Personal Baguette Quest - and problems
TFL,
So far I've discovered that the best baguettes I can possibly make are going to be Anic Bouabsa's. I tried his straight dough formula [500gr flour, 350 gr water, 10gr salt, 3/4 tsp yeast] and the result was a halfway point in what my goal was. Crumb was open, but some spots hadn't showed the same structure. The crust was amazingly light, and everything was very light textured for what I assumed was going to be chewy. I attribute this to the hand kneading stretch and fold technique that i used. [autolyse 30min rest, 60 French folds with salt and yeast, 3 stretch and folds over 1 hour then 24 hr bulk ferment in fridge] Everything was great! Except for one thing, the flavor! I desired something more.... tangy? Sourdough or poolish perhaps? I tried both.
I am still modifying the recipe and this is week #2 and try #5. I have prefermented 15% of the flour in a 5-4-1 sourdough levain. I adjusted the yeast to a 1/4 tsp, also. I adjusted the mixing method to have 1 less stretch and fold because it felt quite strong with all of the sourdough. I'm a little alarmed by the volume that I'm getting out of the loafs weighed out to around .95#. It isn't anything great, but I am still getting an open structure. I think my volume might be because of my final proofing time. I let the mixture come back to room temp over 1 hour, then I divide it and preshape it into logs. After the preshape rest of 30 minutes I stretch out all of them into baguettes. My final FINAL proof time was 1hr 15 minutes, at which point it passed my poke test. A gentle touch about a half an inch down resulted in a bounce back of about half way to 3/4 of the way before it stopped. I put them in the oven and the cuts bloomed very quickly, making a great grigne in the process. However, the color of the interior of the cuts was 1 even cut, as if most of the spring and opening happened in the first part of the bake, rather than slowly throughout the break. My finished loaves don't look underproofed. I got good bloom, I got a great deep reddish-brown crust. I didn't get any blow-outs or any crust that look like it had 'constricted' the volume.
Is there anyone out there that can help me 'adjust' my recipe and or process, as I have no one but this website to learn from. Thanks! Maybe I'll post pictures if I can figure out a way.
-Chad
woops, the interior of the cuts was 1 even color, not cut! D'oh!
One way to try to crank up the flavour is with an easy pre-ferment. Mix a smalish batch of dough using your formula, let it ferment in the fridge for a day or two, then use it as "old dough" mixed into your next batch of baguettes. I've used old dough after as long as two weeks in the fridge and had good flavour results.
Try this formula to start, and play with the ratio of old dough as you try different variants:
I do it as a straight dough or with a poolish the night before (depending on my mood), but feel free to do it like you have been.
Keep trying - it looks good so far.
Thanks! I've never considered using a pate fermentee, mainly because I know the results of using a poolish or sourdough might be better for my baguettes. But, I might try it someday. My main question involves getting the best out of the recipe I am working with through procedure.
Chad--
There are others at TFL with way more expertise that I have, but from my reading and my experience, open cuts with nice grigne require the following:
If you get each of those factors at 90% of the ideal, then your actual cutting technique only has to be fair to middling to get nice open cuts.
You might try Sylvia's magic towel technique for sustained steam (http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/20162/oven-steaming-my-new-favorite-way).
As to flavor, I agree with you that the Anis Bouabsa formula has a mild flavor. Try using 10-15% whole grain with levain. Here's a formula that works well for me and has a complex sour flavor (http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/20471/san-francisco-country-sourdough%E2%80%94take-two).
Good Questing!
Glenn
.... to make a poolish beforehand be considered "getting the best out of the recipe I am working with through procedure", then? It sounds like you did a fair bit of long, slow fermentation, which usually improves the flavour. Because that didn't seem to give you the flavour you sought, I think a preferment of some sort may be the only answer.
Good luck with your baguette adventures - let us know what happens!
Thanks guys! Like I said, the current preferment I have been using is 15% liquid levain. 15% of the flour, that is. The flavor is better! Yes, I use a couche and I proof the loafs upside down on it, and I have gotten pretty nice looking cuts, but I'm wondering if my volume of the loaf can be increased somehow...
Have you tried the sourdough version of the Anis Bouabsa baguettes? They're quite delightful and have a nice tang.
http://tfl.thefreshloaf.com/node/8340/more-baguettes-best-crumb-yet-me
That is almost identical to my recipe, in fact. Lol
If you have the time and money and happen to be near San Franisco, I would highly recommend the baguette making course at San Francisco Baking Institute. It was a very intense weekend course with hands on instruction interspersed with classes (reminded me of college chemistry). After making close to 40 baguettes, i have great respect for these breads. Shaping was an important part of the instruction and I can proudly say that I know how to do it now. While they train professional bakers, they also have a home oven for the rest of us. I am still working on my steaming technique in my less than great electric oven at home. Bread baking is such fun, but just when you think you know it all, it humbles you.