November 2, 2009 - 10:19am
Durum flour as a flavor enhancer @ ehanner
Hi, Eric.
In another topic (http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/9943/can-you-turn-semolina-durum-flour#comment-88745), you mentioned using a small amount of durum flour in dough as a flavor enhancer. How much do you use? 5-10%?
Are you using fine durum flour for this or semolina?
This sounds like something I need to try.
David
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I'm interested in reading the reply to this question as I have become obsessed with durum flour recently.
I realize that this was directed for Eric, but I just had to jump in. I have been making "Susan's Sourdough Boule" and have found my favorite variation is to add about 15% durum flour. I swear it makes the bread taste like it has butter on it.
Now that I'm thinking about it, I wonder if using a durum flour sourdough starter (aka altamura semolina sourdough or "biga semolina") would have the same effect...
David and inlovewbread,
I like to add 5% rye in my white sourdough or straight dough for that matter. One day I tried the same amount of Durum and was surprised at the flavor change. I know some of the Greek country breads use higher percentages of Durum and are delicious.
I try to use the flour but I have used the semolina more coarsely ground, after soaking it first to soften it. The flour is better IMHO. When I saw Stan's Holiday offer of a package of Tipo or Durum with a $20 purchase, I decided to replace my aging and often dropped scale and pick up the Durum from him:>). I really like the flavor of Durum and it's especially good with PR's Italian with biga.
inlovewbread, I wouldn't feed your starter with this unless you are prepared to stay on top of the activity. I did some experimenting with a durum feed to increase the sour. I didn't get very sour but the food is depleted in just a few hours and gets sticky.
Eric
I chose the Durum as well to go with my bagel board order. I've only used Durum Semolina in the past, which I realize serves very different purposes, so I'm very excited!
Summer
I love the nutty and I think buttery flavor of semolina/duram flours and I think it's best mixed without any other flours other than just an AP or Bread so you can really enjoy the flavor coming through. Eric, you still get the flavor by adding some rye or wheat with the duram flour or semolina grind?
Sylvia
I don't usually mix the rye and semolina. Like you say just the one flavor that makes me drool.
Eric
I love the way the house smells when I'm baking bread with durum flour and the taste is like Inlovewbread and Sylvia said nutty and buttery. I make the Semolina Sandwich Loaf that zolablue made back in '07. It really needs no butter, is the prettiest yellow and stays fresh a long time. I don't have the recipe in front of me but I think it's 100% durum but not a sourdough.
I've found durum flour to vary from brand to brand. I buy mine bulk from an Italian food store and it can be different each time, maybe it depends on freshness. I'm looking for information about grinding my own. Anyone have the facts about where to buy durum wheatberries and what I need to know about grinding or if home milled durum can be used the same as packaged or if it needs to be enriched, maybe with malt?
weavershouse
I have a couple loaves of SF SD bread with 6.5% Durum flour retarding right now to bake tonight.
The dough was incredibly extensible and slacker than I would expect at 67% hydration. I thought Durum was pretty absorbant, even though the gluten is of lesser quality.
Can you generalize about the dough consistancy you get with the addition of small amounts of durum?
David
I am quite a novice at bread making but since two members in my family are wheat sensitive but, interestingly, not sensitive to Durum wheat, I've been playing around with sour dough Durum Wheat bread.
The first sour dough starter I made was from rice flour because I heard/read that Durum is not suitable. Experimenting, I later added Durum wheat (fine, double ground, from Italy). My starter is now made with only Durum and much happier and nicer than it ever was with rice flour alone or added. My starter is now 8 months old and I bake a couple of loaves about twice a week.
My first attempts were with 100g rice flour and 350g Durum, and 1/4 c coconut flour (what the heck and why not..... novice, right?), salt, a bit of honey and avocado or coconut oil. Most of the time I wound up with a fine crumbed, light, fluffy and fragrant golden bread that everybody loves. Last week I eliminated the rice altogether and last night I eliminated the oil and honey, just keeping the coconut flour, and was rewarded with an even nicer loaf. The only thing I'm not sure of is how to get that beautiful dark crust because I'm always afraid to 'burn' the bread. My loaves are generally a nice golden brown after 30 minutes at 450. Suggestions welcome!
Because my Italian Durum only comes in 500g packages I'm going to try Durum Atta from India which comes in 9kg bags. Hopefully it will be the same. I understand that Golden Temple is made by Robin Hood with regular wheat and vitamins and minerals added which I don't want.
as I have some Caputo Durum/Semolina from a deli in London (tip from Abe) and
another package from De Cecco durum/semolina from my trip to Germany.
I shall follow this thread carefully and much appreciated, if people could share a formula. I have seen formulas with a lot of Durum but also liked the approach just to use a smaller percentage and to find out about taste...
Kat