Consistency in baguettes
Today's bake whereby a lot of attention to reproducing the results I got a couple of weekends ago (particularly with crumb structure). Shaping-wise I'm pretty happy with these seeing that most the scores opened nicely and showed decent caramelization (this is a result of doc dough suggesting how to best manage a gas oven).
What I'm really going for is consistent bubbles in the crumb that have also begun to warp - which really just shows the walls are nice and delicate. The trick here seems to be adding just the right amount of soy flour and, extending the autolyse phase to a couple of hours. These two steps seem to soften the dough up really much and give it plenty of elasticity without the intense strength of of,all that protein pulling back. Then at shaping I have found that its good to add some extra pressure,to eliminate larger unwanted cavities.
FTR, I watched the entire bake and noted that the loaves reached full spring in only 3 minutes which is quite amazing and a testament to how important shocking the loaves with as much heat possible contributes to the developmentof the crumb.
Didn't quite replicate the epic bake of weekends past but really starting to hone in on all the little nuances needed to create a great baguette ;)
A little torquing going on here but generally the type of structure that feels like a crueller doughnut (that's kinda how I gauge the eating experience)
Trying to get a good view of fairly successful Browning along most edges. A little background - doc dough asked me to describe my setup which many know is a typical gas oven outfitted with 2 basalt slabs and a tray of lava rocks. After various reconfiguration it seems the following factors make a considerable difference.
- the amount of water added to the rocks. Too much and the interior temp drops just enough that the initial rise slows down. As a side note today I added about half the normal amount. Enough that by 5-6 minutes later all water had evaporated.
- the level used to bake. We decided on trying the highest possible level. This is where all the heat is.
- removing the lower stone to make way for the rising gases and removing an additional heat sink.
- doubling up the lower and upper stones on the upper deck to provide a stronger heat sink.
- longer pre-heat.
All these factors have dramatically improved the caramelization. As mentioned these loaves reached full size at 3 minutes. The next 7ish minutes and after venting about the 8 minute mark saw the gradual Browning begin. At 10 minutes I moved the top deck to the middle so that I could stagger the loaves (one on top and two on bottom). At this point the goal is to really just bring them to a desirable color and also monitor is any ends are burning with occasional flipping etc.
The most surprising result here was that the middle loaf did really well as it usually is the last to heat up but I think the reason all has to do with figuring out how to deliver energy and even the placement of the slabs can alter the convention so as of now it seems we've (doc, others like dabrownman, alfanso and I) have worked through what it takes to produce some pretty decent baguettes. Generally just wanted to thank the group as I'm quite pleased with no just today's results but my confidence in being able to reproduce good results more frequently. Boomshanka !
in the need for adaptability. And why formulae and steps are just guidelines.
Almost everyone has some characteristics to their own baking and prep environment that renders their situation all their own. Whether it be the "weaker" flours reported regularly by our U.K compatriots, minerals in waters unique to a baker's home territory, or as in your case an oven environment that is "non-compliant" with what the formula author has laid out for a reader. A good example are the timings of Mr. Forkish's bulk ferments which our fellow TFLers regularly question, as their kitchens aren't the same temperature. My kitchen is almost always 78-80, which would render a BF of dough on his schedule, in his apparently much cooler kitchen, to be severely over proofed.
We've learned that what the formula author states are just basic rules of the road, and or own adaptability and tweaking is essential to produce what we think is right for us.
And I agree that the crumb looks fabulous. And even more to the point, that the perforated baking tray your wife gave you is getting some good use for providing a lovely perch for photos of your wares ;-) .
thank you for the tips about placement in the oven. I will bookmark and reread when baking!
the baguettes are just awesome, if I can come anywhere close to you or alphanso I will be very happy!
Leslie