Which produces the best bread flour? I think we know the answer, but why?
Just asking because I found that the wheat grown in France is almost all soft wheat. eg the wheat harvest this year, 40.8milion tonnes of soft wheat, and 1.8 million tonnes of hard wheat. It was a good harvest, up about 10% from last year.
We live in France and I find French bread dries out quickly. It's probably controversial, but I can't understand the fuss that's made over " French" bread. Baguettes etc.
Yeah, I don't know that you can call one best or worst. Personally, I like some hard wheat in my rustic breads, but too much and they take too much work to tear and chew.
In North America what is labelled "Bread Flour" tends to be harder (higher in protein) than All Purpose Flour. And I believe both are harder than what is typically used in a French baguette or Italian pizza dough.
Quick staling bread typically has more to do with quick fermentation than the type of flour used. A simple French bread made with commercial yeast and only 3-4 total fermentation does tend to stale in a few hours, whereas a dough made with a preferment or a levain often will stay good for days.
That'll be the subsidised bread. You can kill someone with it less than 24 hours after it comes out of the oven. I strongly suspect that it's what inspired Terry Pratchett's dwarf battle bread.
When I lived in France it was rumoured that the bread contained something to make it stale quickly, so that you had to buy fresh all the time. The implication was that it's in compensation for the bakers having to sell at a reduced price. I've no idea whether or not it is, or ever was, true but the rate at which the bread staled did make you wonder.
Find somewhere that sells 'pain artisanal' instead, but be prepared to pay a realistic price for the work and the ingredients that go into it.
"I can't understand the fuss that's made over " French" bread. Baguettes etc."
You can buy rubbish anywhere, even if France. Especially in places with names like: Prisunic; Leclerc; Casino; Carrefour; Monoprix; Auchan; Leader Price; Intermarché; Netto; ...
Wonder Bread of France except it i goes stale in 24 hours so you can make croutons and bread pudding with it the next day:-) There are bakeries in France that make really good SD versions of French breads that are terrific if you like those shapes. A great SD baguette, with cultured butter some pickles, cheeses, cured meats and bottle of wine in a nice cafe watching the world go by is one of the great things one has to do as often as possible to have a well rounded outlook on life.
Happy baking
for the replies - Jon O'brien your comments made me smile!
A neighbour works in a school canteen and brings me the leftovers of the day's bread for our hens.I have to soak it in water for quite a while first.
There are several independent bakers in our nearest small town, and their bread isn't much different. Maybe it's because I'm used to soft english bread.
Anyway, it now seems that it's not so much to do with hard or soft wheat.
Branded flour sold as bread flour here usually has added gluten. I buy Doves Farm flour which is brought over from the UK.