I was watching basil and bloom on insta after having inconsistent loaves. I also had an issue where the bottom never looked shaped properly. Like it was kinda flat and not so much rounded…
There were two changes I’ve made that have significantly improved my loaves.
The first, and I think most beneficial, has been upfront gluten building. I mix water (340g and warm), starter (70g), and flour (500g KA bread flour) in my kitchen on medium speed for 7 mins.
After that I transfer to a new bowl and cover for an hour. After an hour I do a coil and fold—however many my dough will allow—and add in 11g sea salt.
I do two more sets of coil and folds every 30 mins. I truly only get one done before my dough gets tight again and I don’t force it.
This one I let bulk ferment in my brod and Taylor proofing box at 75F for 4ish hours. It actually wasn’t doubled but I wanted to go to bed so I preshaped it, let sit for ten mins, shaped it, let it sit seam side down 10 mins, then put it in my banneton in the fridge for 10 hours or so.
Baked at 475 for 7 mins, did my score, then 20 more mins. Took the lid off, reduced temp to 450 and baked for 15 mins.
The second change I’ve made is really making sure my starter is looking healthy before using. I’ve been keeping a teeny amount of starter—like 3 grams—and feeding 15 gs flour and 15gs water. I’m a very inconsistent feeder so sometimes it’s only once per day when I’m maintaining. When I know I’m going to bake I’ll feed twice a day for about a day and a half.
It’s so important to be able to identify when your starter is healthy and I truly believe it made a world of difference.
But this upfront gluten building thooooo…. Holy bajeebus the oven spring is unmatched.
by SucceedinglyMediocre
19 Comments
Looks amazing!
I’ve been thinking about using a mixer too. S&F every 30 mins isn’t the most onerous thing in the world but I feel like it eats up half my day. I don’t really understood why we use mixers for breads made with commercial yeast but not for sourdough.
I also put mine in my stand mixer & I love it! Makes the rest of the process soooo much easier
>upfront gluten building
People really out here rediscovering kneading.
>After an hour I do a coil and fold—however many my dough will allow
What does the dough act like if the dough won’t allow it?
How much is too little?
When you add sea salt, are you kneading more to get it mixed in? Are you using future folds to incorporate it?
I am an inconsistent feeder too. I’m gonna follow your advice, thank you. And I will borrow the phrase “holy bajeebus” from now on. 🙏
Feeding only once per day? Here I am feeding it maybe twice a week if I can remember that lol
How do you add the salt? Stupid question it I always feel like I can’t mix it in fully if I wait
Close to what I do. This technique for medium gluten development in the mixer is straight out of Myhvold’s Modernist Bread and it works very well. I also use a B&T proofer and their oven for stater management (10g, 1:2:2l every 3 days). I find it interesting that in the 4 months I’ve settled on this that the loaves don’t vary much at all. Like commercial bakers, set the temps and times and recipe and you get perfect loaves every time!
Just a heads up that household KitchenAids aren’t designed to handle dough above level 1 or 2, or you’ll risk burning the motor (or it walking itself off the counter – ask me how I know). I do level one for about ten minutes but touch the top of the mixer periodically to make sure it’s not getting hot. Looks good!
Wait, what? Isn’t this just kneading your dough properly? I’m a relatively experienced baker just starting to dip my toe into sourdough, but mixing at low speed in my mixer and then doing whatever I need to in order to develop gluten is the bare minimum when I make bread. For a dough between 55% and 65% hydration, that’s kneading. For higher hydration doughs 65%-80%, that’s coil folds. And that’s all before the first rise. Is that unusual? I’m confused XD
For the life of me I can’t get a good result with my kitchenaid and the kneed attachment. I’ve read and seen so many examples but can’t duplicate it. I have no idea how to tell when it’s ready.
You’re so right, this change has absolutely made the biggest improvement to my loaves.
What’s the difference between adding the salt upfront or mixing it in later?
I follow a very similar process and made the best loaf of my existence. Will never go back to not kneading!
My crumb is always much tighter when i use a machine which sucks. But the crust stays much crispier for longer and it’s more delicate and the crumb is a lot lighter and less gummy and just better. I can’t believe you used such a small amount of starter percentage wise and only proofed for 4 hours though and got such a nice looking crumb, i figured it’d be dense. whoa!
my bread was looking amazing and I got an ooni mixer- it’s supposed to phenomenal well I can’t get my bread to spring up like I was before. I’m very frustrated.
Great looking crumb. If you go about 10-15 minutes longer uncovered you can get a very nice crispy crust and the bread stays softer longer.
https://preview.redd.it/289xz4k1r1dg1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=096c3f8d9ab72dea775083003742266cfb58b31e
I have a silly question. Did you go straight from the fridge to the oven?
I’m looking to try something new and your loaf is just beautiful!
Are you name dropping the Brod and Taylor proofing box because I’m a wee bit jealous