December 18, 2023 - 7:31pm
Christmas List: beginner's kit
Ok, so I've waited basically a whole year to make sure that baking wasn't some fad for me. I'm finally going to treat myself to some low-level baking gear. Any key things I'm missing, here? Gotta write this letter to Santa!
Decent scale that I can see when loading 1000g bowls
Multi-probe thermometer
Bannetons
Bowl scraper
Heating pad (for a proofing mini fridge)
I waited a year to get a bench knife and wow, I really appreciate that little $7 thingie, now! Patience is the magic ingredient.
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I'll add -
1. A pack of flat parchment paper sheets. King Arthur's are the best I've tried. They hold up to higher temperatures than others I've tried.
2. One or two loaf pans, and especially a Pullman pan. These are helpful when you don't want to make a free-standing hearth loaf, or when your loaf comes out too wet and won't support itself, or you want to make a nice enriched sandwich loaf. The Pullman should be a short version (usually around 9 inches long) because the longer ones make so darn much bread for just experimenting with. USA Pans and Chef Made make good ones.
3. A bulk rising container. Yes, you can keep using those Pyrex mixing bowls, but a Cambro or similar container is much better - with straight sides you can gauge the degree of rise much better.
4. If you don't have one yet, a plastic cutting board with a sheet of parchment paper laid on top makes a good place to proof a free-standing loaf, and doubles as a fine peel when you want to slide a loaf into the oven.
5. A pizza stone or better, a baking steel if you plan to bake hearth breads. You won't need one for pan loaves. A steel works better than a stone but is more expensive and heavier. King Arthur's steel is the best one I've seen, because it has a decent handle cut into it so you can pick it up and carry it around. Most of the ones I've seen (in person or in pictures) don't have a handle slot or they do but it's too small.
6. An oven thermometer to check your oven's settings. Even better would be an infra-red non-contact thermometer, but they are more expensive. They're good because different parts of the oven will be at different temperatures and the IR thermometer lets you scan around and check.
7. An assortment of plastic deli containers. One pint and one quart sizes are helpful. I use them to store my starter, for mixing up experimental starters, to hold water to wet my fingers when I'm working sticky doughs, to hold small amounts of ingredients for weighing, and I'm always finding new uses for them.
Canning jars just don't work well as starter containers, in my experience, because even a wide-mouth style is hard to clean and to scrape all the starter from. The deli containers let you get into all places. And they don't break if you drop one.
If you buy soups at the supermarket, they may come in such containers (e.g., Panera's or Legal Seafood soups) and you can just wash and save them - remember to save the lids too. Or you can buy a couple of containers of deli cole slaw, etc and use them. Or you can buy them on line - sometimes you have to order the lids separately, sometimes not. Either way, they are so cheap that you can just throw them away when they crack or get too hard to clean.
TomP
Having just replaced a kitchen scale, I have a suggestion. Make sure you get one in increments of .1 grams. My old scale would measure 7 gms or 8 gms of yeast; the new one says 7.3 gms. Quite a difference.
Oxo makes a scale with a pull-out digital screen that solves the problem of oversized bowls covering the display, but I can't remember if it is in .1 gm increments.
A good suggestion, though measuring in half-grams is mostly all right and easier to find.
Thank you!
Yes, definitely going for a 0.1 g precision scale, AWS or Taylor! Easier than counting those grains of instant yeast. And salt.
Hadn't considered a pullman pan, but will do some research, thank you!
I finally settled on a 6qt cambro, cylinder style, for bulking. This was after using a 12 qt cambro upon Forkish's book recommendation, which mostly bulks empty air, since I'm not bulking 3kg megaloafs. I now refer to it as the Polycarbonate Cube of Anguished Excesses, and I built and extension onto my house to store it and display it.
I have a cast iron stovetop griddle that I'm hoping to use as a steel, someday.
I am definitely all about straight-sided starter jars. That's probably been the most definitive conclusion of my journey. I've found that the 1-pint straight edge ball/mason jars are about the right size for the amount of discard I'm willing to live with.
Hadn't considered a pullman pan, but will do some research, thank you!
A Pullman pan produces loaves with a lovely rectangular shape and sharp edges even if the dough does not fill the pan. You can use or leave off the lid depending on what kind of bread you are making. So it's very versatile.
Here's an example of a loaf I baked that did not fill the Pullman pan. You can find many more examples of Pullman-baked loaves on the site:
https://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/73198/almost-abes-100-buckwheat
a danish dough whisk is the only thing i’d add. i don’t use a proofer or a bowl scraper, but my whisk has been my favorite bread-baking purchase after my various baking vessels (dutch oven from a garage sale, then a ceramic cloche from a thrift store).
my scale reads to the nearest even gram and it’s been fine for me — be sure to check the max weight on any scale you buy. many of my bowls are (heavy) ceramic and there is a trade off between precision and max weight.
happy baking!
-c
oh, and: silicone bowl covers like these. i use the covers for lots of stuff (think potato salad at a cookout), but i always use them to cover the bowls my bread is proofing in.
I have one but I stopped using it because I found it annoying to clean.
Here are a few of the baking toys I use almost every day and love...
I think I'm done for a while! Have fun.
So I finally broke down and got a Brita Large Water Filter Pitcher for Tap and Drinking Water which I really like. I use it for starter and bread.
I will second this. I used to be on a well whose water left ferocious mineral deposits. Now I'm on a municipal system that leaves different kinds of deposits. I used a Brita both places and never had a problem with water.
I finally went with Rubbermaid "Brilliance" containers
I don't know this kind, but what I do know is that it's a good thing if you can pick up the canisters with one hand. Some of them have a thinner section so you can do it, some don't. If you have a choice, try to get the one-handed kind.
Lodge Cast Iron Double Dutch Oven, 5-Quart.
I have one of these, and it's very good, especially because you can use with the skillet side as the bottom. Then you don't have to deposit your proofed loaf deep into the DO. But the pot is very large for the size loaves I like to make. There's a smaller Lodge combo-cooker that also has a skillet-like bottom. Lot's of people seem to use it.
OTOH, I almost never make bread in a DO anyway so I don't regard it as a essential tool.
I bought a pack of Katbite flat sheet parchment paper
As I wrote in an earlier response, a pack of sheet parchment paper is one of the best helpers you can have. I didn't know about this Katbrite brand, but on the Amazon page I see it can take temperatures up to 450 deg F. IMHO, that temperature rating is the key parameter. Many parchments don't go that high. Rynolds, IIRC, only goes to 375. That's way too low and a paper like that will scorch and even burn in ordinary bread baking. You *really* want the higher rating.