Soaker vs. Autolyse and related questions

I started grinding my own flour about 4 months ago and quickly learned that I didn't like the results if I used the flour immediately.

Gee, I don't know the answer to your querry but can you tell me more about what you didn't like about using freshly ground flour right away.  Unconundrum me.  Cheers, grind.

Some people think that salt retards various activities (yeast growth, for instance, which is not relevant to soakers/autolyzes). Certainly the chemistry is going to be slightly different with or without the salt. It's quite likely that the chemistry isn't going to be enough different to matter, frankly. We use very small amounts of salt, in biochemical terms, for breads.

Salt is not always added to "soakers" (see The Village Baker for instance, which has a couple of pain bouille style breads, and the salt is, I think, never added to the porridge).

I would bet that it's one of the many 'we've always done it this way, why would we change something that's known to work?' deals we find in bread making. If you experiment, let us know the results!

Salt is in the soaker to inhibit protease activity.  Amylase activity is still enabled.  Reinhart recommends salt in the soaker proportionate to the total formula.

Salt is left out of a short autolyse in order that nothing interfere with water absorption.

Hi Charbono,

I could not have put it better myself.   That is my understanding too

Andy

Does protease activity occur in the non-leavened soakers? I seem to recall vague references to it, but I'm not sure. I didn't mention protein-eating chemistry in my remarks because I couldn't really remember, and I was pretty sure the big ones are a result of the microbes.

Hi!  I have read that flour needs to "age". Ask the baker's at King Arthur and they can tell you how long you are supposed to store it before you use it.   Have fun, Pam

Hi Pam,

You are absolutely correct.   Commercial bakeries in the UK would generally expect their miller to have aged the flour for at least 30 days before delivering it to the bakery.

One reason, and we are primarily talking about white flour here, is that the baker would expect the flour moisture content to be at a level where there will be no issues of potential moulding.   This would give a guaranteed shelf life for the flour.  I presume, also, that excess moisture in the flour will encourage other activity which will be unwanted, such as enzymatic.   If this happens, the baker will have to deal with unstable dough as the final stages of proof, and, oven loading time, are reached.   The problem will be gummy dextrins, much the same as if the flour had been ground incorrectly and there was an excess of starch damage.

I am truly fascinated by this, and would welcome any input from those with experience of using freshly milled flour.   I am only familiar with the Desem Bread which the late, and much missed Alan Scott used to make so beautifully as a bread which had to be made with freshly milled wholemeal flour.   I know there are people on TFL making beautiful bread with their own ground flour.

What are your experiences in this regard, I'd love to know?   The concept is so attractive to me, but, as a commercial operator, I have never yet experimented in this area.

Thanks

Andy