From: Maximilian Friedersdorff Date: Mon, 28 Oct 2019 22:20:46 +0000 (+0000) Subject: Add bread baking experiments X-Git-Url: https://git.friedersdorff.com/?p=max%2Fnotes.git;a=commitdiff_plain;h=23e7e8d118238b00a682031f24650c2c169511d5 Add bread baking experiments --- diff --git a/content/recipes/experiments_bread_baking.rst b/content/recipes/experiments_bread_baking.rst new file mode 100644 index 0000000..c261984 --- /dev/null +++ b/content/recipes/experiments_bread_baking.rst @@ -0,0 +1,284 @@ +Experiments in Baking Black Bread (Schwarzbrot) +=============================================== + +:date: 2019-10-28 21:02 +:category: Recipes +:tags: sourdough, bread, rye +:authors: Maximilian Friedersdorff +:summary: Iteratievly figuring out how to bake Schwarzbrot +:status: draft + +Motivation +---------- +I want to bake Schwarzbrot, but I didn't (and still don't) have a recipe. I +knew that eventually I wanted to bake a bread containing only rye, water and +salt, that it should be dark in colour, dense and containing substantial +amounts of unmilled grain. I also wanted to avoid kneading the dough. + +Definition of Terms +------------------- + +Schwarzbrot +''''''''''' +I use the german word Schwarzbrot, literally 'black bread', to describe this +type of bread. By that word I mean a bread of the type described above. + +Sponge +'''''' +This is the first stage of the dough. It generally contains all of the liquid +ingredients, half the flour and is left to ferment over night. + +Early Breads +------------ +I started by baking breads containing some significant fraction of non rye +flour, mostly because I was afraid of dealing with the mostly unpleasant +consistency of a pure rye flour. + +I was also adding large amounts of seeds of various types. +Bread 1 +------- + +Sponge +'''''' +* 900ml Water +* 100g Barley +* 100g Buckwheat +* 150g Spelt Flour +* 200g Rye Flour +* Sourdough Started +* 18g Salt + +Dough +''''' +* Sponge +* 50g Seeds +* 50g Sunflour Seeds +* 30g Linseed +* 20g Sesame Seeds +* 20g Poppy Seeds +* 100g Porridge Oats +* 300g Rye Flour + +Method +'''''' +I made the sponge the night before baking and the dough the next morning. The +consistency was something like thick porridge: Stiring is possible if hard, +kneading would have been impossible. I transferred the dough into *ungreased* +tins immediately thereafter and baked the bread at 200C for 1 hour after +coming home from work that evening. + +Notes +''''' +* The dough was a little dry and hard to mix +* The bread did not rise sufficiently +* I baked the bread too long +* It was well received at work. After sitting for a view days it was quite + tasty. + +Bread 2 +------- +As bread 1, but with 60ml additional water and baked for 50m instead of 1 hour. +The consistency of the dough was better and the baked bread was not so dry. + +I had great difficulty in removing the bread from the tins and the crust may +have separated in a few places on the bottom. + +Cheaper Breads +-------------- +I realised now that the bread I was baking was relatively expensive. All the +seeds, especially the pumpkin seeds, really drove up the cost. When baked +it was hard to tell the difference between them anyway. + +Bread 3 +------- +Sponge +'''''' +* 900ml Water +* 450g Rye Flour +* Sourdough Started +* 25g Salt +Dough +''''' +* Sponge +* 450g Rye Flour +Notes +''''' +The first all rye bread that I tried to make. This turned out very sour and +quite dark in colour. I theorised that the whole grains I was adding +previously had a moderating effect on the acidity. + +As with previous breads, there was not enough dough to fill up the forms. + +Bread 4 +------- +Sponge +'''''' +* 1100ml Water +* 250g Barley, soaked for 36h +* 300g Rye Flour +* 30g Salt +* Sourdough Starter +Dough +''''' +* Sponge +* 550g Rye Flour + +Notes +''''' +I wrote this at the time: + +"A dough consistency such as to maximise hardship in transferring dough to +forms. Maybe try wetter next time!" + +The dough was much to dry (at 100% hydradition!), this was