July 8, 2010 - 10:50am
Inconsistent grigne
So here are two loaves that I baked...
So, as you can see, something went wrong with the grigne on the second picture. Is it just a matter of scoring tecnique, or does the proofing or steaming have an effect. Both loaves were excellent in every other way.
Keith
Share
I asked the very same question as you Keith, about a minute before you did. Mine is here.
By posting this link here, I hope helpful TFLers can help us both by answering here, and not have to replicate answers.
Mason.
There is an excellent discussion about scoring in the Handbook. Have a read and come back with the new questions that occur to you afterward.
Paul
Is that it is 100 percent about scoring technique.
Keith, in the first photos, you have gone for a single cut and they have opened beautifully.
In the second set of photos you have opted for multiple cuts, the pictures tell me that the placement of the cuts is the problem. They overlap too much, hence the majority of the length of your loaf has a couple of cuts into which it can expand... but ideally you want it to just have one so that all that oven spring is channeled into one carefully placed weak point (ie your cut), thus making it burst open into a perfect grigne.
So... if you are doing a batard with 2 cuts, the first should start at one end and make it just over half way down the loaf, the second should do the same but from the opposite end, such that you have an overlap of a couple of inches at the center. This way they overlap only a little, so most of the surface of the bread has only one cut to expand into.
Do exactly the same thing you did for the first two (with the nicely opened single cut), ie same angle of blade, same steam etc, but try switching the placement for two cuts as I have outlined above. Thats what I do and I get pretty nice results.
Hope this helps you
ben
Thanks for the constructive comments. Making some hoagie rolls tomorrow. Should be some good practice with the mini batards. I appreciate the link to your picture as well.
Keith
Thanks from me too, Benjamin. The direction of the cuts --down the loaves rather than across, makes a lot of sense. I'm making more over the weeked. I'll try again then.
Mason.
There are many other factors: whether the dough is fully- or over- or under-proofed, oven temperature, steaming, etc. Scoring technique is important, though, so I wanted to point you in that direction since it can affect the outcome even if all of the other factors are perfect.
Paul
I figure the problems with my bread, similar to keith's, is the angle of the cuts (should be 30° from tangential to the skin of the loaves).
I think my problem is also the stickiness of the dough. It's hard to slice confidently and decisively, wen that seems to maul the risen dough. Is there a trick to not having the dough "grab" at the blade as you slice? I'm tempted to try wetting the blade. Or would faster slicing evade the stickiness problem?
I use a kraft knife blade, but would an even thinner lame or razor blade make that much difference?
Mason.
...is the dough grabbing the blade as I slash. I finally started laying a straight-edge (like a dough scraper) gently on the surface of the loaf and slashing with the blade against the straight edge and held at an angle. The straight edge seems to hold the dough in place on both sides of the cut (somewhat) and gives me better results. I'm still not satisfied, though.