July 9, 2022 - 10:58am
Working with buckwheat flour
I thought I'd try out a Buckwheat Loaf like THIS RECIPE with a few modifications. First off, I mixed up a half recipe as I don't have much buckwheat flour. I bought a package of Bob's Red Mill Whole Buckwheat flour. It is a nice tan color and when the water is added is actually quite dark gray/tan. I also discovered that whole buckwheat flour is VERY thirsty. The recipe is at 70% hydration but my mix was crumbly at that level. I added 80% and it is still thick. I might go 100% before I let it sit for a while. Very sticky, also.
For those that have worked with buckwheat flour, has this been your experience,also? The hydration levels I see in the recipes don't seem to reflect that.
Share
Also has eggs and oil plus a little ACV. So if you're pre-fermenting at 70% hydration (which will behave exactly as you have said) and then adding the eggs + oil and salt right before portioning out into the loaf pan it will end up being the correct hydration and looking more like the batter as in the recipe. So I wouldn't have altered it at the pre-ferment stage. Rather, if it does needs a little tweaking, it should be done when you're mixing the final "dough".
I was hoping to get a fast answer. I will continueon.
and haven't added the eggs and oil yet so watch out for the final hydration. Since you're pre-fermenting with sourdough starter you can probably miss out the ACV so that should bring the hydration back down a bit to be back on target.
Buckwheat flour batter will stick everywhere.
until very fluffy before adding the oil, more like making mayonaise. Ten minutes is a rough estimate for beating before drizzling oil. Gosh, half recipe, one egg is tough to beat unless you use a stick mixer in a narrow beaker. (Then use the mixer's instructions.). I would use a pinch of the recipe salt in with the egg.
Flour packages very greatly with humidity and the recipe mentions adding water if needed. I'd go a (half) spoon at a time. Is the flour packaged in plastic or paper?
I modified the recipe, of course.
Working recipe: Hybrid-grams and measures as in the original recipe-I will convert to all grams
250g Whole Buckwheat flour
250 ml spring water
2.5g salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp psyllium powder
1 tsp yeast
1 tsp oil
1/2 tsp vinegar
I mixed the BW flour and water and let sit overnight. Dang if it didn't rise and taste just a touch acidic! I will be a bit busy this am so I will continue later today. Good idea about the mayo-type mix with the egg and oil. I added the psyllium as an ingredient based on Abe's experiences with BW flour vs grinding whole BW groats but I may re-think that. It looks looks like there may be enough gel structure in the soaked whole grain BW flour. I'll decide later but adding dry psyllium powder to this will be tricky-it is another fine powder that tends to clump when the outside of the psyllium is wetted.
I will post the results later.
The flour is in a plastic container and resemble portland cement in its dry state-dark gray and flies everywhere if you pour it. It also is as sticky as cement. Best to wash it off immediately-makes a better glue than rye flour!
Whole groats when it comes to texture. Yes, the psyllium if not added correctly (it will not mix in when adding it after a pre-ferment) will not have the same effect. In this recipe you've got the eggs as a binder too!
Looking forward to your results with your write-up and thoughts on the process. I would have kept the recipe as it is and pre-fermented everything except the eggs, oil and salt. Then I would have added them all in giving it a very good mix before portioning out into a loaf pan for a final rise. Buckwheat flour and water will have some gel but it would be the eggs that really helped.
If you like this bread then perhaps try it again with a slightly different method.
So I mixed the additional ingredients. The eggs,oil and vinegar were whipped to frothy light yellow before adding to the soaked flour and other dry ingredients. The psyllium powder and sugar were added to the soaked flour, along with the salt (increased to 1.5%)before adding the wet ingredients.It was definitely a thick batter consistency. I filled 1 small loaf pan first and the remaining dough I played with. I added honey, dried fruit, bread spice and pepitos. We'll see how that turns out. They are rising now. I assume it is like a rye rise-don't wait too long.
with a dome but nothing like a bread flour dough. Yes, more like a rye.
Did you use sourdough starter?
I got caught up in activities so the loaves looked a little overproofed when I put them in the oven but fingers crossed.
I did not use starter-mine has been sadly neglected and needs some reviving before using. This was an impulsive bake so I used yeast. I was surprised that the BW flour and water mixed last night and left on the counter actually showed activity-a bit of a rise and some acidity. I'm sure if I left it, I may have been able to not use any yeast at all.
The baking bread is quite heavenly smelling. It didn't fall when I put it in the oven so it may be fine.
So you just mixed the BW flour and water last night and then added the yeast in the final mix. Yes, buckwheat does ferment easily but because of the style of baking it was good you used a bit of yeast (or starter if preferred). The natural ferment technique needs a very loose batter otherwise it won't rise too well. The hydration and batter type you used will need some leavening by way of yeast or starter. Loving all the add-ins. Sounds delicious.
