The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Ikea Cast Iron Senior (oval shaped) for Batards?

joypog's picture
joypog

Ikea Cast Iron Senior (oval shaped) for Batards?

I've been on a tear with sourdough for the past four weeks inspired by Lahey's no-knead method but really doing Forkish's multiple folds method (but using 400g of flour per loaf in Lahey's recipies).  It took about seven loaves to get a decent one (dumb luck) and then seven more tries to actually get decent enough at shaping to get another good loaf and I've been decently consistent since them.

I've been very happily baking my loaves in a lodge 3qt pot as well as a 3qt stainless steel pot (placed on a cast iron skillet) to do two loaves at a time as recommended in both of their books. (side question, by using Lahey's full recipie but using a smaller pot instead of his suggested 4qt, am I limiting the potential of the loaf's flavor or rise in any way?)

However my wife is not super fond of the width of the boule's in the middle so after seeing it at Ikea I'm thinking about going to batards after seeing an oval cast iron dutch oven (in the Senior line).  After a quick google search it seems to be about the most inexpensive cast iron dutch oven in a oval shape out there.

I'm just curious if anyone has tried cooking a batard in cast iron like and how they've worked, as well as whether anyone has tried the Ikea Senior cast iron products for baking (I'd be surprised if its much better/worse than any alternative out there, but I might as well ask).  Thanks!

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50232842/

jimbtv's picture
jimbtv

I appreciate your honesty in your discussion of failed attempts. I think some of us want the perfect formula and technique handed to them here. Many others really appreciate the journey that happens through failure, failure, better, success! The best bakers on this forum would probably agree that they learn and adapt with every bake.

I have the very same Ikea dutch oven but I have never put it into use for baking bread. If you plan on using the DO inverted, as most here do, there are two issues. First, there is a knob-like handle but that can be removed. Second, the lid is convex (concave from the inside) so it will not sit flat on the oven rack. You will have to find some way of shoring-up the sides so the whole thing doesn't roll in the oven. You will also end up with a convex bottom on your batard.

You might consider placing your proofed loaf in the bottom section of the DO and use it non-inverted but I think that will have an affect on browning the crust.

One thing for sure, you could purchase an Ikea DO then report back on your findings. I'd be curious to discover your results. At worst that particular DO does make a very good DO for other food prep uses.

Keep us posted.

 

Jim

Arjon's picture
Arjon

I think you're talking about the combo cooker, which is designed to be usable with either piece as the base. I don't recall anyone ever saying he or she normally inverts a regular DO. 

HansB's picture
HansB

Bakes were all done in a Le Creuset dutch oven that was not inverted. It is more difficult to score but bakes bread perfectly. I may get that IKEA DO myself for batards. 

Trevor J Wilson's picture
Trevor J Wilson

Many folks find that the Lodge Cast Iron Combo Cooker works great for both boules and batards. I use it myself, and highly recommend it. It's basically a dutch oven with a skillet for a lid. For bread, simply invert it so the skillet is the base and the pot the lid. It's a bit cheaper than the one you are looking at, and as an added advantage, loaves are much easier to score since you don't have to reach down into the hot pot. Here's an amazon link in case you're interested (not affiliated) . . .

https://www.amazon.com/Lodge-LCC3-Cooker-Pre-Seasoned-3-2-Quart/dp/B0009JKG9M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1493731922&sr=8-1&keywords=lodge+cast+iron+combo+cooker

Cheers!

Trevor

HansB's picture
HansB

I'll second the Lodge combo cooker. It works very good.

 

BTW Trevor, I made your SD loaf yesterday. Really nice loaf of bread! Thanks.

Trevor J Wilson's picture
Trevor J Wilson

I love the addition of the sesame seeds! Looks great!

Trevor

Ingrid G's picture
Ingrid G

Hi Trevor,

Would you please display the link to your SD recipe? And, if possible, what measurements the pan is? I think it's a Pullman Tin, isn't ?

Thanks, and cheers,

Ingrid

Trevor J Wilson's picture
Trevor J Wilson

http://www.breadwerx.com/make-sourdough-pan-bread-video/

The pan dimensions are described in the video and post -- can't remember them off the top of my head. It's not a true pullman pan (no lid, and the sides aren't perfectly vertical), but perhaps it could be considered pullman-style since it's long and narrow. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it!

Cheers!

Trevor

Ingrid G's picture
Ingrid G

I found your video this morning - great instructions! The pan is 30.5 x 11.4 x 7.9cm, as per your video. Is your pan double-walled? It looks a bit like it in the video.

Love the look of the bread.

Cheers, Ingrid

Trevor J Wilson's picture
Trevor J Wilson

If you'd like to take a closer look, here's an amazon link to the pan I use (not affiliated) . . .

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0032JRVCG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Trevor

Ingrid G's picture
Ingrid G

Thank you for that, Trevor.

Happy baking weekend!

Ingrid

joypog's picture
joypog

ohh I like the concept of the combo, that certainly would make life easier since it is always a little hair raising / singeing when I load the loaf into the oven (I use my current lodge enamel DO pot non-inverted)...but given that I've owned this DO for years and have previously only used it twice to make soup, I don't think I can justify buying another big heavy cast iron item in the same shape as before, unless I'm really missing out in having one that is a bit small instead of a 5qt item.

I think I'll make a run at the local thrift stores the next couple weeks and if I can find a really cheap oval shaped pot that' I'm comfortable taking up to 500f  I'll pick it up first for some initial experiments.  Otherwise, I'll get the Ikea DO.

