Chesterfield baker reveals how a freak ‘accident’ led him to create ‘Britain’s Best Loaf’

Tom Martin’s delicious Deep Pan Rosemary and Garlic Focaccia was a showstopper when it beat over 180 others to win the coveted national title. The winning bread - made with a sourdough base and fermented garlic oil - wowed the judges with its wide structure profile and open texture.

But the artisanal cook, who began as a baker in Tesco, said he only discovered his recipe after adding too much liquid to a mixture for a standard loaf. Tom, 35, admitted: “I accidentally made a pretty common mistake that does happen in baking where you add a little bit too much water.

"But it was a mistake that led to an amazing ending. It was like an overhydrated sourdough, and we looked at it and thought, ‘We can’t use that – it’s just too wet.’

“So we put it into a pan, added some olive oil, a little bit of flaky salt over the top and put it in the oven - and just hoped for the best. It actually came out unbelievably well, and we thought, ‘We might be on to something here – I think we should make our focaccia with the sourdough starter.'"

Tom, head baker at 4 Eyes Bakery, a wholesaler in Chesterfield, said he perfected his twist on the Italian classic over the next few years. And customers couldn’t get enough of the bread - used for dipping and in sandwiches - when he began drizzling garlic oil over the top.

Tom said: “Over that two-year period, the focaccia was always the favourite product. People used to come back for it daily just to get it. And any time we used to change the bread up from that, people never used to buy the sandwiches. So we just stuck with it.

“It’s that deep structure and open texture that makes a lot of difference. ith a yeasted focaccia, you usually get a lot more closed texture, and ours looks more like a sourdough.

“A lot of people just used to do rosemary and sea salt, but we just added the garlic element to give that extra level of flavour.”

Tom said he had entered the ‘Britain’s Best Loaf’ competition, held at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, for the first time with his focaccia on April 30.

He and his wife Emily Martin were initially stunned when the bread came out top in the international category. But this meant it became a contender for the overall title, which it then scooped following a blind tasting by the master judges.

Tom said: “When they called our name out, that moment in time just froze. I just turned to Emily and I was like, ‘No way!’ For a moment I stood still and hugged her.

“She was like, ‘Don’t start crying – go, go, go.’ So I ran through the crowd, walked up on stage and received the award. It was barmy.”

Tom said his interest in baking peaked when he bagged a job at his local Tesco as an 18-year-old - explaining the experience helped him find his “calling”.