Ciabatta: why the sticky dough does not want endless flour

Useful to know

King Arthur’s Sandwich Ciabatta combines a biga preferment with a main dough that remains sticky and elastic. The recipe explicitly warns against adding more flour too quickly. [1]

Stickiness alone does not prove that the proportions are wrong. Follow the intended consistency, careful shaping and specified baking vessel. A method developed for a covered tin cannot necessarily be transferred unchanged to an arbitrary open tray. Judge the dough against the chosen recipe rather than expecting it to behave like a dry ball.