January 24, 2010 - 12:40pm
Another go at San Joaquin SD
I really enjoyed the loaves I made last time so I made a few more this weekend. These ones had a bulk fermentation time of about 40 hours. I'm really enjoying this new whole wheat starter. Has great flavour, crazy active and only a couple weeks old.
Shape, no grigne but still very good looking loaves.
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You got great grigne. It could hardly be better. "Grigne" refers to the opening of the cuts. Think "grin." You may be referring to "ears," which are the lifted flaps of dough on one side of your cuts.
In my experience, the factors which prevent ears from forming are:
1. Cuts made at too steep an angle to the surface of the loaf. Hold your lame/razor/knife blade at a 30-45 degree angle to the surface.
2. Cuts made too deep. Paradoxically, deeper cuts tend to collapse of their own weight. Cut 1/4 inch deep for a relatively slack dough. A stiffer dough can take a deeper cut.
3. Too much steam can cause the flap to seal back onto the rest of the dough before it can lift.
I hope this helps.
David
Ah yes thanks David, I definitely meant ears. It could have been any of those factors you mention. Guess I'll just have to do more experimentation.
Those look delicious! I couldn't imagine how you'd want to perfect those! Excellent baking! And I hope they tasted just as great as they looked!