September 22, 2016 - 1:27pm
Sourdough Recipe Question
So, I have a new "pet". Today I started a sourdough starter.
I've read, and studied, read some more and studied even more. But.................
Nearly every recipe I've looked at, if not all, makes 2 loves or 1 ginormous one. Is there any reason I can't 1/2 any single particular recipe?
Also, because I don't have a proofing basket (name escapes me right now) can I lower hydration a bit to I can bake "free-form" on a stone or in a Dutch oven? I understand this will give me a tighter crumb.
Thanks
Jamie
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... is that there are 1000's of ways to do it!
So yes - make less, make more, reduce the hydration, free-form, use whatever works for you.
How about a colander lined with a linen tea towel well dusted with flour?
500g of flour plus your starter is a good large loaf - my daily recipe (I make 20-30 of these a week) would have 400g white, 100g wholemeal, 150g starter, 285g water and 9g salt. That bakes to about 850g which is a generous large loaf. (for the UK definition of a large loaf which is 800g) My small of the same recipe isn't quite half but something close.
And there is as much technique as hydration to get the crumb structure you're after - I can get big glossy holes with my recipe which is 63% hydration, but I don't handle it in the manner to get them (most of the time). Jam falls through holes anyway ;-)
-Gordon
Feel free to halve a recipe, I do it all the time. Though sometimes it is nice to have a backup if I mess up the transfer or score on the first loaf.
and halve the recipe! It should be fine.
Recently i've been aiming for a dough weight in the 850g region which leaves me with a loaf of about 690ish g (my dough loses about 20% of its weight when it bakes).
I don't have proper banneton either, i just use a cheap basket. But like Drogon said, i line it with a rice floured tea towel, so really you can use anything.
All the best!
Great suggestions!
I spent part of the afternoon looking in the back of cabinets and the pantry for options.
Now, may I ask why coat the towel with rice flour? Why not AP or WW?
and the others aren't as good in that area. I think I might have something to do with the shape of the grains. Rice flour really feels granular compared to other flours. I do half AP and half brown rice flour. Works well for me.
I managed to find some rice flour this morning. I would assume white has the same non-stick properties as the brown you use?
I prefer brown rice because it is less processed but both work just fine.