The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

shaping

January 14, 2011 - 6:00pm
mcs's picture
mcs

more shaping practice

Hey TFLers,
This is a short no-frills video re-visiting some of the parts of shaping that I feel are important.  In the beginning I demonstrate slowly using a damp dishcloth, then I use the same technique with a few different doughs.  Lastly, I use a slight modification on the technique to form a couple of boules.  Enjoy. 

-Mark

http://TheBackHomeBakery.com

 

 

August 27, 2010 - 8:58pm
dmsnyder's picture
dmsnyder

Shaping a boule: a tutorial in pictures.

I have read so many bread baking books and viewed so many videos on shaping boules, but I didn't really "get it" until I saw our instructor, Miyuki, do it in the SFBI Artisan I workshop I attended a couple weeks ago.

I will attempt to show what I learned in still photos with descriptions. I hope that viewing these and then reviewing some of the excellent videos available might help others who are struggling with this technique.

Mis en place

You will need:

1. a batch of fully-fermented dough

2. a lightly floured "board" on which to work.

3. a scale, if you are dividing the dough.

4. a bench knife or other cutting implement, if you are dividing the dough

5. prepared bannetons or a couche on which to rest the formed boules for proofing

 

 

Procedure

 

1. Weigh your dough

2. Divide it into equal pieces.

3. Pre-shape each piece gently, incorporating any small pieces of dough on the inside. 

4. Rest the pre-shaped pieces, seam side down and covered with plastic or a towel  on the board for 20-30 minutes.

5. Prepare your bannetons or couche for receiving the shaped boules.

 

6. After the pre-shaped pieces have rested, shape each as follows:

* Pick up the piece and turn it smooth side down.

* Gently fold the long ends together under the piece.

* Rotate the piece 90º in your hands, and fold the other two sides together.

* Place the piece on an un-floured board, smooth side up.

 

 

* Cup your hands around the piece, and gently drag it 3 inches or so towards you in such a way that the edge closest to you sticks to the board and is dragged under the dough, thus stretching the top of the piece into a tight sheath containing the dough.

 

Note the position of the markers before stretching

After the stretching, the marker at the apex of the boule is unmoved, but the one that was at about 40º North, is now about at the equator.

* Rotate the dough 90º and repeat. Do this 3-4 times until the bottom of the boule is relatively smooth and the whole boule has an unbroken, smooth sheath.

Note that there are no visible seams on what will be the bottom of the boule, after the procedure described.

 

* Place the boules in bannetons, smooth side down, spray with oil and place each banneton in a food-grade plastic bag to proof. (Alternatively, place the boules seam side down on a couch and cover with a fold of the couche, plasti-crap or a towel.)

 

 

Well, there it is. For me, being able to visualize the stretching of the "skin" of the boule between a fixed North Pole and a point on the side, using the board to "grab" the bottom of the boule as I dragged it towards me was the "aha moment." I hope it makes sense to others.

The goal (to form a tight gluten sheath) in forming other shapes is fundamentally the same, but the method is entirely different.

Comments and questions are welcome.

Happy baking!

David

 

 

 

 

 

August 15, 2010 - 6:45am
louie brown's picture
louie brown

Roll Shaping

I am interested in improving my roll shaping skills. This is a very basic sourdough formula of about 67% hydration, bulk fermented for about 3 and a quarter hours in a warm city kitchen, then shaped and proofed for about another hour and a quarter, baked with steam.

 

I tried some fendus, which, while they had the right shape, were rather bloated for my taste. I prefer the slimmer shape, with a nice point for rolls. I think this will require a wider "hinge" and a narrower body.

 

I also tried a shape I believe I saw here, although I am not sure. A dowel is pressed into the side of a round roll and a flap is rolled. This flap is then pulled over the top of the roll, making a lovely effect. If this sounds familiar to anyone, I'd appreciate some guidance.

 

The rolls shown, in a "teardrop" shape, are, as far as I can tell, an original idea, cut to a point with a bench knife from a round shape that has been lengthened a little. People seem to have fun eating them.

 

Additional discussion about rolls, especially shaping, would be welcomed.

 

I'm including an additional crumb shot of the batard just because I like the picture.

 

 

 

 

bnom's picture

a time-sensitive question about bread shape and staying power

May 13, 2010 - 9:58am -- bnom
Forums: 
Misc.

I'm leaving town early tomorrow for a weekend getaway with friends. I've got a batch or sourdough bread rising which I will shape/bake tonight.

My question is: Are there shapes that would hold up better for the weekend?  For example, boules  or batards? Epis or baquettes? Larger v smaller loaves?  I'm particularly interested in the epis question...I've never made them but my sense is they would hold up a little better because they're eaten as rolls not as sliced so would be less likely to dry out.

Really appreciate your input!

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LindyD's picture

Shaping bagels - and bagel boards

May 14, 2009 - 6:36pm -- LindyD
Forums: 
General

Last Saturday night I decided to try baking bagels.  I had just received my order of KAF Sir Lancelot flour, so I turned to Hamelman's "Bread" and used his straight dough bagel recipe (which I later discovered is the same recipe used by our good friend, baker Norm).  Happily, my Artisan mixer survived, but due to my own lack of planning, at 11:45 p.m. I was staring at three pounds of very stiff dough, ready to be shaped into bagels.  

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mcs's picture

a short baguette video

December 19, 2008 - 3:23pm -- mcs
Forums: 
General

Fresh Loafians,
I just made a short video on pre shaping and shaping baguettes using the Anis 75% hydration dough.  If you'd like to check out the entry in my blog it's this entry: http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/9959/more-anis-baguettes

If you'd like to just see the video, here it is.
I never quite got the 'classical technique' of shaping them, so this is the 'only way I can do it' style.
-Mark
http://thebackhomebakery.com

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