FWSY : Overnight country blonde & starter peak time
On average (and depending on temperature, inoculation ratio, etc...), the starter should reach its peak 8h to 12h after its feeding.
In the "overnight country blonde" recipe, the starter is fed the morning using a 10% inoculation ratio. 7h to 9h after that (so probably by the time the starter reached its peak), we mix the final dough. In this recipe, the levain constitutes 12% of the final dough.
Hence, about 7h to 12h after final mix (so next morning), the dough should reach its peak (about the same time the starter did), doesn't it ?
The recipe indicates to wait 12h to 15h after final mix before shaping and proofing for 4 more hours !
If I'm not wrong, the dough should be baked near its peak ? So if the dough reaches its peak in maximum 12h, why do we have to wait 16h to 19h (!) before baking the bread ? Wouldn't the bread have completely collapsed by that time ?
If not, why does the dough takes more time to reach its peak than the starter, even though it uses about the same inoculation ratio than the starter ?
Thanks for helping clearing up this mystery !
Anything in the instructions about a cold ferment? And while I'm here - timings for a dough are really general. Ie - a little change in temps can change timings drastically. Look at the starter - 8-12 hrs to double - that's a wide range. But, as has been said here many times (not so much recently though)- watch the dough, not the clock. A dough is ready when it's ready, not sooner and not later. Enjoy!
Thanks for your answer !
If I'm not mistaken, bulk fermentation (and proofing) happens at room temperature :
"Because overnight levain dough expands very slowly [...]"
"When the dough is nearly triple its original volume, or possibly a bit less in winter, 12 to 15 hours after mixing, it’s ready to be divided."
I understand that the range is quite large and depending on a lot of parameters, but I don't understand why range for starter to reach peak (let's say 7h to 12h) is not at all the same range of "bulk fermentation" + "proofing" times (nearly the double : 16h to 19h !). It should be the same, except if :
- Dough rises slower than starter (but it should be the same time since in this recipe inoculation of levain and of dough are very close...). Perheaps it can be explained by night temperatures far below day temperatures. But would this nearly double rising time ?
- Bread should be baked far after it reaches its peak (but I don't think so ?)
- The recipe forgets to say the bulk fermentation happens in the fridge. I don't think so because as quoted above : "[...] a bit less in winter [...]" hints that bulk fermentation happens at room temperature.
I suspect, from the timings he gives, that may be at the upper end of his location's room temperature.
So, if your room temperature is warmer than 70F, all timings will have to be reduced. In all cases, watch the dough, not the clock.
Paul
I just baked with this recipe last weekend and was pretty concerned that I'd overdo the BF as this was only my 2nd loaf I've baked. I got up at 5am after 12 hours to see the dough had risen almost 4x at ~76-72 degrees in my house overnight.
I let it proof for 3 hours per the poke. Hard to know if the dough peaked before I got up, but I wasn't willing to get up any earlier.. :) In any case, wife liked it and it tasted great, so recipe worked out IMO but I wish I would have got more height (was about 3.75 inches tall).
Cheers