Since my last visit to the forum about five years ago, I've stuck with baking one recipe which dough is very easy to shape and handle. I've finally ventured to an additional recipe, a much higher-hydration sprouted wheat formula. The result is, as you can imagine, a much more moist crumb and crispier crust.
The shaping and proofing has been somewhat challenging. After watching a video, it turns out I was on the right track with shaping...or what could loosely be termed that. My questions are regarding proofing and baking vessels.
I'm currently proofing in a basket lined with a thin linen towel, and baking in a preheated dutch oven or stoneware. The transfer from basket to preheated vessel is problematic, since it's tough to keep the towel out of the way for a clean transfer. A fitted basket liner would solve that problem, but given one needs to be so careful with a hot vessel, there's still the issue of "plopping" the proofed dough into the vessel, which seems like it would deflate the final result a bit. Perhaps I'm overthinking that? Would appreciate your thoughts here.
I'm thinking I would have no issues at all if I could proof in the baking vessel itself. Is it absolutely necessary to preheat a dutch oven and/or stoneware? Would I risk breaking the stoneware if I didn't preheat it? Would there be any compromise to the final result in either vessel if I didn't preheat? Without preheating, would baking time need to be increased?
I'd love to hear about anyone's experiences with the easiest way to deal with high-hydration dough proofing and baking. Thank you!
so i proof in a basket. i slightly underproof because there's still just a little proofing to be done in this method in the oven.
i then flip the dough out on a piece of parchment that will fit inside my dutch oven (that's just what i use). the dutch oven is cold.
i score the bread, put it in the dutch oven, put on the lid, put it in the cold oven.
turn my oven on to 450. it takes about 20 minutes to heat up to 450, and then i let it go another 25 minutes with the lid on. (i'm not sure if this is too much steam but it works for me).
pull the hot lid off, then let it bake another 20-25 minutes. i like it dark.
(so pop container into cold oven, 45 minutes, take lid off, 20-25 minutes more)
turn off oven, prop door open with a wooden handle, let it sit another 10-15 minutes. then take the bread out and listen to breadsong.
turns out great for me! yeah, even if i created a nice parchment sling that i could use to maneuver floppy bread dough into a hot container, i'm not sure i'd want to. and this does generate excellent results for me.
happy not burning your self!
You can put the dough on a flat surface an cover it with an upside-down pot or bowl. I do this occasionally when I bake batards or short baguettes, and there's no obvious reason I couldn't make boules this way too.
You can use a lot of different things. In my case, the flat surface is an old pizza stone and the cover is the bottom of an old enamel roaster. I preheat my oven with the stone and the roaster inside. I put the dough on a piece of parchment, then move the parchment onto the stone, then cover with the upside down roaster.
I proof in floured baskets (no towel) and turn the boules out onto squares of parchment. Then I score the loaf (unless I've proofed it seam side down, then might just let it burst naturally). Then I lower the boule into the pre-heated cast iron pot using the parchment as a sling. No problem!
If you proof wet dough in a cold pot then bake it, I'm thinking you will probably have a sticking problem and might have to half-ruin the loaf getting it out. You could put the lid back on for a few minutes to see if the moisture would loosen it up enough to turn it out though. I've never tried the cold pot or cold oven thing, so don't know for sure.
I've had issues of the parchment actually sticking to high hydrated doughs, even after baking (especially after baking). Almost like it melds onto the dough.
To the OP, I hear you--I've had trouble keeping high hydrated doughs shaped. (70% and higher). It is sticky, it flops wide, I score and it poofs out. I keep trying sometimes more successfully than other.
I have used the Dutch oven a few times, but more often just put it on a pizza stone or steel, put water in a pan and then squirt a spray bottle every few minutes for about 15 minutes. It usually does the trick.
I proof in a floured linen lined banneton but basket and towel should be the same. When proofed, I give the dough a light sprinkle of semolina on what will become the bottom of the loaf. Mostly for looks, maybe it helps with sticking too. I put a piece of parchment roughly 9"x 15" over the banneton, and an upside down dinner plate on that. Then invert the whole thing, slowly remove the banneton, score, and then use the ends of the parchment to lift the dough and lower it safely into the scorching hot Dutch oven. On with the hot lid and into the oven.
I pull the parchment out from under the loaf when I uncover after 20 minutes. The dough (or is it bread now?) is fully sprung and firm enough to hold its shape. I get 3 bakes out of a piece of parchment, then it's too brittle.
Works great, no burned fingers, no dropped loaves. Credit to Drogon on this forum for the idea, it's not mine I stole it.
Happy baking,
Tom
I've had good results skipping proofing altogether for very high hydration doughs (85%+) and baking it straight away..
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/52002/skipping-final-proofing