A thin, crisp-edged chickpea-flour flatbread from Genoa, eaten atop a slice of pizza a caballo, on horseback. An Italian-Argentine institution, gluten-free and ancient.
Fainá is a thin, crisp-edged flatbread made from chickpea flour, water, olive oil and salt, brought to Buenos Aires by Genoese immigrants in the late 19th century. It is the same dish as the Italian farinata or the French socca, but in Argentina it found a unique role: it is eaten on top of a slice of pizza, a combination called a caballo, on horseback, the fainá riding the pizza. The batter is poured thin onto a screaming-hot oiled pan and baked until the edges crisp and the top is golden and slightly cracked. It is sold in every pizzería in Buenos Aires alongside the pizza, and the ritual of eating pizza con fainá is as Argentine as the tango.
A thin, golden disc with crisp, almost lacquered edges and a soft, slightly custardy centre, tasting of toasted chickpea and olive oil. Eaten warm on top of a pizza slice, it adds a nutty, crisp layer to the cheese and tomato.
The technique is a hot-pan bake of a thin batter. Chickpea flour is whisked with water, olive oil and salt into a thin, crepe-like batter, and rested for at least 2 hours to hydrate the flour fully. A heavy pan (traditionally copper) is heated very hot with olive oil, the batter poured in a thin layer, and baked at 230 degrees C for 12 to 15 minutes until the edges are dark and crisp and the top is golden with cracked surface. The high heat and the hot oil create the characteristic crisp, lacquered edge, while the thin batter cooks into a soft, custardy centre. The chickpea flour has no gluten, so the texture is tender and slightly grainy, not bread-like.
Variations
Some add rosemary or black pepper. A thicker version is eaten alone as a side.
On the Palate
Where Fainá sits in the Argentinian flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 6How it's made
4 steps · 10 min
- 14 min
Whisk 200g chickpea flour with 400ml water, 4 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp salt until smooth; rest 2 hours.
Watch outRest the chickpea batter a full 2 hours so the flour hydrates — an unrested batter bakes gritty and never sets custardy inside.
- 24 min
Preheat the oven to 230 degrees C. Heat a heavy ovenproof pan with 3 tbsp olive oil until smoking.
- 37 min
Pour the batter into the hot pan in a thin layer; bake 12 to 15 minutes until the edges are dark and crisp and the top golden.
Watch outPour into a smoking-hot oiled pan — that shock of heat is what lacquers the edges crisp; a lukewarm pan gives a limp, greasy cake.
- 43 min
Cut into wedges; serve warm, either alone or atop pizza slices.
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