The quest for bread.

[Tone1979]

So...

Over the last few years I have avoided bread as it makes me very windy and unwell.

The only bread I could eat with no consequences was sour dough. Turns out it's my fav by a mile anyway.

Over the last few months I have been more and more interested in making pasta and bread and finally got my backside into gear and started to make bread on a regular basis.

Today, after a week of making a starter I have got to the point of making a loaf of sour dough. So far so good.

My aim is to keep this updated with what I have learnt and the outcome from each batch of bread.

Photos later.

p.s. Sour dough is a ball ache.

 

[Tone1979]

Looking good.

 

[Tone1979]

Well the first loaf came out of the oven and was a little heavy for my liking. Around the edges it was very nice and the pockets of air were pronounced, however in the middle it was like a quite heavy loaf.

Time for a second go.

 

[Tone1979]

it is like all relationships, once you have a daily routine with your new Mother, it becomes second nature, mine I think must be >10th Birthday,
indeed older than some OC members ? - some posts in the johnny 66 - bread bake thread

oh yeah for sure. 10 years!? awesome. I have heard that some starters have been going for nearly 100 years. how mad is that?

 

[Tone1979]

was it a boule/cobb shape on a baking stone ?

Spoiler: mother - needs a rejuvination

Yeah, I cooked in on a stone, it was a cob shape and almost doubled in the oven in terms of height.

I also did a little bit of the steam treatment.

I will get some photos to show you.

 

[Tone1979]

 

[Tone1979]

did not slash the top! Damn, I was meant to do that...

yeah made a poolish the night before.

 

[Tone1979]

Right so attempt two!

much more bubbly poolish. ( realised I messed up the measurements last time and did grams not ML)

Let's see how this goes.

Wholemeal white mix this time.

 

[Tone1979]

holy moly that book is immense.

This is the dough this afternoon, having a fairly chilly house seems to add hours and hours to the process.



It's now on it's final rise. We will see what it's like after baking.

 

[Tone1979]

this was the final loaf. Great taste but still not light enough inside for me.

 

[Tone1979]

try stretching and folding the dough over a few times so its like layers inside, should help to get some big air like ciabatta

I am going to change which recipe I use but will also try your suggestion.

Made some soda bread over the weekend, which I pretty much have nailed now (Irish family I guess)




was lush when still warm with a bit* of butter.

*a lot.

 

[Tone1979]

I just can't seem to get the bread the consistency I want. The taste is great this time again and I think the crust is what I am after but inside it just isn't producing the big bubbles I am after.

 

[Tone1979]

Thanks for your reply and a link to that amazing site!

The crust looks really hard but is actually not too bad. My wife and her best mate are here today and they have eaten half of it already with no complaints so I think the flavour isn't too bad.

The starter is made with organic wholemeal, the rest of the loaf is made with Canadian strong flour. maybe its 20/80?? at a guess.

Oven temp was 240c which was too hot I think though it was the prescribed temp.

I am going to study that site now and get some ideas as I have a starter ready to go and some lovely homemade butter!

 

[Tone1979]

So I started a new starter with a bit of the old (so not really a new starter!?) but with the older wholemeal starter I fed the new starter with strong white flour.

Made a new dough and let it prove for a long time as it's quite chilly in the house, punched it down and let it prove again. I took advice from Bobbyspangles and got some folds in at the punchdown stage and ended up with the most amazingly light and difficult to handle bread dough I have ever worked on. It was so full of air and hard to handle that I had to pour it onto the baking stone and it went quite flat. Well, actually very flat but once the oven door was closed the bread stood up a bit and this was the result.



Best taste and texture so far but was a little under in the middle, I could have left it in the oven for a few more mins but hey ho!

Going to make another today and prove it in the office where I am working from where the heating is on so I won't have to use up so much time.

 

[Tone1979]

Deffo overproved.

I learnt that today. I had a dough that was almost floating away. Totally un-workable.

Thanks for the link.

 

[Tone1979]

Hi guys,

Sorry for not replying sooner. I have been a little MIA.

For Christmas the mrs got me some proper proving baskets and today I had another go at baking a loaf. Started it last night, proved overnight and this was the result.

- nice round loaf, looks flat but it isn't. Camera angle was off.
- end slice
- slices going in from the end.

What I think I learnt is this;

1. my oven is hotter than it thinks it is.
2. I need a lower temp for longer
3. remember to slice the dough as I turn it out onto the stone in the oven.

This one tastes really good. The crust is really nice and crisp but a little overdone.

Onwards and upwards!

Tone

 

[Tone1979]

This one is looking good!

 

[Tone1979]

It's quite incredible that the bread you make from a starter as described above is simply flour, water and a little salt.

 

[Tone1979]

still contains yeast you just wait for it to grow rather than adding it

yeah, I know

 

[Tone1979]

Bringing this back to life.

Recently got back into making bread, well trying to and finally starting to understand how it works.

I ended up buying a sample of an old starter and so far have managed to cultivate it and make more bread.

Last loaf



Taste is spot on and this loaf only uses 50g of starter to make the ferment yet seems to be really east to turn out and bake.