Dense, gummy sourdough
Hey all, I’ve been baking sourdough for a few weeks now and only once have been successful in getting a light, fluffy crumb. I baked a loaf last night and cut into it today with high hopes of finally having a good fluffy bread because from the exterior, it was a pretty perfect loaf. I got great oven spring and the best ear I’ve ever gotten. The crust caramel used and had plenty of blisters. But I cut into it this morning and to my disappointment, the inside was gummy as usual. There were plenty of large holes, but not a consistent open crumb with areas of more density. I will attach the image.
my recipe:
200g ripe levain, 750g water, 900g bread flour, 100g whole wheat flour, 20g salt. I checked dough strength with the window pane test after doing 5min of slap and folds and 3 stretch and folds 25min apart, then let it continue bulk fermentation until it was domed, crawling away from sides of the bowl, and bubbly. I then preshaped, let them rest for 20 min, then continued to final shaping. Once in bannetons, I let the dough proof at room temp for about 30 min and it already seemed like it was passing the poke test (very very warm where I live). I proceeded to put it in the refrigerator for about 2.5 hours then baked at 500 for 20 min, covered, and 35 min at 450.
any advice on what the issue is? It’s a pretty high hydration dough so I would assume it’s not that, unless I need to bump it up to 80%? Or perhaps it’s my starter?
Hi vanilla!
It looks under-fermented to me. I've had this happen before, I'm sure most people here have at some stage.
The contrast of dense crumb with very large holes suggests that the large holes aren't from fermentation, but from trapped air during folding and shaping etc.
I would make sure the dough is getting nice and active during bulk. Did you take any pics at that stage?
Don't be discouraged, though! The loaf looks well-made, I'm sure it won't be long before you get to where you want to be.
Thanks for the response! No I don’t have any pics of fermentation, that’s always been my struggle as I don’t ever know when it’s time to begin preshaping. This time my bulk ferment was around 3 hours, I had a gut feeling to let it go for longer but was too excited to bake. I will try letting it go longer next time! Thank you
Haha yes I relate to the excitement, and believe me, the question of 'when is the bulk done?' is one that has taken me a long time to get my head around.
With sourdough in general you can safely err on the side of letting it go longer. It's a slow process after all. And if you don't push the boundary, you don't get to see how the dough changes and develops, which is invaluable experience.
Next time, make sure the starter is mature when you mix, and keep the dough nice and warm during bulk if you can (you say you live in a warm place, but still good idea to check dough temps).
Let it go until you can feel/see definite changes in the dough. Folding regularly is a good way to get a feel for how things are developing. See if that helps, and let us know how it goes :)
If the description of the process is accurate, it's under proofed, by about an hour, maybe more. Enjoy!
Vanilla, it is probably good to confirm that your starter is healthy and up to the task. Please tell us a out your starter.
If your starter is not strong enough, that should be rectified before anything else. Your starter may be great, but it should be considered, especially when you write you are in a warm climate.
Danny
I feed it once a day: 25g starter, 50g AP + 50g whole wheat, and 100g water.
It reaches maximum height probably after around 8-13 hours, not too sure. I typically keep it in my microwave. It usually just about triples before peaking and slowly falling, it doesn’t fall fully before the next feeding. And I never keep it in the fridge as I bake bread every 2 or 3 days.
Is there a specific/more successful time to use my starter in the levain? As in, am I able to make the levain at any point that the mother starter is at, whether it be before, during or after it’s peak?
I feed it once a day: 25g starter, 50g AP + 50g whole wheat, and 100g water.
It reaches maximum height probably after around 8-13 hours, not too sure. I typically keep it in my microwave. It usually just about triples before peaking and slowly falling, it doesn’t fall fully before the next feeding. And I never keep it in the fridge as I bake bread every 2 or 3 days.
Is there a specific/more successful time to use my starter in the levain? As in, am I able to make the levain at any point that the mother starter is at, whether it be before, during or after it’s peak?
What would you estimate the room temperature for the starter?
If the starter is peaking at 8 - 13 hours, but is not fed until 24 hours your starter is becoming extremely acidic and the yeast are in decline. In my experience, unless you are prepared to feed your starter at least every 12 hours, refrigeration should be considered.
There is a tremendous amount of information on the forum dealing with starters. The available information on starters can be overwhelming. Click the link below to see a listing of some of those post.
https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Athefreshloaf.com+sourdough+starter&rlz=1C9BKJA_enUS774US774&hl=en-US&sxsrf=ALeKk03VVH4osPO_9kyTPMX6Xw8qJpdYlw%3A1627863729275&ei=sToHYb2hEIqPtAb0xJ_ICQ&oq=site%3Athefreshloaf.com+sourdough+starter&gs_lcp=ChNtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1zZXJwEAM6BAgAEEdQhhdY6lVg11xoAHACeAGAAdEBiAH1E5IBBjMzLjEuMZgBAKABAcgBCMABAQ&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-serp
You may find something of interest in THIS LINK.
What you experienced has been seen by all of us. I agree with the comments that more time was needed. That might have been during the bulk fermentation (the likely candidate) but could also include the final proofing. You do not mention the temperature of your kitchen or of the dough. Warmer kitchens and warmer dough mean shorter bulk fermentation stages, and cooler kitchens and cooler dough mean longer stages.
Perhaps one of my blog postings can give you some things to consider. It pertains to the basic Tartine country loaf (which your recipe sounds close to) and includes photos and descriptions of the various steps (with multiple photos from the bulk fermentation phase). Here it is: https://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/64305/tartine-basic-country-bread
Continue to ask questions. Happy baking.
Ted
I placed the bowl in the oven with the light on for bulk fermentation, when I checked the dough temp before preshaping it was at 80 degrees.
yes the recipe is based off the tartine loaf! I will look into your post, thank you!
Something i missed - poke test - not the best test. Go by the jiggle, like Jell-O. Ferment till it jiggles like Jell-O, knead to degas, get the jiggle again, knead, proof till it jiggles, bake. Adjust your timings based on the jiggle. Enjoy!
Very helpful! Thank you