Refrigerator ferment
Hello all! Curious about refrigerator ferment. Last weekend my schedule did not permit my usual 8 to 12 hour sponge ferment, followed by dough, shape, bake. I remember reading online that you can ferment for 4 hours and then put it in the fridge for up to 24 hours. So I did 4 hours on the counter followed by 18 hours in the fridge. The bread turned out so much better than usual. Just to make sure it wasn’t a fluke, I did it again this weekend with same result.
So what’s going on here? Why is it so much better? I can’t quite pinpoint why it tastes better, but I think my usual sourdough is a little more bitter and taste better the first day than the second day. The fridge ferment taste good all week, and while still sour, not quite as bitter. My kids say like store bought, but better (that’s supposed to be a compliment). Any idea why this might be? I’m guessing it has something to do with my starter.
I don't know the science behind it, but I almost always bulk ferment my doughs (wild or commercial yeast) in the fridge at least overnight and my customers love my bread. Both the structure and the taste of the breads seems to be much better.
When you retard your loaves in the fridge it slows down the fermentation and gives the dough more time to develop flavor. i almost always bulk ferment my doughs and love the results.
Where in the process can/do you retard?
I've used the fridge in both the bulk fermentation and the final proofing stages of bread making. I just often feel like I'm winging it.
For example, if my bulk fermentation is normally done in 2.5-3 hours, would it be counterproductive to at that point put it in the fridge?
Would it be better to do all the fermentation in the fridge? Or give it a "head start" of an hour or so?
Everyone has their own way of doing things. If you look at most of my posts on this site or on www.mookielovesbread.wordpress.com I almost always do a bulk ferment. I mix the dough, do several sets of S & F's over an 1.5 - 2 hours and then bulk ferment for at least 12 - 24 hours. I then let the bulk dough rest at 78 degrees for 1 - 1.5 hours and then shape, let it rest at 78-80 degrees for about 1 hour or a little longer and then bake. Works perfectly for me.