exactly the +consistency I was afraid of. If I remember correctly, once baked this one +was pretty good. + +Bread 5 +------- +Sponge +'''''' +* 1200ml Water +* 180g Barley +* 380g Rye Flour +* 30g Salt +* Sourdough +Dough +''''' +* Sponge +* 550g Rye Flour + +Notes +''''' +The bread fell partially apart when I tried to remove it from the form. It +didn't stick to the form, it just fell apart. At the time I thought this +was because I didn't bake it for long enough. It was very soft and extremely +wet. + +Bread 6 +------- +Sponge +'''''' +* 1200ml Water +* 250g barley +* 300g Rye Flour +* 30g Salt +* Sourdough + +Dough +''''' +* 550g Rye Flour + +Baking +'''''' +#. 60m at 200C +#. 10m with the oven turned off but cooling down +#. 5m in the form outside of the oven + +Notes +''''' +The rest period after baking allows the bread to firm up somewhat before +removing it from the tins. This together with generously oiling and flouring +the tins before adding the dough meant that the bread did not fall apart on +removeal (yay). + +Sometime about now I realised that the consistency of the bread changes +dramatically in between removal from the oven and when it is cold. Immediately +after removal it is like a wet sponge: very soft and extremely wet. I +thought that it was underbaked and tried baking it longer with no success. A +few attempts later I realised that that is just how it is. After cooling down +the crust is still crisp and the bread is firm. + +Bread 7 +------- +Baking +'''''' +#. Preheat to 200C +#. 80m at 180C +#. 10m with the oven turned off +#. 5m in the form outside of the oven + +Notes +''''' +Removal from the form was easy and the bread was intact. It also tasted good +and looked good from the outside. However the crust had substantially +detached from the crumb at the top. This was a trend that had been getting +worse in the last few baking attempts. I read this might be because the top +crust was drying while proofing and trapping a large gas bubble. + +New Flour Mill +-------------- +At this point I bought a flour mill. This allowed me to use rye grain that +I could buy in bulk for half the price of the flour. It being whole grain, I +could easily buy 25kg. This will take me 3-4 months to use up during which +time an equivalent quantity of flour would have gone off. + +It also allows me to bake a pure rye bread with whole grains, have better +control over the fineness of the flour and produce malted rye. + +Bread 8 +------- +Sponge +'''''' +* 1200ml Water +* 440g very coarse rye grist +* 100g fine rye flour +* 30g Salt +* Sourdough Starter + +Dough +''''' +* 540g fine rye flour +* 10g rye malt + +Baking +'''''' +#. 80m at 180C +#. 10m with the oven turned off +#. 5m in the form outside of the oven + +Notes +''''' +I did not add any whole rye grain in this one. I was afraid that the grain +would not soak sufficiently. This turned out to be an unfounded fear. Also, +milling this much fine flour was a lot of work (it's a manual mill). The +next recipes need to be made with coarser flour. + +I reduced the problems of the detaching crust by cutting into the top surface +after baking for a few minutes. This reduced but did not eliminate the issue. + +Bread 9 +------- +Sponge +'''''' +* 200g Rye Grain +* 200g Rye Grist +* 20g Salt +* Sourdough Starter + +Dough +''''' +* 10g Rye Malt +* 320g Schrot Roggen + +Method +'''''' +I have started leaving the sponge from the night before baking until the time +when I come home from work the next day. + +Baking +'''''' +#. Cut the top surface deeply +#. 90m at 160C +#. Slowly cooling down thing as previous + +Notes +''''' + +Cutting the top surface quite deeply really helped the problems of the +detaching crust here. This one turned out great. However: + +* The dough was a little on the wet side before baking. Next time I should + try a 100% hydration dough. It could also be baked a little longer. +* The whole rye grain was a little on the crunchy side, especially within + the first 36 hours after baking. This improved with time.