April 5, 2019 - 2:47am
Par Bake vs Raw Dough
I want to prepare some loaves ahead of time, transport them and bake them maybe 24 - 36 hours later, definitely less than 48 hours.
What are my options?
I could par bake them and freeze them, keeping the frozen loaves cold during transit.
Or,I could omit the par baking and freeze or chill the raw dough and pack it in ice to keep it cold during transit.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of each, considering that we're dealing with a period 36 hours or less from mixer bowl to oven? For such a short period, are the par-baking and extra prep time justified?
Dough hydration is about 60%.
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I’d suggest bulk fermentation under refrigeration. Then you need only shape, proof and bake off your loaves once you arrive. If you par bake you’re leaving nearly 2 days of staling time (unless you freeze & keep frozen your par baked product). Which is more work. If you do retard in bulk, make sure you keep dough at 38-40 degrees and I would recommend punching down or folding once a day to degas the dough.
Wouldn't it proof a little bit, though very slowly, while refrigerated in transit?
Yeah a little. But what is transit, a couple hours or a slow boat to Australia?
It will be time consuming to fully proof them upon arrival.
So you’ve answered your question.
So proof before leaving home?
HOW LONG IS YOUR TRIP TO DESTINATION?
"HOW LONG IS YOUR TRIP TO DESTINATION?"
32 - 36 hours.