Pain Sur Poolish

Submitted by Floydm on April 8, 2005 - 7:11pm

Today's batch of Pain Sur Poolish turned out pretty good. Not as good as last time, I don't think. We left the house during primary fermentation, so I threw it into the fridge for a couple of hours. I'm not sure I let the dough warm back up enough afterward. Also, the dough was definitely drier than last time. The wetness of the dough last time was part of what I think contributed to it being so good. So, more work to be done before I've got this one down.

So, I don't forget, the recipe I used was roughly the Village Baker recipe:

3/4 teaspoon instant yeast
1/2 cup water
the poolish that had sat out overnight (1 cup water, 1 cup flour, 1/4 teaspoon yeast)
2 cups flour (1 bread, 1 all-purpose)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Combine, let ferment 2 hours, punch down, let rise another 45, shape into logs, let rest 15 minutes, stretch, let rise another 1 to 1 1/2 hours, bake.

Submitted by smokeandashes on November 12, 2005 - 9:25am.

Pain Sur Poolish

Looks good but I have a couple of questions. At what temperature did you bake this and did you use a pan of water in the oven? I was watching Good Eats and he put a pan of water in the oven. He said it helped the inside rise before the crust set. What do you think. Thanks

Submitted by Floydm on November 12, 2005 - 9:36am.

pain sur poolish

I preheat the oven to the max temperature (550, in my oven's case). Once the loaves are in I drop the temp to around 450 or 460.

Yes, I use water. I have a cast iron pan that I leave in the oven while the oven is preheating. Right after I put the loaves in the oven I pour very hot water (hot water out of the tap that I then warm for an additional minute in the microwave) into the cast iron pan and close the oven door. All of the water turns to steam in the first minute or two, which is good, because the oven needs to dry out after the first 5 or 10 minutes or else the crust will never get crusty.

Baking time depends on size and shape of the loaves. The inside of the loaves needs to get to over 200 degrees. For a baguette I believe that takes around 20 minutes, for a larger loaf more in the 30 to 40 minute range.

I hope that helps.

Submitted by Pans Oracle on March 9, 2007 - 9:29am.

A favorite loaf

I discovered Floyd's Pain Sur Poolish a few months ago and have been baking it regularly for the Farmer's Market. I now use a fine whole wheat flour for half of the finishing flour + 1 T. of gluten for each cup of ww flour. I call it my "light whole wheat" and it has been a real hit. I even got a special order for 4 loaves of it yesterday to be served at a dinner for the local fire department. This is a wonderful recipe. Thanks for sharing it! (The full recipe and more detailed instructions are elsewhere on this site). The thing I like best is that the poolish gives it the fermented flavor which goes beyond your average "white" or "light" bread.

Julian
Pan's Oracle

Submitted by Floydm on March 9, 2007 - 9:50am.

So cool

That is so neat that you are baking this professionally. I'm honored.

This recipe is basically the same as my daily bread.

Submitted by Pans Oracle on March 31, 2007 - 2:54am.

Pain garlique!

Floyd! I found a new use for your recipe -- a unique garlic loaf. When I shape the loaves, I press them out long and thin, string an entire head (each separate clove) of garlic which has been roasted in olive oil along the center of it, roll it up and seal the ends. I then coil it like a snail shell and put it back to finish proofing. The garlic flavor infiltrates the whole loaf, and you get that core of roasted garlic through the center. Fabulous, beautiful, and a sell-out with my customers. I wish I had a camera to show you how lovely these loaves are. I served it to guests last weekend, and nobody even bothered with butter - so rich tasting and succulent.

Thanks again for this recipe.

Julian
Pan's Oracle

Submitted by Floydm on March 31, 2007 - 8:07am.