Poilâne Miche in Singapore
When I walked into a deli shop in Singapore three weeks ago, I had no idea this was what I was going to see:
Poilâne Miche air-flown from Paris to Singapore
You could imagine my astonishment. The store is called Culina Gourmet Boutique at Dempsey Hill, which is in a trendy part of Singapore, full of exciting new restaurants. The miche is air-flown weekly into Singapore on Thursdays. It was Monday when I bought it, so it could have been 5 days old or longer from when it was baked. A quarter of the 2kg miche sold for S$14.00 (equiv. to A$11.60 or US$10.20). The miche was too dry for my family's taste (even after being toasted and eaten with the best French butter):
Poilâne Miche about 5 days old (or longer)
As a trip to Paris was unlikely any time soon, I figured it would be my best chance to sample the Poilâne miche right there and then in Singapore. This was part of my quest for the best flavoured miche.
I rang the store on the morning of the following Thursday to see when it would be available at the store as I wanted to have it as fresh as possible. I was told early that afternoon but when I rang again late afternoon that day, I was informed that the miche was still clearing the Customs. I eventually got it the next morning. I brought my kids there so they could have a drink of something at the store while I took photos undisturbed quickly before taking my dreamed bite - the journey back to where we stayed would just be unbearable. The store's sales assistant was kind enough to slice the miche for me using their ham slicer:
Poilâne Miche about 48 hours old (or longer)
From the picture above, the miche actually looked quite good. But, it still tasted very dry to me (see below for close-ups):
These slices have the same look about them as those taken by Eric of Breadtopia.com from my Poilâne post HERE early this year. I read that the flavour of Poilâne miche reached its prime from day three onwards. I wonder if aircraft and flying have adverse effects on the flavour of fresh bread.
I once asked my Buddhist teacher why I was so fixated about something and never learnt from my mistakes. She said, "Grasshopper, that's because the wisdom you gained each time from your failures was not firm." Bad translation, but I think she meant that I learnt some lessons each time in my life's quest but that what I have learnt was not firm enough to prevent me from making the same mistakes over and over again in a different form.
I would like to share something with you that I posted on Sourdough.com in May. It was about a miche that I had in Sydney from Sonoma Bakery in Sydney's trendy suburb, Paddington. I had to go to Sydney for a concert on that day - Ashkenazy conducted Sydney Symphony Orchestra which performed Mahler's Symphony No. 5.
HERE was the post if you are interested.
Food is perishable sooner or later. Nothing can beat fresh food. When food is fresh, dressing is just decoration that you can do without. That's why home bakers have such advantages compared to even the best bakeries in town. Most home bakers are too humble to admit that. There are exceptions and, for me, Sonoma Bakery in Sydney is one such exception. I am fortunate to have come across Sonoma Bakery in my quest for a perfect miche.
Shiao-Ping
Comments
Hi Shiao=Ping,
Lovely to see your name with a new post against it on TFL.
I read your post on Sonoma sometime ago; what great bakers! They have a couple of YouTube clips too, I think?
What more is there to add to your comments about genuinely fresh food. That's why so many food manufacturers and retailers go out of their way to hoodwink us! The joys of being a homebaker indeed! I think Lionel Poilane was talking purely about the flavours in the bread when he expressed his view about enjoying it most after 3 days. And he was probably right too; but so are you: "nothing can beat fresh food" how very true indeed.
Best wishes
Andy
Thanks for commenting, Andy. Yeah, the good chefs these days emphasize on freshness and I wish fresh produce were easily available to home cooks.
and others I've known have done it as well. We decided the best way to get the loaf from point A to B was to wrap in plastic wrap, not a loose plastic bag. I have noticed that they arrive dryer when in a bag. One time the loaf was still warm and I had to close my suitcase so I left the glossy tissue paper around the loaf and wrapped it in a terry bath towel. Didn't want it to sweat in the plastic. I threw in plastic bags for later when I took it out. There was a lot of moisture in the towel I hung out. But the loaf seemed ok.
I noticed a big difference if the loaf is transported whole or cut. As each quarter loaf of the Poilane has its own bag, it might have been cut before being flown. I transport whole. Then cut up and pass hunks around "the family" tightly wrapped leaving the original plastic wrap intact (cutting right thru it) and adding more to cover the cut edges.
Maybe a suggestion could be made to have the loaves whole plastic wrapped before shipping to be cut at the Singapore Bakery. Not hot sealed in plastic for this might be a problem with air pressure, the wrapping would burst not helping a thing.
It could also be that the cold temperatures inside the plane at high altitudes leads to the dryness, like refrigeration does. The hot temps at both Airports could put the bread into giving off moisture too. The dryness does resemble a refrigerated loaf. An option for recovery might be to steam the slices quickly in a steamer to warm and restore moisture.
Glad to see you're getting around the Big City! I often think Tiger prawns=Singapore!
