March 6, 2024 - 6:09pm
Evolutions in bread (EIB) seemingly odd (to me) process
Hello, friends.
I always get excited for setting out to "master" a new formula. Anyway, Forkish's process for cast iron pot baking is odd at best, parts of his process seem unnecessary dangerus. Let's us begin with the odd bit. If I comprehend what I have read he wants us to bake our bread top side down in the pot? Truly odd. The dangerus bit, he demonstrates lifting a loaf and loading it with bare hands. Most in pot bakers use a parchment paper sling. Thoughts?
Photo of today's goodies for attention.
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I guessed that having the seam side up acts like a score. He emphasizes it several places IIRC.
I got the book a while ago. I found it very interesting, yet I have never actually baked any of the recipes as is. I've baked something like them but adapted using my usual methods. I'll be interested to see how Will's test will go.
As for the hot DO, I wonder if starting with it cold might be just as good. I know it can work fairly well, having tried it at some time in the past. I did read in a thread that someone tried it and compared with baking preheated and found the preheated bake better. That might have been using a cold DO and a cold oven, I can't quite remember. Recently I baked several soda breads in a ceramic casserole pot and in a Pullman pan, both without preheating (the oven was preheated), and they both came out as nice as I could want.
I also just saw a video where the presenter raised one loaf in a banneton and another using a towel-lined covered Pyrex pot as a proofing basket. The banneton loaf went into the oven free-standing. The Pyrex loaf was decanted, then put back into the Pyrex pot for baking, using the Pyrex pot the way a DO is used. The cold Pyrex pot loaf expanded more and had a great ear. Here's that video. The parts I'm talking about are towards the end starting at around 12:30.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FVfJTGpXnU
That being said, the bake will be done open, on a steel seam side down. I started the levien as follows
Mother - 1/2 rye 1/2 AP 60 g
Heritage bread flour 100 g
Water at 80°F 100g
Stage two build to comence at 6 PM