Extended Autolyse
So I've done some reading and have conflicting results so i figured I'd ask the folks here where they stand on said issue. Extended autolyse has proven positive effects on white doughs but in reading the same technique is good/bad for whole grain doughs. Some say extending an autolyse will demote strength in a dough that requires as much as it can get being heavily or all whole grain (let's say we are talking at least 50% whole grain for the sake of the conversation). In T3 it's suggested it may help with many of the whole grain loaves but these loaves are a combo of whole grain/high extraction/ and white flour. I'd still say most pass the paramters of at least 50% wholegrain. I'm mostly referring to extreme extended autolyse so 8-24 hours lets say.
Any thoughts? Or better yet positive/negative experiences. I'm thinking it varies based on said grain myself. the topic arises due to my current dough, due toa need to leave mid process, going through a 12 hour autolyse and it got me thinking/worried/excited all at the same time.
Josh
I'm sure you're more interested in results with levain and artisan methods, but in my admittedly novice experience with instant yeast whole grain loaves in a bread machine, my results are improved (and really very nice for a whole grain loaf) by using the overnight timer (usually anywhere from 8-10 hours) which effectively soaks about half the flour for that time (salt and yeast are dry on top) compared to straight cycle which has a 20 min rest/soak before kneading, more like a standard short autolyse. Probably of more interest to the BM bakers out there, but there it is :-)
This is an interesting idea. While my gut says a lengthy autolyse of whole grain may have adverse effects to autolyse a portion of it for a lengthy time is an interesting idea. Maybe you'd get the benefits of extended autolyse without the adverse affects of over enzymatic activity and loss of less gluten forming starches.
Josh
An overnight autolysis is centeral to his method.
I'll throw in my two cents, but this is just conjecture based on principles. It seems to me that it's not unreasonable that a long autolyse would act differently in white vs. whole grain flours. The latter having more enzymes, bacteria, and wild yeasts, I could see that you might get too much fermentation and enzyme activity especially if you're pushing 24 hours at room temperature. If it's refrigerated, then I would be surprised if there was much of an issue though.
David, I haven't noticed Reinhart using long autolyse times? He loves the long cold fermentation of the final dough and in his Whole Grain Breads book, he does overnight soakers which mostly have salt included to retard enzyme activity, I believe.
I don't have that P.R. book so I can't speak on that behalf. Since I hadn't planned this extended (12 hour) autolyse of my own I didn't salt it. That said I've gone on to bake the loaves and they are a touch overproofed and/or weak and a bit on the low profile side. But the flavor is quite good. Mind you I'm not your go-to guy on all this science but I think the extreme amount of protease from this brings too much extensibility to the dough. At the same time I'm doing a cold final proof (unfortunately the only process that works for my setup without pure chaos) which with the heavy amount of whole grain may also be playing a part. I'll have to try this again with a typical autolyse and compare the results.
Cheers
Josh
Autolyse: The definitive article
http://www.dolcesalatoweb.it/2013/05/giorilli-ci-spiega-la-tecnica-dellautolisi/
Thanks for the link I'll read the translation in a bit. Looks interesting
Josh
It's as I suspected. If you're going to go longer than 5 or 6 hours, that article suggests adding a little salt and keeping the hydration low, 45-50%. Both things will slow down enzyme activity and fermentation.