Mini :)
For my son, it is chilly crabs = Singapore!
Hi Mini
Good points about the hot and cold temperatures on the loaf. And, steaming the slices quickly in a steamer? Mmm, I like it. That might really work.
About transporting, the miches were transported whole. The store imports 4 whole miches each time and cut them once they arrive at the store.
You know I have read that also but just now got to thinking what if Poilane's tastes were totally different than yours? Sometimes we do things or try to like things because of something the experts say. Only I really know what I like and only you know what you like. Still it would be fun to make a Miche like a Poilane.
I really like your comment here. And yes, Poilane's tastes are probably different from mine. My daughter has a French friend visiting from Paris. He will be staying with us for a month. I notice that he doesn't take his bread with butter, not even the best French butter, whereas I enjoy mine with butter. People have their food differently.
Maybe I spoke to soon. The bread I made in the Wing-it post on sourdough.com seems to support Poilane's three day rule. I baked the bread on Sunday and cut it at work on Monday. Yes it was a really good bread on Monday but I got to eat the last piece of it on Wednesday and to me the flavor of the last piece was really outstanding. Will I wait three days before cutting a bread? I don't think so but every once in a while I might toy with that idea.
Shiao-Ping,
I read with interest your post on sourdough.com and again here about the Poilain Miche in Singapore. I'm not surprised that the Poilain bread was dry and a disappointment. Many others have expressed similar thoughts about the legendary bread. Add high altitude travel and extended time, can't be good for freshness.
Have you attempted to replicate the Sonoma Miche? The crumb looks like it has a portion of rye. Beautiful crumb structure, I agree. That would be a bread I could get excited about.
Eric
Hi Eric, lovely to hear from you.
There is a very good comment by a very experienced baker, Danubian, HERE, on my Sonoma Miche, Sydney post.
Hello Shiao-Ping,
Wonderful to see you so to speak. I read the Danubian post after I commented on your post. He does sound like a sharp cookie and has been around the bakery for a while. Do you think the formula he posted is near what we need to be at to make this Miche? I don't recall if he called for any rye. I'm pretty sure this has a scalded soaker of rye. The membranes are beautiful.
Eric
Yes he did call for a soaker of rye. Not sure if you have seen it but he posted a very informative Forum topic at Sourdough.com: "Dark" or "Black" colour rye bread HERE or http://sourdough.com/forum/dark-or-black-colour-rye-bread . There is a very interesting rye formula in his post which I meant to try but haven't got around to it.
I have enjoyed breads from the Paris shop. I find that sending bread long distances by air
is not very satisfactory. Wait and buy when you are in Paris or make your own ! Bon Appetit !
Maisonbleu
Can't comment on Poilane miche, however, it seems to me that this bread is so overhyped that it can't possibly live up to expectation.
Let's hear it for Sonoma - I haven't tried the miche but their soy and linseed bread is my favourite store-bought bread in Sydney.
I do think that though the mass market breads are horrid, we have some great bread in Sydney. I love La Tartine's black rye bread which always sells out really fast at the local organic supermarket. Also, because the Haberfield bakery, a short walk away, produces a world-class ciabatta, I've never been tempted to make it as it can't possibly measure up to theirs. I swear it's tastier than bread I've had in Italy (fresh from the bakery).
I happened to have sampled La Tartine's black rye bread. It is indeed very flavourful but I probably like my own rye bread better.
Hi Shiao-Ping,
I was recently in Paris for a short vacation with my girlfriend. We went to both of the Poilaine bakeries and bought a miche from one of them. I must say that I couldn't help feeling slightly underwhelmed by the legendary loaf, even when fresh. Don't get me wrong, a really fantastic loaf of bread, but I was expecting it to be so much better than the stuff I bake at home... the truth is, it wasn't (at least in my opinion). I don't mean that in the sense that I think I am a great baker, I am an average baker, but the version I made from BBA is a very close approximation to the real thing. I can't help but think that when you put something up on such a high pedastle, you leave so much room for disappointment.
On a more positive note, we also visited the bakery of Djibril Bodian, who won 'best baguette in Paris 2010'. This truly was the best baguette I have ever eaten. Amazing crisp crust with a the creamiest open crumb you could imagine.
ben
Thank you very much for your comment and feedback. It's always nice to hear it from people who have the first hand experience.
Shiao-Ping
Good to see you back!
It doesn't surprise me at all that the Poilâne miche was underwhelming - you just can't beat fresh!
I'm right with you on your comment on the superiority of fresh-baked home sourdough. I made the same observation in a blog last year (although I was comparing my home-baked bread to local SD produce less esteemed than Poilâne's), and at the time I recall feeling quite uncomfortable with making such a claim publicly, even though I was speaking my truth (and what more can you do?).
