The Fresh Loaf

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100% white weak flour

Solano's picture
Solano

100% white weak flour

I'm from Brazil and first I need to explain something about the flours here. For some time I've been making bread with a good flour that I bought in Paraguay, the best bread I've made until today was made with that flour, but it was over and I still could not buy more, so I had to use the best flour we can find in the markets here (there are better ones, but very difficult to find). There is no quality control and there are no different types of flour, as you have in the US or Italy and others, all the flours I have seen here present information that they have 10% protein. That's true? I do not know, there's no control. What I know and what many amateur and professional bakers know is that flours here can not withstand high hydration, even with 68% hydration it is very difficult to work with.

So using this flour and after Kat's tip about Matteo Festo's book, I decided to test a different method to see how the result would turn out and the differences in working the dough with this Brazilian flour.

These breads were my usual recipe, 1000g dough, 100% white flour, 65.03% water, 2.19% salt, 18.58% levain (100% hydration). Final hydration, 68%. Temperature in my refrigerator was about 5 ° C and in my kitchen during the day ranged between 20-22 ° C.

The recipe in the book asked for a higher percentage of levain, but I ended up forgetting and had to improvise. As the final proof would be at the counter I decided to keep the levain of my formula and adjust the time of final proof as the dough developed.

Basically it was this.

- mix (flour, water and levain) - 30 min "autolyse"

- add salt and mix (rubaud)

- 4 stretch and fold every 30 min

- put in refrigerator for 14 hours

- remove, pre-shape, bench rest 20 min, shape

- final proof at the counter was 3 hours for first dough and 4 hours for second

My impressions: the dough came out of the refrigerator very soft, easy to work, was definitely my best shape. I think I might have left more time at the counter, but I was afraid to overproof. It had been a long time since I had baked straight from the counter, it was harder to cut. My cuts are never unique, I can cut straight through almost to the other side, but when I get close to the other end the blade fails, the difficulty is because I cut into the pan that is very hot. I think it was a good result, I found the crust more crunchy. I got results similar to the ones I have with my normal method, but it definitely was a lot easier to work these doughs this time.

The first loaf is the top loaf in the picture. The photo of the crumb is from the second bread. The first one I gave to friends and they still did not send me the picture of the crumb (yes, I asked them to take a photo, which was weird hahaha).

Solano

Comments

not.a.crumb.left's picture
not.a.crumb.left

beautiful loaves....I also like the black 'eyelid' and the different colourings........Did you do a happy dance?

Funnily enough, I am bulking a double 00 flour white low gluten dough right now based on Matteo's formula. I am using low protein, gluten Italian pizza flour...that I got in an Italian deli in London yesterday.

I also did more folds than suggested basically three every 30 min and now let it finish bulk....

I am not sure whether to room proof or retard....I think I make my mind up at the end of bulk.....

Again - super bake!!!! I hope it tastes nice too!!!!  Kat

Solano's picture
Solano

Of course I did happy dance !!! :)

Yes, the breads were delicious!

I'm waiting for your loaves!

Solano

hreik's picture
hreik

perfect to my eyes.  I hope you are happy with the result.

 

hester

Solano's picture
Solano

Yes, I'm very happy with the result. :)

Thank you!

Solano

Ru007's picture
Ru007

Your loaves look fantastic!! The crumb ia perfect! I don't think its weird that you asked your friends to take a picture of the crumb, I do that too!! 

Great bake, I'm sure the bread was delicious! 

Happy baking

Ru

Solano's picture
Solano

Thank you, Ru! Good to know that others have the practice of asking for photos for friends, this was the first time I gave someone a bread, usually friends go to my house and eat there, so I already have the photos.

Solano

Doc.Dough's picture
Doc.Dough

What was the temperature of the oven and the bake time?  The black eyelid says HOT (250°C), but the rest of the crust color look more like 200°C.  Maybe an electric oven with a top heating element?

