The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Banneton without cloth insert and high hydration dough

texasbakerdad's picture
texasbakerdad

Banneton without cloth insert and high hydration dough

I have a few Bannetons without cloth inserts. I have successfully used them with medium wetness doughs. But, I have been watching a few videos on youtube and it looks like the high hydration videos I have seen are using Bannetons with cloth inserts.

I am about to make a very high hydration dough and I am worried that I will wreck my dough trying to put it into a Banneton without the cloth insert.

Your advice is much appreciated!

DanAyo's picture
DanAyo

I chicken out with wet doughs and bannetons. I always opt for cloth lined. 

If naked bannetons are possible with wet do, I’d really like to learn. Maybe someone with experience can help us. If you are ready to bake, I’d suggest cloth until we learn otherwise.

Dan

barryvabeach's picture
barryvabeach

My bannetons don not have a cloth liner, but I have prepared them one example of how to prepare and use rice flour for dusting before each use.

texasbakerdad's picture
texasbakerdad

How successful have you been with 75+% hydration doughs with your naked bannetons?

barryvabeach's picture
barryvabeach

I am usually around 80% using home milled 100% whole wheat, and don't have any problems with sticking.  Rice flour is the secret.  You can find it at a grocery store, or if you have a mill, you can mill some, a little goes a long way. 

texasbakerdad's picture
texasbakerdad

I just used your method with a 95% hydration dough! Worked like a charm. And yes, I used rice flour.

jeffchina's picture
jeffchina

What would you consider medium wetness? I'm not being a jerk, just a newb. One of the other commenters says 95% hydration. I can't even imagine that. 75% is the highest I have tried and I thought that was high.

 

Jeff

DanAyo's picture
DanAyo

Hey Jeff, no one here would consider you a jerk. Through the years I’ve probably asked a thousand questions. And so far no one has called me a jerk. LOL

As you know, hydration is the bakers best indicator to communicate the “wetness” of the dough. But there are variables that have a huge affect on the hydration. By far the largest is the type of flour(s) used in the mix. Like you said 75% can be fairly wet if all purpose white flour is used. But if the baker is using 100% fresh milled whole wheat 90% probably won’t be too wet. High protein flour (bread flour) will absorb more water than a flour with lower protein (all purpose flour). It doesn’t take a long time for a baker to learn the “feel” of the dough. 

Is your concern about hydration dealing with flouring bannetons or something else.

Does hesitate to ask questions. We are here to help.

Danny

jeffchina's picture
jeffchina

Thanks Danny,

I'll keep that in mind. I'm about to try adding a cup of rye flour to one of my recipes to see what happens. Total flour with the rye will be about 4 cups. 

I am dealing with first try's of using a banneton. I really want to have this work and dough wetness is scaring me. I'm going to try getting some rice flour and taking down the wetness a touch. And working on my dough tension a little more without tearing the top. I'll let you know how I make out. 

Do you continually keep track of the hydration of your dough's, as in after adding 2 tablespoons of flour how does that affect the final percentage?

Jeff

DanAyo's picture
DanAyo

Jeff, I hope I understand your question. I do keep close calculations of the actual hydration. In the post linked below the statement is made, “ A tablespoon of extra water can raise the hydration of a 600 gram dough by ~3-5%. A little extra water can make a difference. Maybe you are comfortable with 75% hydration, but what if the dough was 80%.” A small amount of water can make a large difference.

This link may give you some ideas. The same method could be used with flour instead of water.

http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/61157/tip-making-adjustments-dough-hydration

FueledByCoffee's picture
FueledByCoffee

If you folks haven't tried the wood pulp baskets you're missing out.  I have worked with naked banneton, clothed, wicker with a couche sewn in and none perform as effortlessly as the wood pulp baskets.  I've never had dough stick at all to the wood pulp baskets and they dry and clean out really nicely. 

MTloaf's picture
MTloaf

I was curious about the wood pulp baskets I have seen used by others. One of the reasons I thought baskets and cane or a colander were more common was that they allowed air around the dough. What brand are you using?

FueledByCoffee's picture
FueledByCoffee

I just purchased the few I have from Breadtopia

https://breadtopia.com/product-category/bread-baking-supplies/wood-pulp-proofing-baskets/

I didn't find them to be prohibitively expensive but bread is also what I do for a living so I don't mind spending money on my smallware. I have clothe baskets and cane baskets as well but the wood pulp baskets outperform them with ease.  It's honestly not even a contest.

DanAyo's picture
DanAyo

I would love to get my hands on the wood pulp bannetons, but here in the US, they cost a fortune. I’ve been searching for quite a while.

FueledByCoffee's picture
FueledByCoffee

I'm in the US as well.  I guess it's a matter of what you're willing to spend.  I posted the link above where I got them.  Not sure what you're willing to pay but I think they are worth it.

pmccool's picture
pmccool

I've purchased brotformen from Lucky Clover Trading Company previously and been happy with their products.  Prices are very reasonable.  They describe the material as rattan, rather than willow or woodpulp.  You might want to have a look.

Paul

DanAyo's picture
DanAyo

Paul, I like these baskets from the link you posted. But depending on the shipping cost, these wicker baskets from SFBI appear much more sturdy and nicer. I own a set of these. Shipping could be a deciding factor, but there is no comparison from looking at the pictures and knowing my bannetons. There is a $5.75 difference, but the quality is night and day.

The high sides, coupled with the steep slopes are something I really like about them.

FueledByCoffee's picture
FueledByCoffee

I have some of those wicker baskets with the couche sewn in and the only thing I don't like is that if you do end up with a dough that sticks then cleaning them out can be a real pain.  Over time I find that the clothe just gets really dirty and hard to clean.  I have soaked them in cold water and scrubbed them clean and they seem to take that treatment alright.  For me spending 15 bucks on a wood pulp basket that is going to probably last me my entire life is quite alright.  I'm sure we all waste money on much less useful things!