Well, they didn't sink and they feel pretty spongey but very hot. I will cool down and do a crumb shot later but here they are now. The speckles on the side is oatmeal flakes. I use them for release from the pan. The sweetened,fruity loaf has pepitas on the top.
Any longer and they would have sank. Don't cut into them till tomorrow. Slice thinly and very nice when toasted and topped with cheese.
So here is a crumb shot. Completely cooled. I couldn't wait til tomorrow. :) I tried both breads-toasted with a little butter. Good texture and flavor is ok. It does not have much of a fermented flavor-it is rather bland. I want to see if it gets crumbly in the next day or so. If it does, I might actually add more psyllium next time. It is not at all gummy or moist.Actually it is a pretty good texture for a GF loaf.
Here is the recipe:
250g Whole Buckwheat flour > > Mix flour and water and let set overnight in covered container
250 ml spring water > >
---------------------------------------------------------------
3g (1 tsp) psyllium fine powder >> Right before mixing in liquids, mix psyllium powder & salt into flour/water mix
4 g salt >>
-------------------------------------------------------------------
5 g (1 tsp) sugar >> Mix sugar,water,yeast and let sit a few minutes
15 ml water >>
1 tsp yeast (less than 1 g) >>
--------------------------------------------------------------------
1 egg >> Beat eggs til light then drizzle & beat in oil and vinegar.When light colored,add into other mix
1 tsp oil >>
2.5 ml (1/2 tsp) vinegar >>
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mix well. Dough is a thick batter.
Place in well oiled and oatmeal sprinkled (for pan release) loaf pan.
Rise to slight dome but watch carefully. Put in preheated oven just as bubbles appear. Overproofs easily.
Good crumb! Looks delicious. I wonder what type of buckwheat you're using. It's very dark. The wholegrain buckwheat I use is quite a bit lighter and has really nice flavour enhanced when toasted. I was under the impression you were going to add some starter to the pre-ferment.
Here is a good recipe to follow. Simply swap the rice and sorghum with buckwheat. If you can try and use tapioca starch or equivalent but if not then replace that with buckwheat too. This has psyllium husk powder as the sole binder. I have just done a sourdough version. Took out the yeast and made the final dough with a tablespoon of starter. Allowed it to bulk overnight then shaped into a loaf pan and final proofed for about 2 hours. Baked up very nicely.
https://food52.com/recipes/82284-gluten-free-bread-recipe
P.s. I do think you added the psyllium husk powder at the wrong stage. Once the flour has the water it's very difficult to mix in properly and for the psyllium to absorb the water.
I didn't plan this loaf out very well. I haven't baked in a while and I just wanted to get one done. I've been pretty busy lately with a grandson.
Yeah, I agree about the psyllium but it is a very fine powder and it did mix in pretty well. I let it sit a few minutes before I added the egg,water,yeast,etc. mix so it would gel.
I was surprised at how dark it is,also,after seeing the pics of your loaves. It is Bob's Red Mill whole buckwheat flour. It is light gray brown but turned quite dark when the water was added.
I'll let you know how the loaf behaves as it ages.
It only fermented for about 45 minutes so I shouldn't be surprised at the lack of fermented flavor. I think I would add yeast/starter to the overnight soak so flavor would develop. I also liked the fruited/spiced/honeyed loaf a lot. I think that will be a great breakfast bread. Next time dates and walnuts along with cardamom and coriander.
A nice reason to be too busy.
Play around with the recipe a bit. I wouldn't like to advise because you seem to have a different buckwheat to what i'm used to. It'll be a guess on my part. Now you've done your first BW bake you can experiment and tweak to how you like it.
I still recommend finding some organic whole buckwheat groats for the naturally fermented recipe. That is a fascinating process and you'll see, produces a nice crumb with good flavour.
Enjoy!
I was afraid it would dry out-even when wrapped- as many GF loaves do but it did not. It is moist and supple this am and quite delicious toasted with just a little butter.
I have avoided buckwheat flour for years due to childhood memories of very distinctly flavored (yucky-in my young vocabulary) buckwheat pancakes. I do taste some distinctive flavor (actually a little flowery) but nothing like I remember.
I believe the overnight soak hydrated the powdery flour and allowed as much gel formation as possible. I still would add the small amount of psyllium, though probably with the overnight soak. I am really enjoying the loaf with the honey/spices/pepitas and fruit. What a treat!
Thanks,Abe, for bringing this wonderful flour to my attention and also for your guidance. This is definitely a keeper. Now I have to find a more economical source of buckwheat groats or whole grain flour. The Bob's Red Mill is good but it is a bit costly. I'm not opposed to grinding my own but still need to find a good source.
HeiHei29er Thank you for sponsoring the GF COmmunity Bake. Bread comes in many forms and even though I'm late to the party, I followed it avidly.