October 18, 2010 - 6:10pm
banneton transfer
I tried a multigrain recipe today from the "Crust and Crumb" book by Peter Reinhart. He actually has you putting the bread in a pan which I don't have so I put it into a banneton. Unfortunately, the top of the dough stuck to the damp cloth I had over the top of the banneton and when I tried to peel it off the entire loaf deflated. I now realize I should have floured the top of the dough as it sat in the banneton? Also, can you let the dough rise in a banneton without any cover over it? It's tough to come that far and then lose the entire game in the final hand off. Maybe he has you using a pan because this dough doesn't do well in the final rise?
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Hi Mauiman,
Bannetons are terrific for the final proof - just make sure you've floured the banneton with rice flour to avoid any sticking problems.
Bad idea to not cover the dough - the top will dry out and develop a crust.
Just slide the banneton into a plastic bag and tie it shut. That will keep the moisture in, the drafts out, and if it's a clear bag, you can keep an eye on it.
BTW, I'd avoid flouring the dough - you can mist it with oil, but if you're going to place it in a bag, don't really need to.
I don't have C&C, but regularly retard doughs in a brotform overnight - bagged, of course.
Thank you for your helpful tips. Quite a learning curve here and so much to remember each step of the way.
That IS disappointing to have your dough stuck to the cloth, and watch your creation deflate. A mess, as well as disaster. If you had enough "strong flour" (high protein bread flour) in the recipe, it is very likely that you could have punched the remaining mess/mass down, folded it several turns, and let it rise again. If this fails, add a tsp or so of dissolved yeast to the mess, knead or fold, adding small amounts of bread flour to compensate for the added moisture. Don't add too much flour. You can also refer the "reconstruction", as long as there is some amount of high-gluten flour added to the mix. This is like adding "old dough" to "new dough" in a primitive way. Bread dough is very forgiving. If there is enough yeast, as well as sufficient gluten left in the mix to create "structure", castles can rise again.
You might try a very light spray of oil on the top of your loaf before covering it with a BARELY damp towel. Or use rice flour on the cloth and sprinkled over the loaf. Rice flour is non-absorbant...does not want to take on water. Either the oil, or the rice flour (don't use both) act as a Resist, which may make a slight difference. If your dough looked like the finalist in a world class hot air balloon contest, it could have also been OVER risen, if it deflated.
Using a damp towel invites trouble,...can turn dough & cover into an adhesive mess, as you found out. Try very lightly spraying the top of your loaves with oil, then loosely cover with plastic wrap, wax paper, or parchment paper. Or proof it under a large plastic "cover" that the dough can not possibly touch. If you rise your dough in a very humid environment, you might get away without cover. Otherwise, its rising will benefit from the trapped moisture in the dough.
Thank you for all your helpful tips. I'm on quite a learning curve here and so much to remember at each step along the way.
I am using an old clear plastic bag that came with a pillow. It has a zipper, and is large enough to hold 2 Brotformen. I also use a space bag with the regular baking sheets, they will fit in 2 at a time (it's a jumbo bag). Either way, plastic closed off prevents moisture from escaping. in addition, when you open the bag they smell so nicely fermented! :)
Don't remember where now, but a tip I've picked up is to use shower caps. You can re-use them over and over, and they dome up over bannetons, meaning no sticking