September 24, 2014 - 10:03am
Sourdough fermentation
having issues with sourdough, all a little new to me... My starter etc is absolutely fine, it's the bulk time and proofing time that seems to be causing me issues. I'm currently experimenting with a light rye sourdough, using a levean that is at 60% hydration and 25% of the total flour prefermented. I'm using 30% light rye flour in the final dpugh, with the rest being a strong Canadian white flour. I'm allowing 2 hours bulk, with 3 s/f at 30 minute intervals, divided and shaped, followed by 2 hours proofing at room temp. The finished loaf seems to blow at differnt parts of the loaf, in my mind I'm thinking under proofing. Any thoughts/suggestions appreciated....
Matt
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Sounds under proofed but it could also be lack of steam. Your timings sound about right if your dough is in the mid 70's range. But a picture speaks a 1,000 words.
Cheers
Josh
Josh,
my overal hydration is at 67%, could I increase bulk time maybe? Steam is fine. Sorry didn't get a pic, was experimenting in the bakery I work at, will be doing them again tomorrow.
Matt,
Try this. After the 3rd s/f, let the dough rest for 30 minutes to an hour. Then resume division and shaping.
Otherwise your procedure sounds solid.
Nick
Nick,
I am doing that, the 3rd s/f is at 1 hour 30. Hence why I'm thinking it's not so much in the bulk time, maybe the proofing?
.. your problem is under-proving. My sourdough recipes (made with Canadian white and light rye) generally take 4 hours at 22 degrees Centigrade or more and even then I sometimes get minor 'blowouts' in the loaf. Try extending the proving time to 3 hours and if there's still a problem, try 4 hours.
Cheers
Ok will try that tomorrow. The bakery I'm working in is fairly warm, 24/25 centigrade. previous to this, I think I was over proofing, as found the dough was difficult to slash, but was also having blowouts. So left a little confused...
That is an awfully quick turnaround. Are you following someone else's formula and process or winging it?
Nope should be achievable, its more than 4 hours if you include the time for the levean to mature? Takes it to about 20 hours
ok so I attempted sourdough again today at the bakery, this time keeping it all white, and hydration of 67%. I opted for the longer proof, 4 hours at ambient temperature, I stuck one loaf in the oven and found that I still got blowouts, so I put the rest of the loaves in the proofer for another hour or so, and there was an improvement, but still not right. So now I'm thinking why are they taking so long to proof? Would I be better to proof in the proofer the whole time? Also do higher hydration doughs benefit from a slow retarded proof in the fridge to help keep shape and make slashing easier?
Matt
Of the dough being ready to bake, that is. Are you going strictly by time or are you reading the dough in some way?
Room temperature of 24-25C isn't exactly tropical, so it's entirely possible that the dough is underproofed, as others have suggested. What Desired Dough Temperature (DDT) are you aiming for when the dough comes out of the mixer? What is the actual temperature of the dough at the end of the mix? That will also have a significant effect on sourdough proofing times.
While a long, slow, cool ferment is a wonderful thing for flavors and for acidifying the rye, a production environment may call for faster fermentation. In that case, you could try doing all proofing in the proofer, instead of at ambient temperatures. The other thing to do is adjust the temperature of the water going into the mix so that the DDT is somewhere in the 25-30C range. That will also speed the fermentation along.
Lastly, it is also possible that there is something in your shaping technique that produces uneven tension in the loaves. If there are weaker zones, that is where the blowouts will be more prevalent.
Best of luck.
Paul
I agree with Paul that the proofing temp needs to be higher. I proof at 30 C/86 F. Try shining an incandescent lamp on it. I use a thermostat with a sensor that pokes right into the dough and turns a heat lamp on and off to regulate the temperature.
As a separate experiment, try an 8-hour proof of the mixed dough, omitting the periodic s&f's. If the problem goes away you'll have a clue. I recommend this as a separate experiment so you can isolate the variables.
Proofing time typically applies to the mixed dough and does not include levain fermentation time.