using a maple wood kneading board: what am I doing wrong?
Hello,
I've been baking sourdough bread for a few years, I'm used to do the shaping on my Corian countertop and I was able to get a decent amount tension on the dough, enough to give me a nice oven spring.
For the longest time I had been pondering whether or not to get a maple wood kneading board to use instead of the Corian countertop. So, last month I paid $ 100 and change for one.
It looks very nice, is quite heavy and fits perfectly on my kitchen countertop but I'm having a hard time getting good results and after doing some research on the net I decided this is the place where there are a lot of experienced bakers who could give me some guidance.
1) I bought a bottle of walnut oil but I haven't applied it to the board yet. Is that a good type of oil to use?
2) after shaping the dough, when I try to roll it on the part of the board where there is no flour to get tension on the skin it sticks to the board a lot. The wood feels kind of rough, not smooth.
3) Could this be happening because I have not treated it with the oil? Or does it need to be sanded down?
4) How many coats of oil do I need to apply?
I'm at the end of my rope on this, I want to keep it but not if it gives me more trouble than doing it on my counter.
I'd sincerely appreciate any advice you could provide.