The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Baking temperature for pan loaves

mutantspace's picture
mutantspace

Baking temperature for pan loaves

Just wondering if I should be baking 850g pan loaves at lower temperature than a free form loaf? I’m trying to get a slower rise in oven so top is more even (need sandwich loaves) and I keep getting a lot of spring - a lot of recipes seem to suggest baking at 200C for longer rather than 230C with a batard or boule...any advice much appreciated. 

Mini Oven's picture
Mini Oven

are you using?

You can also let the panned dough proof longer before baking.

mutantspace's picture
mutantspace

ive been using commercial yeast  - making a poolish and then a final dough. I might start making poolish with sourdough and see how that changes it....is there a scientific way of knowing how much longer to proof pan loaf for as im essentially making same free form hearth bread in a tin...  

kemptoncatdad's picture
kemptoncatdad

Lower temp may help.  You may try a lower weight per loaf, that way the spring would be welcome.  Also, you can spray the loaf with water and use wet hands to even it out in the pan, maybe half an hour before baking. It could also potentially be underproofed, which usually results in extra oven spring.  Could also play with your scoring pattern.

mutantspace's picture
mutantspace

do you mean I cant lower weight of loafand onlyy have one size tin but I am interested in your suggestion of spraying bread. Do I do that during final proof? Is it a sort of degassing? As I generally make sourdoughs I like holding onto the gas in the dough but it seems I need to degas during shaping these pan loaves  - is that a good idea?

Mini Oven's picture
Mini Oven

as the yeast can often be too gassy.  You can also reduce the amount of yeast in the final dough or do two bulk rises depending on how much dough is prefermented in the poolish.  Don't be scared to do a good degassing before a rest and shaping.  Then let the dough proof until you get the desired gas cell sizes you desire.  

kemptoncatdad's picture
kemptoncatdad

Spraying with water will just help you handle the dough without your hands sticking. So that you can shape and even it out a bit in the pan.

 

 

Gzp's picture
Gzp

I recently read about a suggestion that starting off baking at a higher temperature, I think it was for about 10 minutes, and then reducing the temperature, might help to get more "oven spring". The rationale suggested was that at a certain point the outer surface "hardens" sufficiently to limit further "spring".  Perhaps you need to start at a lower temperature and then you can raise it after an initial period.  Not sure how you would determine the timing.