How to make sourdough bread with the highest digestibility and overall health benefits?
Hello! Normally I struggle with conusming wheat or gluten products, or too many starches/carbs in general. It does weird things to my digestion, makes me tired, gives me skin issues, among other things. I have been reading that through traditional sourdough fermentation of grains, that many of these challenging compounds are eliminated or transformed in the final product. Furthermore, anti-nutrients and such are largely eliminated through fermentation, making the bread more nutritive and bioavailable. In my limited sourdough bread experience, I have noticed that I do feel less bad after eating traditionally fermented grain products.
Basically, I would like to figure out what method/recipe of producing sourdough bread will create a product which is very easily digestible, does not give negative physical/emotional reactions to folks who are wheat or gluten or carb/starch intolerant, and has the highest nutritive value possible. Of course, I would like to achieve this without sacrificing flavor or texture if possible :)
I have been doing some research, and have been reading about people who are normally very reactive to gluten/wheat, but when they consume sourdough bread that has been fermented for 24-36+ hours, they receive no negative reaction. How would one go about achieving the longest possible fermentation time in a dough, without losing all structure in the finished product? I don't mind a loaf that is on the denser side, but I'd rather not be eating a total brick. Similarly, I enjoy my breads quite sour, but I'm sure there is a point where too much would be too much :)
This also asks the question - would using a higher ratio of starter result in a more healthful/digestible bread because it has increased microbial action which is breaking down more of the anti-nutrients and transforming the starches/glutens into more assimilable forms? What would happen if I used a very high ratio of stater and also fermented the final dough for 24-36+ hours?
Finally, there is the question of which flours to use. From my research, it seems that out of all the gluten containing flours, rye is by far the most nutritive, most easy to digest, and least likely to cause various intolerance reactions in the body. I imagine whole grain flours are also healthier and easier to digest (compared to refined flours) because the fiber and minerals present in the bran and germ help your body process the starches in the grain. Can anybody confirm or deny that?
So with this knowledge, what would be the best way to create a combination of flours which has great flavor, has some structure (I don't mind a denser loaf and I like sour flavors) and is easy to digest for people who normally have trouble eating wheat or gluten or starchy products? I'm thinking adding in other nutritive flours like buckwheat or heirloom corn could be a good addition.
Finally, what about sprouted flours? Anybody have any experience comparing those with their non-sprouted counterparts in terms of digestibility and health effects?
Hoping this can get a lively discussion going :)
(my knowledge is limited)
About the starter ratio: In general, the longer the dough ferments, the better (up to a certain point when it degrades too much). Fermenting dough for 24-36, even 48 hours is very possible and also quite common amongst artisanal bakers and high quality pizza parlors. And you don't need a lot of starter (or yeast) for that since the dough will have a enough time to ferment, break down starches and develop flavor. However, if you add too much starter, it might overproof and or lead to too much gluten degradation, even when doing cold retard.
It's about finding a good ratio where the bulk fermentation be done it let's say 24 hours, plus another 12 hour cold retard. You also can't use too little, I suspect the yeasts would be overwhelmed. You will need to test and adjust a lot as you go, but I'm sure you can get successful loaves pretty quickly.
This is now a procedure I would start with based on my knowledge and guesses:
Maybe 10% would be a good place to start (80% water if using whole wheat flour, 2% salt).
Autolyse for 1 h, mix.
Give it maybe 3-4 hours at room temp with multiple stretch & folds, then cold retard for lets say 16 h.
Divide and rest for 30 min., then shape.
Proof for 30 min., then cold retard for another 10-12 h and bake.
In my opinion, whole wheat flour would be the way to go. It is nutritious, but still gives good gluten structure. Other flours I would add in low amounts (2-5%, rye, spelt, buckwheat, what ever you fancy), at least for now until you have a good procedure.
Other than that, add some seeds or nuts (which you can sprout for extra nutrients), spices, the possibilities are endless :)
For now, keep it simple, you can always complicate it later ;)
Have you tried oats? If you can oats than oat bread might be a way for you.
I did try oats a few times. Really difficult to bake, but maybe a good (and cheap) gluten free alternative. It can work with sourdough. I only ferment a pre-dough though and used yeast in the main dough.
It must be form baked. Free or dutch oven isn't that suitable. Baking time is like bread + 50% - and HOT - 250°C or so.
I have played around with sprouted , then ground , berries, and the standard wheat varieties, and a little with kamut. Your questions about digestibility are hard to answer, since my guess is that "gluten intolerance" may mean different things to different people. I do work with someone who is extremely gluten sensitive, and she reported that a few of the things I tried, sourdough, home milled wheat, and kamut, were less of a trigger for her, but i really did feel comfortable using her as a guinea pig, and even if I did, I don't know if what worked for her would work for others. All I can say is to try some out, and keep notes.
