Hi,
I have been making sourdough on and off for years but can't seem to get the rise that I need.
I follow the recipe of pane francese 1 and the instructions from slash and burn beginners blog.
My starter is my own and I discard half and then add equal quantities of flour and water until it is really active (usually 3 feeds over 2 days).
The bread tastes great and toasts well but you couldn't eat it in a sandwich as it is really dense/heavy.
To make the bread I use 180g starter, 320g water, 450g white strong organic flour, 50g rye flour, 10g salt. I start by giving it a quick knead every 10 mintes or so as in the recipe and then fold every hour or so for about 4 hours and then put into banneton for 3 hours or so and then bake in oven on pizza stone (spray with water) for about 35-40mins at about 190oC. I take it out and let it go cold before cutting it.
Any suggestions please?
Thanks in advance
Sally
Replies
The formula is at 64% hydration which is lower that what I make bread. The first thing I would try is more water. I make my bread at about 67% hydration. The higher the hydration the more open the bread will be.
Hi,
I would by no means call myself an expert however I use the Bourke St Bakery recipes and their basic sour dough one calls for way more starter than you are using...
405 g white starter
765 g plain organic flour
400 mL water
20 g sea salt
I would imagine this could make a significant difference to the amount of rising going on....good luck!
In addition to changing the hydration as already suggested, I would do the folds a few times within the first two hours and then set to do the first rise. I would definitely use less starter, maybe half or much less depending on how long you want to stretch out the timing of the first rise fermentation period. I would then either refridgerate the dough for up to 30 hours or bake after at least an hour of a post-shaping final rise. If you are much more scientifically-minded than I am, you try these one at a time to determine what works. Try the hydration adjustment first.
Hello salsaff,
I use the pane francesa recipe as my standard recipe for everyday bread. I put up a photo blog showing the various stages that might give you a feel for what to look for. As an aside, I use wholemeal wheat rather than rye which will make a small difference in the characteristics of the dough compared to the rye that you use.
http://sourdough.com/blog/one-way-make-loaf-bread
Good luck with your projects and let us know how you go.
Farinam
Thanks everyone for your help - I will try a bit more water and stretch out the dough a bit more
Will let you know how i go
Thanks so much
Thanks so much! I increased the water to 370g and used mostly rye (because that is what I had left) and I stretched it out a bit more for the folds - thanks farinam I saw that from your post.
I am sooooooo happy and proud of myself and I can't wait to get back in a back another one. Love it!
:)
Sally