We've communicated on the variety of possible reasons behind the superior flavour of good home-baked SD before, so I won't bore you by taking this up again. I listed the factors I consider relevant here.
Whatever, ain't it wonderful that amateur home bakers can turn out such gorgeous tasting bread, and that all that is required is some knowhow and experience - easily gleaned from great sites like this one and SD Companion, where a spirit of sharing and true community is the rule rather than the exception - and of course, top quality organic flours. I have to say, though, even non-organic flours can yield home-baked breads that are pretty damned yummy.
BTW, I should make it clear that this post is in no way intended as a putdown of pro bakers - that would be arrogant and silly. In my opinion, though, the domestic kitchen is the site of some of the best food, not just bread, the world over. Give me good home-cooked food (and that can include a dizzy variety of multicultural marvels) and traditional regional specialities any time over arty-farty yuppie foodie fare turned out by precious cheffy types at over-priced exclusive restaurants.
Oh, there's a place for that sort of food, but my food freak heart's in the domestic kitchen and on the street (eg: some of the hawker food in Singapore, and especially Malaysia, is nothing short of miraculous...and sometimes at less than the price of a Perth coffee!).
Cheers all
Ross
Hi Ross, thanks for commenting. I wanted to wait until after the Masterclass Weekend to reply. Robyn of RobynNZ told me about this event where Peter Reinhart gave a one and a half hour session on his take on the Poilane bread. His version uses "high extraction flour" which is 85% extraction rate of the wheat berry (note: this approximates the French T85 flour). Peter says home bakers can, in the absence of the high extraction flour, substitute 3 parts whole wheat flour to 1 part white bread flour. To maximize the flavour potential, he utilizes a delayed fermentation method. All participants got to sample the bread during the session, which was made 24 hours before-hand. I have Peter's Whole Grain Bread and read it cover to cover one holiday early this year. At the time I was wondering how his Poilane bread would be like as the book did not provide formula. So, I was really happy to be able to finally taste it last Sunday at the Masterclass Weekend at Hilton Hotel, Brisbane. The bread was dense and mildly flavourful.
Shiao-Ping
I didn't know Peter Reinhart was in Australia (only in Qld, from what I can see on his blog). It must have been great attending his Masterclass! Hope I'm not unaware of it if he ever does something similar in Perth! How to set up an alert...?
Did he go through how he makes his Polaine bread? How would you rate it, from your tasting?
Cheers
Ross
How to set up an alert? Well, I don't know. Maybe one way would be to keep a close contact with Robyn? That would be a great idea! Oh how about subscribing to Australasian Baker? I first knew about this magazine last month when I was visiting my local cooking and baking supply store, Executive Chef. I glanced at the new arrival books section and saw this magazine. There was a picture of Graham Pritchard (of Sourdough Companion) in an article entitled "The Sourdough Debate" in which Paul Allan, Bourke Street Bakery, also contributed a commentary. There was also an interview with Peter Reinhart (in this August/September 2010 issue that I saw) which mentioned about his then upcoming visit to Australia for the Hilton Brisbane Masterclass Weekend.
Yes, in the class we went through how to make Peter's Poilane miche. When I get time I will write up about it. His formula, or procedure, is simpler than the way I did my Poilane miche. The big majority of participants at Peter's Masterclass Weekend session liked his bread as I saw many people smiling and nodding their heads as they were sampling the bread. I may be wrong but I got the feeling that the big majority of them are not sourdough bakers. As a home sourdough baker, I can't say that I like Peter's Poilane version. Bread tastes are very individual. I like my sourdough to be a bit more open and spongy.
Shiao-Ping
p.s. I would like you to read this little story about "Bread House" in Brisbane. It is directly opposite my kids' schools. For a long time I'd been seeing this building not knowing that it is the head office of National Baking Industry Association, Queensland. I thought that somebody by the name of "Bread" owned the building! (In my mind it seemed just too good to be true that something so interesting to me as bread would have a "house" - it is like a candy house to a child!)
My question about Reinhart-Aust alerts was really just musing aloud, and I didn't expect an answer. Your suggestions are good ones! I'm not sure how to go about setting a Robyn alert, but never mind!
From your description, I suspect I'd share your response to the Reinhart Polaine bread. I must say though, although I'm happy, generally, with the quality of my SD bakes, I rarely get the sort of open crumb you do. I know there are multiple factors involved, and I've ticked most of the boxes, but still...going by your pics, you've set the bar pretty damned high, and I'm not making it over the mark most of the time!
Cheers!!
Ross
Hi Shiao-Ping
Thanks for the report from the Qld Masterclass Weekend. Reading your evaluation of the Poilâne miche you purchased during your holiday in Singapore and your comments about the PR version you tasted at the weekend, makes me think how lucky we are to have developed breads at home that suit our own palate, and that information on many many different types of bread is so accessible to us that we are not limited in our breadmaking experiments.
Regards, Robyn