Why is my post-shaped-ready-to-bake dough flat, sticky and formless?
Hi guys,
So I made some good sourdough bread this morning after following the instructions diligently and lettting it retard in the fridge for 12 hours. It wasn't perfect, but it was good enough for my beginner's attempt. I think I went wrong with the shaping, and I am still getting my head around shaping it when it's sticky. But i'm getting there.
I then tried to make more bread in one day according the Tartine's book instructions. Did everything the same as yesterday, managed to shape it properly, as far as I could tell better than yesterday's. But I didn't retard in the fridge, instead I put the 2 loaves in 2 seperate bowls with dishcloths lightly floured in plain white flour (as I would when retarding it in fridge). I let it sit on the counter for 3-4 hours like the book said, but as I prepared to put it in the oven, by putting it on a baking sheet paper it just completely flattenend out and lost all shape, plus it was stuck to the dishcloth, so it destroyed any shaping I had done. I baked one straight away and got a tasty but very flat bread. The second one was so stuck to the dishcloth, i tried reshaping it, but then realised it doesn't work like that. Baked it anyway and got a flatter, but still tasty, bread. What happpened?? The retarded fridge dough never stuck to the dishcloth, and kept it's shape when placed on my baking sheet. I have always retarded it in the fridge but wanted to try out something new.
Thanks guys
For the lazy or short for time: Didn't retard dough in fridge, rather let it sit out in bowls with dishcloth and flour for 3-4 hours....and ended up with my dough stuck to the dishcloth and was completely formless. Baked dough was really really flat. Didnt rise at all.
It's pretty clear what your mistake was: You did't let it properly ferment before shaping for the bake.
1. Is your starter active? If it is, then we'll eliminate that variable.
2. How many hours did you let it sit out—and how many stretch and folds did you do—before shaping it?
Rather than follow that Tartine recipe to a T, you need to look at your dough. If it rose 50% or so, you got decent fermentation. If it's decently fermented, it's actually quite easy to shape—you just have to be careful not to disturb the gas in your dough too much.
If you shape before letting it properly ferment, you're going to get a soggy, saggy mess. That's because there was not enough time for the gas to create tension in your dough—then you shaped it when it didn't have any structure. Try allowing it to fully ferment, then shape it, then throw it in the fridge for the retard. I promise you will have a dough that's easier to work with.
Thanks for the info!
1. So I think it is active, but I fear it may not have been, come to think of it, I didn't do a float test, so maybe it wasn't...
2. I let it sit out around 3.5 hours I reckon, with stretch and folds every 30 minutes. More forcefully at the beginning and gentler in the last hour.
Thanks for the tips, I'll make sure my starter is properly active. Having a bit of trouble with it since I started the Tartine mix of 50/50 whole wheat and white. But it does rise etc. I'öö play around with it and hopefully get it going properly again.
Thanks again!
One pro tip is to use rice flour instead of or mixed with white flour. Its teflon nature makes the linen non stick.
Also, the refrigerator makes the dough contract. Its less sticky, easier to handle, easier to come out of the basket. The fridge is great. If you counter proof, just know you're in for a more finicky bake.
But the original responder is right, you shaped the dough before it was ready. Did you notice growth in the dough? Bubbles? These are signs to look for before shaping.