Ciabatta crust is too soft
Hello,
I make Ciabatta from time to time and it always comes out well except that to me, the crust is too soft. The bread has an excellent flavor, large air holes, and is nice and chewy. I am guessing that a bread expert would suggest that it should have more chew but it's fine for me.
Below is the recipe that I use. This is not the traditional low yeast/long prove/stretching method that artisan bakers would likely consider a true Ciabatta. Most of the bread I bake is enriched and so I start with a batter with all of the enriching ingredients, add the flour, and finish with plain water. This recipe isn't enriched so it's a little different from what I am most familiar with. My first thought is to bake at a higher temperature (at least initially) or to add a pan of hot water for steam but I thought I would ask here before messing up who knows how many loaves of bread trying to figure it out.
Suggestions are always appreciated,
LMHmedchem
Ciabatta (room temperature method)
time: about 3:45 to 4:15 hours, makes two ¾ pound loaves
455 grams all-purpose flour
45 grams wheat gluten
8 grams salt
10 grams active yeast
10 grams olive oil (optional)
440 grams water (at 75°F, start with 220g)
2 tsp olive oil (for the proving container)
cornmeal for dusting
3 liter square covered plastic container (for the first prove)
cooking spray
bench scraper
half-sheet baking tray
half-sheet silicone baking mat
Weigh the flour and wheat gluten into the bowl of a stand mixer and mix well. Weigh in the salt and yeast
on opposite sides of the bowl. Weigh 10g of olive oil to the bowl (optional). Weigh 440g of 75°F water into
a picture or measuring cup. Add about 220g of water to the mixing bowl. Mix with the dough hook attachment
on the lowest speed. Slowly add another up to and additional 220g of water until the dough comes together
and forms a foot that covers the entire bottom of the bowl. The dough will be very wet and sticky and look
like wet oatmeal. Knead the dough for 18 minutes on the second lowest speed until the dough is smooth,
glossy, and elastic. The dough should keep a foot for the entire 18 minutes. The foot will get smaller as
the gluten structure develops. Add a little more water when the foot is very small after about 10 minutes.
The foot should be nearly gone by the time the 18 minutes is up.
Pour 2 tsp of oil into a 3 liter square plastic container with a lid and spread the oil around to coat the
inside surface. (It’s important to use a square tub as it helps shape the dough). Spray the inside of
the tub with cooking spray. Use a silicone spatula to transfer the dough directly from the mixing bowl
into the oiled container. Press the dough evenly into the bottom of the container and seal with the
lid. Leave to prove for 1½ to 2 hours at room temperature until the dough has at least tripled in size.
It's important the dough proves slowly at room temperature, otherwise the loaves could collapse
while baking.
Line a half sheet baking tray with a silicone baking mat and dust with flour and fine cornmeal. Heavily
coat a work surface with flour and cornmeal. Carefully tip out the dough (it will be very wet) trying to
retain the square shape from the container. Spray a bench scraper with cooking spray and use it to
push the dough back into a square of even thickness as necessary. Handle the dough gently to can
keep in as much air as possible. Coat the top of the dough with flour and cornmeal. Measure the
square (it should be about 9-inches per side) Use the coated bench scraper to make a mark in each
side of the square at the halfway point. Use the scraper to cut the dough lengthwise. It will take at least
2 cuts with the scraper to separate the dough into 2 loaves. After each cut, pull the scraper toward you
to roll the loaf on its side and separate it from the rest of the dough. Gently pick up the loaf by getting
your hands under the entire loaf. Keep the cut edge up and place the loaf on the prepared baking tray.
If necessary, stretch the loaf lengthwise to even out the width and depth over the entire loaf. Gently tuck
under the ends and sides to shape the loaf into an even rectangle. Make the loaf as narrow and tall as
possible (within reason). Form the second loaf in the same manner by rolling it way from you to keep
the cut edge up.
Prove the loaves uncovered at room temperature for 45-60 minutes until they are puffed up and springy
to the touch. Some large bubbles will be visible just under the surface.
Preheat the oven to 425°F (start heating oven 20 minutes before the second prove has finished)
Bake the loaves for 20 minutes turning once. The loaves should be lightly browned and sound hollow
when tapped on the base. The internal temperature should be between 200° F and 205°F. The flour on
the loaves will prevent them from becoming very brown. Leave to cool on a wire rack before serving.
To store for up to 3 days, wrap in aluminum foil and keep in a dark location at room temperature. To
reheat, spray lightly with water and heat on a rack in the oven at 350°F for 10 minutes.
A soft crust with a lean dough, especially a high-hydration one, probably indicates a need for more baking. Internal temperature is a good guide to make sure the bread is not undercooked but it doesn't indicate much about how much moisture is left in the dough. You can reach 210 deg F and have a very dry loaf or a moist one. The moisture comes out of the interior as the bread cools and sits around, and that moisture softens the crust.
I would bake these longer. If that seems to overbake the crust, lower the temperature during the extra baking period. Or even turn the oven off, crack the door, and leave the loaves in for 20 or 30 minutes (experiment to find what works for you).
Also, hold off wrapping for much longer than you think. Moisture is still coming out of the loaves even long after you think they have cooled down. I usually leave my loaves unwrapped for two or three days after baking (depending on the kind of bread, of course). If I have cut some slices, I just place the loaf cut side down on a flat surface. If I do that, I've found I don't even need to cover the cut surface with foil to keep it from drying out. I only wrap or bag my loaves after the crust gets too hard to cut easily.
Because a ciabatta is so open inside, it will probably need to be bagged sooner, but even so, experiment with wrapping much later than you have been doing.
My wife always complains when the crust isn't crunchy; I just leave it in the oven to cool. That usually works for me.
Are you not steaming the bread at all? I think that should help with the crust. Advice to leave it in the oven to cool is also great, that works very well.
Also since this is very high hydration, with time the crust certainly can lose the crispness very quickly if stored in a closed environment.