Oats: raw vs porridge and hydration questions
Hi all,
I'm a bit late to the Approachable Loaf party, but have enjoyed reading and learning from the community bake. I'm planning on making a variation on the Bread Lab's recipe, with oats added.
When I've made oat breads previously, I've added raw rolled oats or "old fashioned" oats, and upped the hydration an unscientific amount. But when researching oat breads, I've seen a lot of recipes for oat porridge bread, that is, bread that incorporates cooked and well hydrated oats into the dough.
1) Is there an advantage to adding cooked oatmeal as opposed to raw oats? I've liked the textures the rolled oats add to bread, but haven't tried making a loaf with porridge. I'm open to it if it will improve results, but am hesitant because it will add another step to the process.
2) For those who use raw oats, do you have a formula/percentage for how much additional hydration you add?
Thanks!