February 8, 2021 - 6:51pm
Need help with oven spring... again
Ugh. I made a boule last night and, once again, it did not achieve the oven spring I had hoped for. Here are the specs:
- Levain fed at 1:1:1, made with a healthy starter that had also been fed at 1:1:1, 2x a day
- 450g of King Arthur bread flour; 50g of whole wheat flour
- 375g of ~80-90F water
- 10g of salt
- 40 minutes of autolyse with levain
- 3.25 hours of bulk at ~80F with stretch & fold / coils for first 2 hours; dough was bubbly and floated by the end of bulk
- 15 hour final rise in ~36F fridge
- 20 min initial bake in Lodge combo cooker that was preheated in a 500F oven; also sprayed loaf with water for more steam
- 40 min additional bake time after oven spring
See photos below. Perhaps I am not shaping my loaf correctly (my biggest weakness) or scoring my loaf properly.
Interestingly, I don't have as much of an issue with oven spring for batards. But I always struggle with boules.
To be clear, I'm happy with the taste of the loaf -- fluffy, chewy with a slight tang, and a crispy crust. I just envy those bulbous loaves I see!