Question related to plain old loaf bread (not SD)...the past few pan loaves I've made have had problems with the top cracking post-bake. It isn't captured very well in the pictures but as they cool I'm getting cracking in the crust which is fine imo with SD but not so much what I'm shooting for here. Curious if the temperature should be lower using the pans?
The top loaf was just a quick white bread 75% hydration, 2% salt, 1% instant yeast. The second was made today and I had an issue with my scale (i guess the ultimate excuse to get another) so I'm not sure of the hydration but I was planning on doing the FWSY poolish with 10% wheat (I used 10% wheat and another 10% whole spelt) and since I baked it in a pan I didn't bother with coating it with bran. I've been making mostly sourdoughs lately and seem to have underproofed today's bake a bit too much. The loaf had easily doubled after mixing so I pre-shaped, rested and shaped for final proof in a pan. The loaf was about 1-1/2" to 2" above the level of the pan when I put it in the oven. Both loaves were baked in pans on a stone. I used steam and baked at ~450f then dropped to 420f after ~10 minutes. Both loaves reached +190f interior.
Pretty sure the blowout is related to underproofing but I'd appreciate if someone could confirm. The reason I am curious is because I used a mixer for both loaves and also wonder if I may have overworked the dough as it was very tight and likely a lower hydration than the recipe was shooting for? Both loaves had good spring but only the second one (unknown hydration) had a seam blowout.
White loaf:
This is the crumb from the above loaf, you can tell I still have other issues as well.
Today's white/wheat/spelt blowout:
This is the crumb from the second loaf. It's not so much out of focus as it just lacks proper structure. One final note is that the smell is nice but I definitely missed the hydration on the low side--I just made toast and it toasted too quickly. FWIW, the bread actually tastes pretty decent and I believe I could easily up the wheat and the spelt...I just need to learn to bake somewhere along the way;-)
Advice?
Thank you!
Hi Jimt I really cant see a lot wrong with either of your loaves, you will get a bit of a stretch mark tear where the loaf has moved up the side of the pan as in pic 3. you can still slash non s/d breads but usually best done at 3/4 proof well before going to the oven as with farmhouse style loaves . I wouldn't call that a blow out though..
How long was your bulk fermentation period, using 1% yeast I would assume about 2 hours, the loaf isn't showing any signs of sagging over the top of the pan which is good, the inside looks fine just a few uneven holes which is likely to be degassing and handing up the loaf prior to final shaping. the cracking of the top crust is a feature that most people aspire to often associated with the loaf singing or cracking as the crust contracts in the cooling process and comes from a thin crisp crust again a desirable trait.
I have never taken the inside temperature of any of my breads but was taught that a loaf of bread is considered baked when the centre of the loaf reaches 212 deg F (the boiling point of water)
kind regards Derek
I believe the bulk was ~3 hours w/ room temperature right around 70f. I believe I may try to go a bit shorter bulk next time and give them a slash at the 3/4 proof mark suggested. The loaves are not bad but still need work and I'm just trying to find my way through the difficulties.
Thanks again for your advice!
Jim
hello jimt,
imho this crackling is a sign of quality and a demonstration for a well baked bread, look here: http://www.sourdoughlibrary.org/bread-crust-cracks/
if you dont want to have cracks on your bread then do the opposite to the tips there on SL.
happy baking
rudi
Thanks for the link rudi, seems to be a nice source of information, I'll have to spend a bit of time digging around.
As to the cracking, I do enjoy it on my SD, so maybe just need to get over it:-)
Thanks again, I'm going to bake a few tomorrow and see what happens.
Hi Jimt here is a picture of a loaf I made yesterday that shows good cracking of the crust, it is screaming out
" I'm Crunchy, get the bread knife out and you will see"
That makes me want to bake some SD this week and work on my 'cracking'. Curious what you use to coat the bottom of the loaf? Looks like a light layer of cornmeal from loading on a stone? I ask because I usually use oat bran and while I like it, I'd like to have a different option...or two:-)
sorry for the delay in my response, the Bannetons were dusted with semolina rincinta flour because I had some handy other wise if I am needing to slide dough pieces off of a peel after being proofed on a couch then I use a coarser semolina as this assists the sliding ability of the dough piece.
regards Derek