Carti946's picture
Carti946

A timely post for me. I am shopping for a enamel turkey roaster or an oval DO to invert over my pizza steel to bake batards (for exactly the same reason as you ;) . I could use the pizza steel without the cover, but I hate steaming the oven, so this combo seems like a way forward.

I saw this idea from someone else on The Fresh Loaf, I just can't remember who. 

HansB's picture
HansB

do a batard in a round DO as Trevor said above. I'd still like an oval to do longer loaves. Here is an oval done in a round cloche:

Lazy Loafer's picture
Lazy Loafer

I think as long as you maintain the concept of keeping in the moisture and providing even heat, you can try a few things. I sometimes bake longer loaves (either in pans or not) on my pre-heated baking stones, covered with a heavy deep steel pan (I use the steel inserts for restaurant steam tables, but you can also use a heavy roaster lid). I also bake in cast iron pots (round). To make these easier, I turn the loaves out onto pieces of parchment paper, score the loaves then lower them into the hot pots. Easy!

bread1965's picture
bread1965

I wonder how many bakers on this site don't use dutch ovens, or lodge cast iron combo cooker at all anymore... I've used a round DO for  boules for a long time, but am too cheap and too tired of having yet more stuff in my kitchen to buy an oval DO.. and I sure have spent too much time looking around at them online.. but I do like the IKEA one you linked to.. ultimately I decided I didn't want one.. here's why..

I think at the end of the day, you'll eventually get to the point that you decide you need to try baking on a stone without a DO and learn how to manage steam, etc to get a good rise. I'm not fully there yet, but I'm getting there and learning a lot more about baking bread along the way.. so if I had to spend 50$ on an oval DO or a slab of baking stone I'd pick the stone..  and as a last point, that isn't to say that that the bread would all else being equal turn out the same one way or the other.. but I like what I'm able to achieve with a baking stone (that is when I get everything else dialed in and working well on a bake).. just my two cents.. either way, there's always lots to learn!

And PS.. there's little more I enjoy than being able to peer into the oven and watch a loaf rise during the bake.. it's pretty magical.. :)

Bake happy .. bread1965

joypog's picture
joypog

Interesting, I appreciate the comments, I'll look into getting a baking stone.  I'm not fond of the idea of steaming the oven, but I'm not against it either.  So far I've been using equipment I already have, so this is my first purchase aside from bags of flour and a couple 79 cent dish towels for proofing.

At the very least I will research this other method before setting my direction. Any suggestions on a stone or good reference pages for stones?  Cheers!

bread1965's picture
bread1965

I don't think that the pizza stone you use is going to profoundly change the result. I have a simple inexpensive round pizza stone that's about a centimeter thick more or less. I'd like to get one that's square and larger so that I can bake two battards side by side. I'd also like to find one that's an inch think to create a higher heat mass. At the end of the day the key is to heat it at temperature for a minimum of half an hour, but many people say up to an hour, before you put your dough on it. As to steam, there's tons of stuff on this site about it.. just search for steam and you'll find all kinds of comments on the subject... use amazon to find an inexpensive stone..  have fun!!

Lazy Loafer's picture
Lazy Loafer

I have two slabs of granite in my oven which I got from a place selling off-cuts from granite counter tops. If you can find a place that installs granite counter tops (or a contractor who does that), ask if you can have a couple of leftover pieces of the right dimensions for your oven. The guy I bought from even cut the pieces to size for me. He also roughed up the back side of the stones (don't want to bake on the shiny side; the bread will stick). These are absolutely fabulous; best baking stones ever (and really cheap!).

tafkas's picture
tafkas

https://www.worldmarket.com/product/ribbed-clay-slow-cooker.do?sortby=ourPicksAscend&page=2&from=fn

I picked  this up at Old World Market, it was a close out at $15.99 with a coupon.

turkey_creek's picture
turkey_creek

Hi,

That looks like a great option. I checked out the link and they're out of stock online but I noticed it says the baker is only good to 350 deg F. I normally bake at 450+. Have you used this cooker at higher temperatures and if so has it survived? Any bad results?

Thanks!

BreadBabies's picture
BreadBabies

So, I feel the same way about the boules and I've recently started making batards which I find to be a lot more practical from an eating perspective.  I shape and let rise in couche and bake on a pizza stone. I like that better than an oval loaf, which tends to round out in my Dutch oven anyway.

Now, the artisans are going to scoff at me, and I don't know if I like it yet myself...but I recently purchased a Lekue for about $20.  I made one loaf in it which turned out a nice little boat shape. No, it's not a classic "artisan" technique, but with a baby, I'm looking for inexpensive way to get a more practical shape without taking up a lot of my time. There are several things I want to experiment and I can't fully recommend it at this point (especially if you're picky about a true classic batard shape) but it may eventually solve my problem, which is the same as yours.

starvingviolist's picture
starvingviolist

Bought one a few months ago and have been using it weekly since. It seems to work every bit as well as the lodge combo cooker, which I use along side it.

joypog's picture
joypog

nice! good to hear.  after thinking about it a bit I suspect I will end up sticking with DO's instead of playing with baking stones at this time...but I did make a deal with my wife that I'd hold off on buying anything until I prove this is more than a short term fad since I so often go in and out of my hobbies.  So if I'm still baking after July 4th, she'll let me buy something then.  Fair enough!

joypog's picture
joypog

Update...Along with my 3qt dutch oven, we also have a lodge cast iron 3qt casserole dish that is 13" diameter wide. Since its lower profile, I had not been making boule's in them when I first posted the thread, but I started using it as one of my two dutch ovens...and last week I went ahead and tried making a batard in it and it fit nicely (I use a recipie with 400g flour).

Now trying to shape a decent batard...that's another problem!