18-hour retarded bulk fermentation
This is probably one of my best ever. It contains 50% wheat flour, and 50% mix of light rye and whole wheat, 9% fermented flour, and 68% overall hydration. No autolyse has been used, two hours bulk fermentation at room temperature (30 C), applying two stretches and folds before sending it to fridge for an extended 18-hour retarded bulk fermentation.
After the cold bulk fermentation, it was shaped and proofed for another 80 min on the counter before been baked in DO at 220 C for 30 min with lid on + 5 min with lid off to color.
The baked load had a soft tang flavor developed over 18 hours of cold fermentation. Crumb texture was velvet soft and the crust as crispy as it gets. In spite of the long fermentation I have not seen a lot of holes in the crumb. I have seen reports by fellow bakers here that long fermentation helps to open up the crumb. Well, I guess there are more variables at play for getting more open crumb structure, which I don't quite understand yet. For now, I am enjoying all the benefits and fun of sourdough baking.
Comments
that is one gorgeous loaf !! I don't know how folks get large open crumb LOL ! I have tried high hydration and long fermentation and YW and SD and a combination of the two and ,,,,,well enough. We don't even like to eat large hole bread cause all the yum stuff falls out ! your bread is wonderfully developed. c
Yes I am very happy with this loaf.
The long bulk fermentation in the fridge is better since my fridge is not that cool. So I always have overproofing issues when I retard teh shaped loaf, but I can keep it long enough during bulk fermentation to develop flavor
Nice loaf! I've only managed to get an open crumb once so I just abandoned the quest. :)
Thanks.
I also enjoyed your last bake. Nice to see you blending techniques and Asian influences
If you aren't making ciabatta then large holes are a flaw when it comes to bread. Open irregular, soft and moist crumb is a yes, wacky large is a no, no :-0 You can tell your bread is perfect because of the cross section shape, lovely bloom, ears and bold, blistered bake This is a 98 out of 100 bread and would easily win any county or state fair SD competition. Nicely done indeed and
Happy baking pul
Thanks Dab for your comments. They mean a lot coming from a star baker like you.
This one was a great result, vertical over spring and all. I wish I can be more consistent and get it like this more times, but I keep changing things here and there and always end up screwing up something.
recipes and you never know what is going to happen! We have our share of catastrophes but there is no wonder why she is still a 2nd class apprentice and nearly worthless:-) It is nice when the planets all line up and the bread really comes out perfect.
This looks like great bread. Wow is what I said when first looking at the photo of the loaf. The crumb is nice too. I agree with Dab on the hole mania. Maybe it's good for a diversion once in awhile, but I prefer bread that doesn't leak.
How much did this loaf weigh? (Or how much flour did you use?)
Happy baking.
Thank you for your comments. I think long bulk fermentation in the fridge is something I want to try more often. The result was very positive.
The open crumb thing is not on my to do list, but I would like to figure out what factors produce them (one day). Large holes cannot hold my sandwich stuffing or jam.
I used 300 grams flour, so the loaf is small. I like to bake small loaves because we eat it in two days (while fresh) and I can bake again. It is a good excuse to bake at least 2 times a week.
Yes, for most, open crumb takes some time to figure out. And it certainly can be achieved with hydrations as low as the mid-60s. So keep at it. The shaping and scoring are really really good!
alan
Thank you and have fun with your new flours from EU
peter
Hiya,
When the cold bulk is finished, has the dough significantly increased in size? And when you shape, are you doing this carefully so as to maintain the volume and air bubbles?
The reason I ask is that when I take cold refrigerated dough and shape it, it then does hardly anything in 80mins on the bench. It's barely started to warm up in that time. Did your dough rise during this final prove? Or does most of the rise occur during the bulk fermentation? If so, how are you shaping the dough without 'knocking back's a lot of the volume?
Hope this makes sense!