Just got Ken Forkish's Flour, Water... am an advanced beginner. Currently I can't do all the mixing by hand due to a new neck problem causing arm/hand weakness & pain. To prevent withdrawal, am tying to bake & cook to some degree while I do rehab (hoping to avoid surgery).
If I frequently check dough consistency and temperature, will using my sturdy Hobart Kitchen-Aid instead of my hands produce similar results with his recipes? I'll do what I can manage by hand.
I am and was going through the same thing, herniated disk between C5andC6. Physio worked wonders and no surgery so far in my future so I hope the same for you. I am seeing a physiotherapist with osteopathic training so if you can find someone like that, it would be awesome as I know it has made all the difference in the world for me.
Back to your bread, the mixing is really not bad and you could try using the hand that is not affected. Otherwise you could mix in the mixer and then do the folds by hand as ABakEr suggested above. I did not have any worsening when I baked my way through FWSY, but then again, the pain was not in my dominant arm although I did bake several loaves with my other hand when I sliced my thumb and couldnt use my dominant hand.
I wonder if you could 'fold' the dough using the mixer, running at low speed for just a few seconds for each fold. Worth a try...
Take a look at the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQHuWDEo3SA
It's really not that demanding physically. But it may still be too much for your situation. I thought watching him do it might give you some perspective as to what's involved in case you're thinking you'd need to work the dough more than you should.. just a thought.. best of luck..
I'm no friend of hand kneading (or getting my hands all doughy), but I make an exception for Forkish or Tartine breads, since the clean-up is the same whether I scrape the wet dough off my hands or kitchen tools.
Apart from stirring with your hand to hydrate the flour (you can certainly do that with your mixer), there is only a bit of very low-impact pinching and folding needed.
Using the mixer for the folding, (even one that has a "fold" function), will not be the same, because that setting means incorporating ingredients (like beaten egg whites) gently into a cake batter, not folding a dough to offer the yeasts more access to starch.
I would just give it a try, I can not imagine that these gentle movements are more strenuous for your neck than regular housework like washing dishes, or emptying the dishwasher.
Good luck,
Karin
Thanks to all for your feedback! Sorry for the delay in responding, went through a bad patch and needed a nerve block. Both hands are a problem (dominant arm is bad), so I need to be realistic and take a break from baking. Would need help lifting Dutch oven and pans anyway. I'll live vicariously through your posts for awhile, and imagine how good those photos smell. Happy baking!