October 22, 2015 - 2:50am
Going large
What considerations have to be taken into account when making larger breads?
Could I, for example, simply triplicate a recipe for a 1kg bread and expect a 3kg bread to work?
I would guess:
- Oven times change, but "done" internal temperature shouldn't
- Oven temps should be lowered to allow internal cooking without scorching the crust?
- Bulk rise and Proof times stay, as yeast is homogeneously distributed?
- Keeping the same hydration would result in a somewhat flatter final result, as dough resistance doesn't grow with total mass?
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Keeping the same ratios and adjusting. If it's a simple conversion then simply halve, double or triple.
This is also where bakers percentage comes into play. Take the flour in the recipe as 100% then everything else goes according to the flour. So for the following recipe:
Flour 500g
Water 300g
Salt 10g
Fresh Yeast 2g
In Bakers' Percentages would be...
Flour 100%
Water 60%
Salt 2%
Fresh Yeast 0.4%
Once you have the formula then you can adjust the recipe to however much you want all the while keeping the same ratio.
Another good way to adjust the recipe (this way is easier if its not just a case of doubling or halving) is to add up all the ingredients...
Flour 500g
Water 300g
Salt 10g
Fresh Yeast 2g
Total = 812g
Say you now want a 1050g loaf...
So divide 1050 (new size) by 812g (old size) = 1.2931
And simply times everything by 1.2931
Flour (500 x 1.2931) = 647g
Water (300 x 1.2931) = 388g
Salt (10 x 1.2931) = 13g
Fresh Yeast (2 x 1.2931) = 3g
Total = 1051g (won't always be exact as you'll need to round up or down to the nearest whole number when working with these percentages)
As for the other questions... I normally go by feel. Perhaps someone else more qualified can give you the science behind it.
plays a big role in a large mass of dough. Depending on temperature of dough and room temp a warm dough will stay warm longer and a cool dough may take longer to warm up. So it may be faster or slower than a 1 kg loaf. (and you may need a larger banneton or support)
stayvary although yeast is homogeneously distributed, dough mass has it's own heat potential.