The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

anyone do a water glaze after the bake SD?

jimt's picture
jimt

anyone do a water glaze after the bake SD?

Hello again bakers!

I've finally tried the Norwich SD that I've read about here and found it a very easy recipe to follow. Still didn't do it quite right as i under-proofed the dough due to circumstances but the bread came out looking decent...hopefully it tastes good as well.

I've been reading up on doing a glaze and remember seeing in a post about someone's bakery using water on a freshly baked loaf so I couldn't resist giving it a try myself. I had two more or less similar loaves and tried it on the loaf that looked like it needed some moisture:-). My scoring obviously still leaves a bit to be desired but I followed the original instructions for the two parallel cuts and the loaves came out looking quite interesting.

The two loaves...same batch, same amount of oven time though I believe the glazed loaf was on a slightly hotter part of the stone. The second loaf below has the water glaze.

 

 

I'll be curious to see how it holds up...I've not cut into either loaf yet, but it will be interesting to see if the crust lasts as long/longer or if there is any discernible difference but initially I find the loaf with the water glaze to be slightly more visually appealing as the other crust looks slightly dull by comparison.

Maverick's picture
Maverick

In terms of crust, I like the look of the top one because it is showing less flour so you can see the great color of the crust (good job with the cooking time).

On a different note, I think you are overlapping your scoring too much. The lines should be parallel to the long axis, but overlap only a little bit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rb0lljsKk80

http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/10121/bread-scoring-tutorial-updated-122009

Edit: By the way, is it just water? Or a corn starch/water mixture?

jimt's picture
jimt

Thanks Maverick, the glaze is just water by itself. I agree about the flour and had actually dusted the flour off each load after taking them out of the bannetons but obviously did a better job on the one loaf. 

On the scoring, that makes sense. I've never tried this pattern before but was curious why only one of the scores really opened the way it should...will try this next time.

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

of the oven will soften the crust.  It is usually done on sandwich loaves or rolls where the crackly crunchy crust we love so much is not wanted.  Some folks, especially kids want a soft crust.  An cornstarch glaze is used on rye breads to shine them up and soften the crust.

These loaves look grand.  Happy baking

jimt's picture
jimt

I've been at so many pages here that I can't seem to find the original thread where I saw this but was pretty sure it was in relation to getting a crispy crust. All I can say is that it definitely did not soften the outside of the loaf. I just cut into it today and the crust is still hard to the touch and pretty loud when being cut. I honestly don't have the experience to say anything other than I will likely try it again with the next couple of loaves I bake (one each) to see if I can see a difference. FWIW, the loaf had just come out of the oven and the water immediately turned to steam so there was no standing water. Unfortunately I have given away the loaf I didn't glaze so I cannot make the comparison this time around.

I too have heard about brushing with milk to soften but as stated I am but a happy rookie baker.

 

Maverick's picture
Maverick

I'd be interested to see the original post, but I know what you mean about reading so many pages you can't find the one you were looking for. I know some people glaze with water before baking for a crispy crust, but I haven't heard of doing it afterwards with just straight water. Keep us updated with your progress.