Troubleshooting my loaf
Hi all,
I’m a huge fan of the site and community and have been lurking/reading for a long time. Now, however, I feel I may need to ask your help.
Ive been baking sourdough now for a few months but every time a loaf comes out a little differently and I’m having trouble identifying what is causing various issues.
On the pictured loaf, this is probably my best crumb structure so far, however the shape and dense areas still lead me to believe I may have judged the proofing badly.
I used the following recipe:
304g water @ 28c
389g Bread Flour
38g Whole Spelt Flour
19g Whole Rye Flour
50g Starter @ 100% Hydration (25g Bread Flour/25g Water)
9g Salt
—
1hr autolyse
Mix in starter
4hr bulk ferment (stretch and fold on each hour)
pre-shape / 1hr bench rest
2 1/2hr final proof
Baked at 230c on stone with steam for 20 mins and 40 without
The result is this loaf which is delicious but a little gummy and slightly dense. Should I have proofed for longer or did I perhaps let it go a little too long?
Any advice would be massively appreciated.
Thanks!
What do you think about the difference in colour from bottom crust and top crust?
I see that perhaps the stone needs to preheat longer. Or the bread could have been removed sooner or that the loaf could have been covered near the end to slow top crust browning or the oven was too hot toward the end of the bake. Depends on the baking details like how long the stone was preheated, what shelf the stone and the oven settings?
Getting the oven set up tweaked close to ideal may make a big difference in the crumb.
What "shape and dense areas" don't you like? There is a nice lift to the edges of the loaf, consistent and pleasing shape (was it scored?) and the crumb is not compacted anywhere that I can see. I wouldn't put too much mayo or soft butter on a slice but I think it looks pretty darn good for that kind of crumb. If you want to add another stretch and fold just to see what happens, go ahead, or delay the start of stretch and folds by an hour. See what happens.
I agree that this is a nice looking loaf. Do you have a shot of the outside? Like Mini O, I am wondering if it was scored. My other question is how long did you let it cool? If you have a thermometer, let it get to room temperature. Otherwise, give in at least a few hours. Try cutting into it now and see if it is still gummy. Your formula is going to give a nice chewy loaf, so maybe that is the denseness you are referring to. This isn't going to be light and fluffy like a pain de mie or other enriched sourdoughs.
Hi both, thanks for the kind words here! I left the loaf to cool for about 9 hours overnight. It is still gummy (tacky) now. I hadn’t noticed the colour difference between the top and bottom but thats a very good point. I had the loaf fairly high in the oven on a stone at 230c, so perhaps I need a lower temp for a longer time? The stone was preheated for about 45mins.
I did score the loaf but it didn’t seem to open very much, which made me think that perhaps the final proof could have needed more time?
Thanks so much for the advice. Still a delicious loaf, I was just curious more than anything else.
down a notch in the oven. :)
^^^^This and try this... When you are done cooking, turn off the heat and leave it in the oven with the door ajar for 10 minutes. This might help with the gummy texture. You can also turn down the heat part way through (might be worth throwing an oven thermometer in there).
thanks both, much appreciated! :)
will try another this weekend