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Split in spelt loaf. Hydration issue?

stargarnet's picture
stargarnet

Split in spelt loaf. Hydration issue?

Hi all! I did an experiment this weekend. 100% whole grain sourdough loaves—wheat, spelt, and rye (left to right in photo). The wheat and rye loaves were 91% total hydration (including starter liquid). But I lowered the spelt loaf’s total hydration to 71% after I had a bit of a “melty dough” problem with my spelt loaves last weekend. 

The question is...did the lower hydration cause the splits in the top (see pic). Or is it likely another factor?

Any ideas? Thank you very much!!! :)

semolina_man's picture
semolina_man

Also the spelt loaf hydration is much different than the other two.  Spelt behaves differently than wheat, and to a lesser extent than rye.   How much experience do you have with spelt? 

stargarnet's picture
stargarnet

Hardly any. I'm fairly new to both sourdough and spelt. I lowered the hydration because my dough was so "melty" last week (see attached pic) at 82%. It was light and had a good crumb...but it molded itself to the parchment during baking. It was so loose, I didn't even have time to score it. And it STILL cracked. So actually, it can't be the hydration. I must be missing something here. 

idaveindy's picture
idaveindy

This may help. Here's a post about 100% whole grain spelt: 

http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/64417/100-sourdough-spelt-bread

stargarnet's picture
stargarnet

That IS very helpful. I can see how I need to adjust. I appreciate your time! :)