New user from Fl. with comments and question.
Hi everyone. I am, like most, a general cook, recently retired male who started out on the grills, grilling, bbq'ing, etc. Since retirement I have done more outside, ie, serious bbq but also moved indoors and find that perhaps even more fun as there is no limit to what can be done on a stove top and oven. I've read quite a few books, and thinking of taking CI;s on line cooking course. In making pasta and pizza dough and a few other breads, I have moved my interest into breads, but not willing want to go heavy heavy into it as I am more of a "jack of all trades, and master of none", kind of guy. Read, I bore easily, so move from hobby to hobby. So my question is, and sure it has been asked again and again, what's the best best book for basic, but good bread making, not just full of recipes, but some good lessons, of how to's also.. And yes, I know many will have different answers..............I sure there are many answers on these pages, and look forward to learning from the pro's here..........................
I find YouTube has a lot of good instructional bread making videos.
Shaping a Boule from Peter Reinhart
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtCu9hYGhOU
The Stretch and Fold Technique from Peter Reinhart
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1timJlCT3PM
Shaping sourdough boule's
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIMBtwbtnYQ
Shaping oblong bloomer loaves
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKl_7C9tZ6g
Breads with Chef Ciril Hitz
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUZEz4elX8E&list=PL58D23C4B95544707
Ken Forkish's Flour Water Salt Yeast - Good description of hows and whys of techniques that can then be broadly applied, and enough different recipes and timelines to suit almost anyone. I love that it gives options for progression from straight doughs (instant yeast), to preferments, to sourdoughs with options for everyone depending on how deep into the process you want to go.
I do love Forkish's breads, but, if you are looking for a general bread baking book with lots of "why" and "how" information and a very wide diversity of bread formulas, I would recommend Jeffrey Hamelman's "Bread."
If you are going for a single bread book, "Bread" is the one. However, don't fool yourself. No matter which one you start with, you will want another (few ... dozen).
Happy baking!
david
I can't answer your question better than it's already been answered so I'll just say, Welcome to TFL!
I'm retired and bore easily as well, but I find that bread making, especially trying to recreate loaves I've eaten as a child to be quite interesting and stimulating. Plus I like making our daily bread from recipes I've developed from knowledge gained here.
If bread making was difficult I'd be less inclined to spend the time, but with a good mixer I find it to be an exercise in understanding the ingredients. I look at it almost like alchemy. Except this alchemy can be understood and the results are delicious.
Thanks for comebacks...........and suggestions....................ck
One by our very own Floyd..... The Fresh Loaf, Pocket Book of Bread Baking. Available on Kindle ebooks from Amazon. Very helpful then I have my Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day, also on ebook from Amazon. Absolutely for beginners!
Welcom to TFL and enjoy your baking. I hope we see lots of pic's !
Maureen.
I am the type who dives pretty deeply into a subject, but always with the help of a recognized expert. Sadly I only discovered how to do this with bread baking late in my bread baking enthusiasm, which started 40 years ago. If you cannot find a local mentor who you are compatible with and who clearly has lots of experience, then find a text book on bread baking written at the level you are starting from and work your way through it. Here are two to consider: DiMuzio's Bread Baking and Hamelman's Bread. These books are quite different one from the other. Both may be available at your local libreary. Both can be purchased used at Alibris or Powell's books, depending on availability. For my money, I wish I'd had DiMuzio's book when I started out. Hamelman's is too dense for a beginner like me; maybe you're different.
I agree with your watching all the videos you can get your hands on so that you can at least have an idea of what's available on line. You can then return to the ones that become useful as you baking along.
It may be sacrilege to say this, but you really won't need another bread cook book for the first year if you only buy a text book and focus on learning everything it says. The DiMuzio text gives practice session ideas which help a lot.
I went to the library yesterday and checked out "Flour, water, salt, yeast" by Forkish. I'm about halfway through, but quite honest, a tad disappointed, it is kind of like, my way or the highway, not that there's anything wrong with that.....but. The other book was Peter Reinhart, The Bread Bakers Apprentice, which seems to me to be for folks a little more advanced than myself.
I was hoping for Dimuzo;s book as I went through the book at amazon, and it appeared to me to a better book, maybe, maybe not. It was checked out at my library, so maybe that's a good thing.....
I did, however, do my first "cook", from my sourdough starter I started a few weeks ago, but it was only pretzels from the King Arthur web site, with a change or two, I boiled them first for 30 seconds, prior to baking. Excellent. Well, the quest continues. I will continue reading the two books that I have, learning a lot, but some is a little bit advanced, but that is good sometimes to go beyond what might be needed much later..........
Here's a link to BREAD by Jeffrey Hamelman
http://books.google.com/books?id=sVYcAAAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
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The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread
By Peter Reinhart
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http://books.google.com/books?id=htveL1MPqYMC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
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My Bread: The Revolutionary No-Work, No-Knead Method
By Jim Lahey
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http://books.google.com/books?id=_QKDwx5iBBoC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
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Baking Artisan Bread: 10 Expert Formulas for Baking Better Bread at Home
By Ciril Hitz
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http://books.google.com/books?id=4j44xnk4hYAC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
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Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home ...
By Jeff Hertzberg, MD, Zoë François
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http://books.google.com/books?id=h_p6vykYQQ4C&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
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The Bread Bible: 300 Favorite Recipes
By Beth Hensperger
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http://books.google.com/books?id=dvwGDlfoB9oC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
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The Bread Bible
By Rose Levy Beranbaum
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http://books.google.com/books?id=xZIXAAAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
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Beard On Bread
By James Beard
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http://books.google.com/books?id=P-PAjALjruUC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
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Bread Baking: An Artisan's Perspective
By Daniel T. DiMuzio
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http://books.google.com/books?id=vBqgKzY7iF0C&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
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Peter Reinhart's Whole Grain Breads: New Techniques, Extraordinary Flavor
By Peter Reinhart
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http://books.google.com/books?id=Ky9oYQlhDv4C&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
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Crust and Crumb: Master Formulas for Serious Bread Bakers
By Peter Reinhart
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http://books.google.com/books?id=voxrYZu6xVkC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
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Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day: Fast and Easy Recipes for World ...
By Peter Reinhart
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http://books.google.com/books?id=dSarPnb4i6QC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false