Von, are you able to detect problems soon after eating wheat? If you can, I have an idea to test the theory that long fermented sourdough with eliminate your problem.
Mix a bread dough with a small amount of starter. I often ferment San Fransisco SD with 2% prefermented flour. So for a kilo of flour it would use 40 grams of 100% hydrated starter. Let in ferment on the counter for 18 hr or so @ 78F. If the room is cooler ferment it longer. The dough will degrade and the loaf won’t rise much, but the long fermentation will have a huge amount of enzymatic activity to break down the gluten. Eat it and let us know if it works for you.
If it does we can tweak formulas and methods to produce good bread that has undergone maximum fermentation.
Please let us know your fibdings.
Danny
Vonshu: Your questions, or at least the major issues, are directly dealt with in this book by Vanessa Kimbell:
https://www.amazon.com/Sourdough-School-ground-breaking-making-gut-friendly-ebook/dp/B07BPV28CC?tag=froglallabout-20
It is currently US $6.99 in Kindle ebook format, or $16.29 plus shipping (usually $3.99 from 3rd party sellers) for hardcover.
You can read the summary and reviews online at Amazon.
BTW, while rye is lower in gluten than standard wheat, it is higher in FODMAPs. Do you know whether it is gluten per se that triggers you, or is it FODMAPs ?
Hope this helps.
Hello. Sorry you're having digestive trouble.
1) Sourdough has empirically proven health effects in terms of the glycemic index, that is, how stably the carbohydrates are converted into blood sugar. A consistently lower-GI diet decreases the chance of diabetes, metabolic syndrome, some kinds of cardiac disease, and several cancers, shown in widely replicated research. Unfortunately, many grains that gluten-avoidant people eat have high GI (rice, including brown; amaranth; corn; sorghum). [see glycemic index.com]
SO, if you need to cut down on wheat and/or gluten, and if sourdough sits well with you, SD wheat or tye would be much better for your long-term health than other grains found in gluten-free products.
2) In terms of baking: as I'm sure you know, gluten creates the support structure of bread. Without gluten, or with less of it, you need to provide support other ways. Wheat-based sourdough is perfectly sturdy. If you are working with little or no wheat, you'll probably want to explore using a rectangular bread pan or other baking mold, or even xanthum gum, which is used in gluten-free breads.
3) I need to affirm that you are the only world's expert on your body. You're experiencing digestive trouble, and that's that. But perhaps you might want to research a bit more about causal inferences-- different possible causes and therefore different possible fixes.
If you wanted, you might consider empirically figuring out whether your very real bad effects might be caused by certain categories/ quantities of other fermentable sugars, aka FODMAPS-- long-chain saccharides (sugars) naturally found in foods,but which can ferment in the gut. The original and best research comes out of an excellent med/sci research center in Australia, Monash U. https://www.monashfodmap.com/blog/food-infocus-look-at-monash-universitys/ People with FODMAP sensitivity don't have to avoid all of them, or any of them all the time; after a period of giving their digestion a rest, almost all can go back to eating them but perhaps not in unlimited quantities.
At least one very carefully executed study found that many people who do not have celiac disease, who had reasonably attributed their very real, bad digestive effects to either gluten or wheat were, instead or in addition, suffering from reactions to one or another category of FODMAPs.
Several research studies have used "gold standard" methodology: double blind, random assignment, with within-subjects crossover. That is, each subject was given a pill to swallow daily which consisted of different amount of gluten, other non-gluten FODMAPS, or something neutral. Then each was switched back and forth during the study period, which keeps us from being misled by the ways individuals vary..In the study I was able to find quickly just now, only 8% had gluten-specific triggers. Many found that the FODMAPS were the issue; modulating how much of them they ate reducted symptoms. I know 3 people who found this life-changing. Here's a link to one such study to start off with, in case you're interested, though this research has been replicated and would otherwise not be as meaningful. https://www.gastrojournal.org/article/S0016-5085%2813%2900702-6/abstract
4) Sprouted grain flour: I actually just spent a few hours researching this as I try to buy flour now to cope with unreliable availability. I was thinking about whether or not to buy sprouted wheat flour, if I could find it.The best research is equivocal: sprouted-grain flour has more vitamins; it may have a lower glycemic index, but research on that has varied. I haven't seen any careful research (blinded with control) on perceived digestive effects. It definitely does have a shorter shelf life than regular flour, but so do whole grain flours.
5) Be careful about sprouts in general, whether home grown or purchased; they periodically turn out to be the source of an e.coli and or salmonella outbreak. (Anything grown in moist, warm conditions will tend to let bacteria thrive, unless there are competing "good bacteria" as in sourdough or yogurt. Sprouts are fine to eat cooked, but I don't know any food safety scientists who would eat them raw.
GOOD LUCK!
Panettiera