March 15, 2008 - 12:24pm
my baguette :)
here are some pics of my baguette, its about my 20th attempt and I think I am starting to get it, a little at least. I've had baguette in Paris and Cannes before, so I know what I am reaching for. I cant seem to get the holes really big though, I dont know if Im rushing the proof or de gassing too much during forming. Tell me what you think. I used a Pate Fermente for this.
baguette
baguete 2Share
R,
I've been trying to go in the same direction you're headed for 10 years and am slowly creeping up on it. I have become a convert to using a poolish, high hydration and "stretch and fold" technique to preserve the gas inside the dough. In my experience gentle handling of the dough is key to getting good results. Your crust looks good. Your interior looks a little tighter than you indicated you would like. Don't know if you make ciabatta but the holes in properly made ciabatta are the type holes you're looking for and that comes from high hydration, "stretch and fold" and gentle handling during folding, dividing and shaping. Which recipe did you use?
Howard - St. Augustine, FL
I used a pate fermente and used a 70% hydration dough. I havent tried the fold method for baguette though, I have made cuabatta before and a get the large irregular holes with that for that I usually use 75 to 80 percent hydration. And when you say my crust looks a little light, do you mean in color or texture? Im not sure what that means and how I can correct it.
R,
I didn't mean that anything was wrong with your crust. It's perfectly fine, I was just trying to figure out whether or not you had used a couche for proofing the dough. Sometimes, when a couche is used there's white flour markings on the outside, top crust of the bread on each side of the scorings. That's my reason for commenting on the crust and for asking whether you used a couche or let it rise on a flat surface (counter, pan, etc). When it rises outside a couche there's a tendency for the loaf to "spread out", which has happened to me on a number of occasions. The couche helps the bread keep its shape prior to going into the oven. Anyway, sounds like you're moving in the right direction. Good luck.
Howard - St. Augustine, FL
thanks for the info