My rye bread need to be diagnosed....
This is my rye bread, and I found its bubbles are distributed quite odd, they aren't distributed evently.
Some parts of the crumb are hollow, but some of them are dense.
Is there anyone could help me with the problem?
Is it because I didn't score after shaping it or I didn't do enough strech and fold?
Ingredients:
- 200 g flour
- 80 g whole rye flour
- 260 g water
- 8 g salt
- 240 g mature 100%-hydration sourdough starter
- 50g dried cherry
- 50 g pecan, very coarsely chopped
These were what I've done.....
I mixed up all ingredients in the stand mixer, and knead the dough until the gluten is well-developeted. Then allowed it to ferment for 2 hours, and do two times strech and fold after each 40 minites. I shaped it into a batard and forgot to score it. Cover and proof for 2.5 hours. It was baked with steam for 20 minute and without sream for another 25 minites.
I come out with a 95% hydration and the dough does look like it was very wet, however I don't think that is a problem. Stretching and folding for the first two hours at 40 minute intervals and then stopping just when the gas was getting into heavy production from the combined efforts of the little beasties (they had just doubled their numbers too) is worth looking into. I think you figured it out, yup, more stretches and folds. This may have distributed the gas bubbles more evenly and gotten rid of the big ones.
It gets kind of hard to switch gears from instant type yeasts to sourdoughs sometimes. I tend to think of instant yeast breads as have clear lines between bulk rises and the final proof rise. Not so clear in sourdough. At least with wheat sourdoughs, it is better to keep stretching and folding until you feel the dough put up a good level of resistance to your folding. As the fermenting progresses, the dough becomes softer and stretches more you may find the S&F start out at hour apart intervals and gradually get shorter to 40 min and eventually 30 minutes. When the dough feels like it wants to stretch no more and might just tear, that is the time to stop folding. Let the dough relax then for 10 minutes and then give it a tight final shaping and final rise for only 30 - 45 minutes or so until it's ready for the oven.
That's the general rule. Instructions and times will vary depending on the hydration and temp. of the dough, if a pan or bread form is used to support the dough or cold retardation comes into play.