Socca Pizza Inspired by the Cuisine of Nice, France
Main Course · Pesto & Pistou · Provencal Recipes · Taste
Socca Pizza Base
Socca is a traditional Niçoise street food made with chickpea flour and cooked in a very hot cast iron pan. In Italy, it is called farinata. Not quite a pancake, not exactly a crepe, socca is socca. If you love socca it is one of those flavours that will transport you back to the French Riviera, if only while the pizza lasts…
Jackie is a fan of socca, a dish she discovered in the 1990s while in Nice. The gluten-free chickpea flour has a slightly nutty flavour. She has been experimenting with the socca recipe for a while now and has perfected the ingredients to create a savoury and delicious pizza. The recipe follows.
Socca pizza base
The cooking method for this gluten-free pizza base differs from the traditional wheat dough in that it is fried in a pan after which the topping is laid on the base, the whole mélange then being put under a hot grill for a few minutes to finish off. Using a 20cm frying pan, this recipe will make 6 medium-sized pizzas, each one making a good helping for one person.
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Cook Time 20 minutes mins
Total Time 35 minutes mins
Course Main Dish
Cuisine French, Provencal
- 200 g (7oz) chickpea flour
- 50 g (2oz) Comté cheese grated
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- a pinch of Salt
- 100 ml (6 tbsp) olive oil
- 400 ml (1 3/4 cups) Water
- Extra olive oil for frying
Sieve the chickpea flour into a bowl and pour in the olive oil and water.
Whisk the mixture to form a batter then add the remaining ingredients. Stir to incorporate everything.
Heat a drizzle of olive oil in the frying pan on a high heat and when the oil is hot, add a ladle of the batter and tip the pan to ensure the batter covers the base completely.
Leave the batter to fry for a couple of minutes until the edges start to look browned and crispy.
Turn the pizza over and cook for a further two minutes.
Turn again to make sure the bottom side is nicely browned.
Move the pizza to a baking tray and add your toppings. (See notes)
Bake in a 375F oven for a few minutes until your cheese melts.
Serve hot.
Note: Anything you would put on a wheat-based pizza dough would work here but if you’re using a traditional tomato sauce base, make sure it is nice and thick and not runny.Some ideas for socca pizza toppings:
- Very fine asparagus & red onion (griddled in advance to soften) with grated comté
- Sundried tomato tapenade with sundried tomatoes and scamorza (smoked mozzarella)
- Pesto with sliced, griddled courgettes and crumbled goat’s cheese
Traditional Foods from Nice
Ceviche Provencal Served with Socca – recipe from Cook’n with Class
Phoebe’s Guide to Top 8 must-try foods from Provence
Food and Walking tours of Nice in Italian and English – by Chiara
Salade Niçoise – A lovely collection of fresh potatoes, tomatoes, olives, beans, herbs, and tuna on a delightful bed of crisp green lettuce dressed with a light and tangy vinaigrette and anchovy filets.
And, for a sweet finish with Swiss Chard (blette) a recipe for La Tourte aux Blette Sucrée.
Please share this with friends and family.
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Jackie Dyer
Jackie is a freelance Human Resources Consultant, based in the UK, and a regular visitor to France where she has a small home. A resident of Nice during the 1990s, Jackie recently started a blog called Pesto and Pistou to record all the things she loves about the food, wine and atmosphere of the Côte d’Azur and its neighbouring Italian region of Liguria. In her spare time, Jackie runs wine tasting events for small groups, having studied for wine qualifications while working for an independent wine merchant that specialises in importing French wines, including some of Provence’s most iconic gems. With a plethora of Provençal cookbooks in a library that keeps growing, she likes nothing more than to sit down with a glass of Côtes de Provence to ‘investigate all things foodie from Nice to Genoa and beyond’.
Visit Pesto & Pistou here so Jackie can tempt you with a taste of the Côte d'Azur
2 Comments
There’s no better way to start a meal than with a few slices of socca and a glass of wine! I can’t have gluten so it’s a particular favorite of mine.
Hi Keith: I 100% agree socca and a glass of wine sounds delicious at any time!