The slash is interesting.  It is tricky to get that effect. With a soft dough, a deep cut will expand until it maximizes the surface area/volume ratio, and only then will it be able to tear and form a lip.  But it has to have enough oven spring left after it has blown up the loaf to create the tear. So I am interested in the depth of the slash relative to the height of the proofed loaf. They are very impressive, both externally and internally with quite uniform distribution of large holes and a nice thick crust (I would guess 35-45 min oven time?).

With a 5°C refrigerator temperature, I suspect that the dough is fully cold after 4 or 5 hours and that will pretty much shut down the production of CO2.  You may get some additional acid from the LAB but certainly any CO2 produced after 1 hr will go into solution in the liquid phase of the dough and then come out when it warms up to emphasize the oven spring, so after the first hour of BF I would not expect to see any additional volume expansion. But you are shaping after that which will bring the temperature back up and release some of the CO2.  The verification experiment is to split a batch and take one loaf out at 4 hrs and shape/proof/bake it but wait the full 14 hrs for the other one.  There is a line at around 4-5°C where most of the biological activity goes dormant and depending on the specifics of your starter you may be on one side or the other , but not by very much.

Solano's picture
Solano

My oven is gas and has no heating on the top. The temperature was 250°C, preheated the oven and the pan, when I open the oven to put the dough the temperature falls to approximately 240 ° C. This temperature is while it is with lid, when I take the lid I lower the temperature to 230ºC. 20 minutes with lid and approximately 20 without it.

The cut was made with a razor blade, I try not to cut too deep, but also not too shallow, I believe maybe 1/3 of the blade, but I am guessing. Normally I do not take photos at this stage because I cut the dough already inside the pan, so I try to work as fast as possible so the pan does not waste much temperature, but I'll try to take pictures next time.

This is a great experiment idea, I will organize to do this, since I still only have the weak flour at home. Thanks for the idea and thanks for your kind words!

Solano

Doc.Dough's picture
Doc.Dough

I could not tell that you were baking in a DO from the appearance of the loaf, so the photo is illuminating (no pun intended).

I have to presume that the eyelid gets its dark color after the DO is opened up and the top of the loaf has a direct view of the hot top of the oven (and perhaps gets some convective heat from turbulence induced by the DO lip). And now I understand your comment about cutting in the pan.  The weak flour probably allows more oven spring than you might get with a higher gluten flour, but the result is beautiful no matter how you achieve it.

When you bake two loaves in sequence, you have an opportunity to try refrigerating the second loaf for the hour that the first loaf is occupying the oven.  This may be enough to firm it up so that the slash is made easier when the time comes.  It may slow down the proofing of the outside of the loaf but won't impact the center much in one hour.

You might also benefit from putting a few layers of crumpled aluminum foil between the DO and the rack to act as multi-layer insulation and reduce the browning on the bottom.  The heat stored in the DO during preheating will cook and brown the bottom, but it looks like you need a little less bottom heat after you take the top off.

Solano's picture
Solano

I always had problems with the bottom of my loaves, I could improve by putting these refractory bricks in the oven, which also help not to lose much temperature during the oven openings. I'll test your aluminum foil tips and maybe reduce the temperature even further after removing the cover. Thank you for your help!

Solano

Doc.Dough's picture
Doc.Dough

Then unravel it and fold it twice with the shiny side out to make a four layer sheet without smoothing it out - the residual crinkles will form small voids that dramatically reduce the thermal conductivity.  You don't want to block the air flow in the oven, just protect the bottom of the DO from direct radiant/convective heat from below.  For more on what is going on in the oven, you can read this: http://bit.ly/2PGyPbB

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

that is low gluten and make a wonderful loaf of bread like this one that tastes as good as it looks.  What a fine success.  Well done and happy baking!

Solano's picture
Solano

Yes, it is very good to know that I can make bread with the flour that I have available in the day to day, the same flour that gave me so much work and that many times I blamed for faults that, in fact, were mine.

Thank you for the words :)

Solano

Danni3ll3's picture
Danni3ll3

That is an outstanding loaf and to make it with local unpredictable flour? Wow! Well done!

Solano's picture
Solano

Since your comment in my other post I have been trying to look different for my results. Your comments help me to do this more easily. Thank you!

Solano

PalwithnoovenP's picture
PalwithnoovenP

You really did a great job!