, socca first originated from a very similar dish known as farinata in Genoa, Italy.
• There are many other variations of this flatbread around the globe, such as cecina, torta di ceci, and faina.
• It's a popular street food in Southern France, specifically the French Riviera.

Typical Process

Socca is a gluten-free flatbread typically prepared by combining chickpea flour (or garbanzo flour), with water, olive oil, and salt. The resulting batter sits for at least 30 minutes up to 12 hours to allow the flour to absorb the water and enhance the flavor and texture of the pancake. Traditionally, the batter bakes in a thin copper pan in a wooden oven until crispy.

For more light lunch ideas, try my butter lettuce salad, kale caesar salad, tuna caesar salad, or apple and radicchio salad.

Ingredient Notes

The beauty of socca is that it requires just a few simple ingredients to come together.

For the socca:

• Chickpea flour: Chickpea flour forms the base of the pancake and offers an earthy flavor, with a bit of nuttiness. You'll want to purchase garbanzo bean flour. I recommend Bob's Red Mill brand.
• Extra-virgin olive oil: Olive oil adds both flavor and moisture to the pancake. Don't skip this!
• Cumin: Cumin is not a traditional ingredient in socca; but here, it's a genius addition. A wood-fired oven, unlike a home oven, lacks that slight edge of smokiness. So, thanks to a tip from David Lebovitz, a pinch of cumin offers just a bit of smoky flavor to mimic a wood oven.

For the herb salad:

• Frisee (or lettuce): I love using a textured green like frisee to offer a bit of crunch alongside the socca. You could also use arugula or escarole.
• Herbs: Here, I use parsley and mint, but any sort of soft, fresh herbs like basil and dill would be delicious too!

How to Make Socca

This recipe has a few components, but each of them are quite simple and straightforward! Let's walk through each step.

Step 1: Preheat the skillet. Place a 10-inch cast iron skillet on an oven rack fitted in the top-third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 450°F/232°C. This step gets the cast-iron pan really hot so that the socca cooks quickly!

Step 2: Meanwhile, prepare the socca batter. Mix the chickpea flour, salt, and cumin together.

Slowly pour in the water and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, and mix constantly until a smooth batter forms. Cover and let the batter rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.

Step 3: Make the garlic yogurt. Mix the Greek yogurt and garlic together, then season with salt and pepper. Keep in the fridge while you prepare the rest of the components. 

Step 4: Prepare the herb salad. Just before you bake the socca, prepare the salad (otherwise it will get soggy if sitting too long)!

Mix the frisee, fennel, herbs, and salt and pepper. Season with a bit of lemon juice, and set aside. 

Step 5: Bake the socca. Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven, swirl in a bit of olive oil, then pour in the batter in an even layer.

Broil for a few minutes, rotating the pan to evenly char the top. Once it's nicely golden brown with some charred spots, remove the pan from the oven.

Step 6. Cool socca until warm, but not hot. Slice into wedges, transfer to serving plates, and top each wedge with salad and skyr. Enjoy!

Variations

• Add Extra Herbs: For additional flavor, add 1 tablespoon of chopped herbs (such as fresh rosemary or thyme) to the batter before baking.
• Make a Socca Pizza: Go all in, and leverage the socca as a pizza base. After baking, top the flatbread with roasted zucchini, peppers, and mozzarella cheese, and return to the oven until the cheese is melted. Top with herb salad and serve with the yogurt on the side.

Storage and Reheating Instructions

• Socca: Leftover socca will last 1 - 2 days stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Reheat any leftover slices by placing them on a baking sheet and reheating at 350°F/177°C for 5 - 10 minutes until warmed through. You can also freeze leftover slices by storing them in an airtight ziploc bag in the freezer for up to 1 month. Reheat in the oven at 350°F/177°C for 5 - 10 minutes until warmed through.
• Herb salad: The herb salad will get soggy with time, so I recommend preparing it just before serving.
• Garlic yogurt: The garlic yogurt will last 3 - 4 days in the fridge. I love serving leftover yogurt with kebabs, grilled fish, or spiced chickpeas.

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