Hey Gang,
Ok, so (like many others right now) I need your help. I can't figure out my crumb of late... There are huge holes/uneven crumb and I suspect I might be over/under developing my dough. I've been baking sourdough for years now, and have been generally been happy with my bakes. Don't get me wrong, it's still great bread, but I'm a perfectionist and want to solve this. I haven't changed anything about my baking schedule, so this is a bit of a mystery to me. I tried de-gassing my dough before the final shape on my latest bake too, and it didn't really seem to do anything. I've described my process and attached pictures of the problem bakes, as well as a successful one, below.
Any help is greatly appreciated! I've used this site as a resource for years and am so appreciative of it's existence and the combined knowledge here.
Process:
93% Bread Flour, 7% Rye Flour, 78% H20, 2% Salt, 20% Fully Hydrated Starter
I keep everything in a proofer and maintain a dough temp of 79º the entire proof.
- 30 min autolyse (all flour and water), mix in starter, let sit for another 30 min
- 5 coil folds every 30 minutes, spaced out over 2 hours
- 1 hour rest (bringing total time of proof to 3.5 hours)
- Pre-shape into boules, rest for 30 minutes
- Final shape using a stitching method, placed immediately into bannetons and then into the fridge
- 20 hour cold proof in a 35º fridge
- Baked right from fridge in a 500º dutch oven for 20 minutes covered, 450º for 20 min uncovered
Most recent crumb issue bakes:
Previously Successful Bake using the same process
You have a high hydration dough so I think it looks as is to be expected.
78% water and if the starter is 100% hydrated you total will if a calculate it right gives 80% hydration dough.
BTW I think it looks like a great loaf to me.
Thanks. Maybe I'll ease up a bit on the hydration on my next bake to see if I can get some more evenness in the crumb. I'm happy with the bread, but I still want to use it for sandwiches!
You can also try gently degassing. Have been experimenting with degassing and as many have noted it definitely helps even out the crumb when done right.
Good loaf for instagram. Marmalade on your pyjamas is a small sacrifice for internet glory surely?
Seriously, looks fine but I too would have issues with holes that big for an every day loaf. If anything, it would be over-proofing I think so in addition to lowering the hydration you could try reducing the amount of pre-fermented flour.
Possibly in these strange times something happened in your supply chain and your flour requires less water now?
The ambient temperature has changed due to time of year! Your yeast may be overactive, perhaps adding too much sugar and its going nuts. As you are adding your starter later in the process, alter the way you work it through as it may not be even throughout.
Im a novice. Feel free to shred my comments.