July 30, 2019 - 1:10pm
In pursuit of fluffy baguettes
So I'm making sourdough baguettes:
100% flour
70% water
2% salt
10% starter (based on flour's weight)
Mix, bulk ferment for 3h, shape and proof for 45min. at room temperature. They come out flat - underproofed?
Should I increase the bulk ferment/proofing time and/or starter percentage? If yes, how much?
It's just weird because this recipe worked great for me in Finland (moved to Germany recently), now it doesn't anymore.
(I know I already have a broader discussion on this here, but this is now specifically about the BF and proofing times because I believe to have narrowed it down soon)
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Bani, my first thought was a weak starter, but you seem confident (as stated in your first post) that it is very active and survived the move well.
If that is not the case, my second thought would be the flour. Are you able to get the same (identical) flour? Is it possible your present flour doesn’t produce a strong enough gluten network to contain the gas?
Dan
Since I moved to a different country, I can't get the same flour. But I try to get good flour with protein of 11-13%.
Is your room temperature for the fermentation stages cooler than your previous location?
During your fermentation stages, forget the clock. Watch the dough. Let the bulk ferment last as long as necessary, even if that means twice the time.
Normally baguettes use a flour with moderate gluten (10-11.5%). But the quality and type of gluten can make a big difference.
Pictures of your starter and dough at various stages might be a great help.
Dan
Difficult to say, I never measured temperatures since ir always succeeded perfectly. In Finland its usually colder, so I put the dough to proof in a box in the oven and heated it up a few degrees (not hot, just that its cosy for the dough, I guess around 30°C?).
I will watch the dough from now on and write down the times (I just need this to plan ahead in the future). Many on this forum (including you) pointed out that the main culprit is likely to be either temperature or time. So I will experiment in that direction.
I don’t know if it would make a big difference but I use more starter, maybe 20%?
Yeah, I some time ago increased the starter amount to 25% I believe and that worked quite well.
I have to figure stuff out yet after the move, but it's good to have a starting point - which I have thanks to the lovely community here :)