Socca Bread

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“Socca de Nice“. Sounds interesting and a bit french. In fact, it is, it is a specialty from the south of France and it tastes good too!

What Is Socca Bread?

Socca bread is a delicious flatbread or thin pancake from the southeastern city of Nice in France. Made with chickpea flour, it is plant-based and gluten-free. A simple dish that is easy to make, perfect to eat as a snack while wandering the streets of Nice or even as a side dish to a delicious meal at home.

Socca Bread is baked using a wood-burning stove and has a nice and crunchy crust with a fluffy and soft middle.  It is usually just seasoned with black pepper, allspice, paprika powder or herbs. If you do not have a wood-burning stove at home, you can prepare socca bread in a cast-iron pan and place this into your normal oven. And if you don’t have a cast-iron pan at home as well, you can fry this pancake in a pan and transfer it to the oven to achieve your outer crust and fluffy middle. That’s what I usually do.

Socca Bread

I enjoy socca as a snack. A classic version with just salt and pepper and with a dip. This time I wanted to give the recipe a little pep and infuse it with a little curry flavor 🙂

Ingredients for a classic version (4 servings)

  • 120 g chickpea flour
  • 220 ml water
  • 3 tbsp oil
  • salt and pepper

Curry-infused Version Socca Bread Recipe

  • classic recipe
  • 2 tbsp heat-proof oil
  • 2 tsp curry powder (store-bought or your own version)
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds, whole
  • 1 tsp coriander seeds, whole
  • 1/4 tsp mustard seeds, whole

Preparation (90 minutes)

  • Add chickpea flour to a bowl, then slowly add in water and whisk until smooth.
  • Mix in the oil, salt and pepper until nicely combined.
  • This is the classic version and is ready to be fried in a pan. However, we shall continue with the curry-infused socca bread.
  • For this, heat oil in a pan at medium heat. Add in cumin seeds, coriander seeds and mustard seeds and toast for a minute. Add in the curry powder and stir for another minute. Be careful not to burn the seeds. Depending on your stove you might have to lower the heat.
  • Add mixture to chickpea batter and whisk until well combined. Cover with a dish towel and let the batter rest for half an hour.
  • Once the socca batter is ready, preheat the oven to 392 degrees Fahrenheit (200 degrees Celsius).

If you don’t have a cast-iron skillet at home

  • Heat the previous pan again at medium heat. Be sure it has enough oil to prevent the batter from sticking. But don’t drown your batter in oil!
  • Once the pan is hot, add enough batter to cover the bottom of the pan and let it cook through before transferring the bread to a baking tray. Be sure to place the pan-fried side at the bottom. Repeat this until your batter is finished. Place pancakes next to each other. Don’t stack them. You can use two or three baking trays depending on how much socca bread you get out of the batter.
  • Place the baking tray into the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes until the pancake develops a slightly golden brown color.
  • Take out of the oven and let socca bread cool down.

If you do have a cast-iron skillet at home

  • Heat oven-proof cast-iron skillet at medium heat on the stove. Add in some oil and pour in chickpea batter until the bottom of the pan is covered. Heat for a minute, then transfer the skillet to the preheated oven and bake for 10-15 minutes. Repeat the process until all the batter is used up.
  • This takes a while longer if you just have one cast-iron skillet. So bring a little patience along 🙂
  • Once socca bread is done, place it on a cutting board and slice it into pieces.
  • Enjoy your socca de Nice as a snack, as a side dish, and with some yummy dips such as hummus, baba ganoush or guacamole.

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