I've been baking the same loaf for a couple of years now with the flours as follows: 2.5 cup w wheat, 2.5 cup spelt and 1 cup bakers choice.
In addition, there are some mixed grains and seeds, wheat germ vital WG and about 1/2 cup turbinado sugar.
The loaf always comes out perfect and has been edible till it's moldy till recently. I purchased the ingredients in bulk from a respected natural foods distributer and sometime thereafter my issue has arisen.
My bread eats just as good as it always did for about 2 days and then it starts to smell like ?? (cooked rice that has been left out for days and is rotting). That is the only thing that I have smelled before that is like my issue. It still looks and feels great and shows no sign of mold.
I would be very grateful for any input as to why this may be happening and/or troubleshooting strategies to discover why.
Thank you
How moist and dense are your loaves? Are they well baked or moist and doughy in the middle?
They are fairly moist. I don't know the hydration % thing, but I can say that they are just past doughy in the middle but not quite doughy in the middle. Definitely moist though. I cook 1 lb 5 oz of dough, with steam for the first 7 minutes, for a total cooking time of 27 minutes.
If the bread is under baked and more moist in the centre then in a couple of days it'll turn rancid. Once I tried a whole grain einkorn and it didn't bake properly all the way through and after two days it smelled awful. Partly because it wasn't well risen and more dense. I'm not saying yours isn't well risen but if for some reason if it isn't baked properly all the way through and its doughy in the middle then that could be the cause.
Try making sure you're baking it all the way through. Then allowing it to cool properly before storing. If underbaked and then stored, or even not cooled properly, moisture will build up.
I will try adding a few minutes to the cooking time and see how it fares. Thanks for getting back to me
Let us know how it goes.
If not that then we can cross that off the list. But one step at a time. Best of luck.
I can't imagine the loaf is done. My usual enriched bread, at 1lb 7oz is baked at ~360℉ non-convection for 40--50 minutes, and I don't use sugar or whole grains that suck up water.
Another point is your bread keeper. It needs to be washed and thoroughly dried every other day as we move into summer's warmer temps and higher inside humidities.
My money's on under-baked loaves as the root problem.
cheers,
gary
Another vote for an incomplete bake being the problem. For an enriched bread (and this one does have sugar in it), an internal temperature of 195F would be desirable; perhaps even 200F. An instant read thermometer is your friend.
Paul
Thank you both, I will update my progress here over the next week as I go.
Much appreciated
Pieter