I've been baking sourdough for about 2 years now and I'm stuck on this one thing. Cold fermentation in the fridge for 24 hours gives me a much more open crumb and deeper tang, but it takes up fridge space and I have to plan ahead. Same-day dough at room temp saves time but my loaves come out denser and the flavor is flat (like, noticeably flat). I timed it last batch and the cold fermentation added 18 extra hours of waiting. Which side do you guys land on? Do you think the extra wait is worth it for the flavor payoff or is same-day just fine for everyday baking?
For months my loaves would dome up nice then sink when I took them out. I tried everything. More kneading, less water, different pans. Turned out I was opening the oven door to check on them about 10 minutes in. That blast of cool air was killing the rise. Now I just peek through the glass and leave it shut the whole 35 minutes. Anyone else fight with deflated loaves for way too long?
My buddy Eric kept going on about his fancy whisk from a bakery in Portland last summer, and I told him it was just a fancy stick. Then I tried making a 80% hydration sourdough and the dough hook on my mixer just spun it in circles. That cheap little wire thing mixed it smooth in about 45 seconds with zero sticking. Anyone else swear by a tool that looks like it belongs in a garage?
She said I was beating the life out of the dough and that bread is softer when you're gentle with it. I still think about that whenever I'm folding dough, has anyone else gotten advice like that from a stranger that just stuck?
I was making two pies for a family dinner and ran out of butter halfway through, so I used shortening for the second one. The butter crust flaked up nice and golden, but the shortening one held its shape way better and didn't shrink at all. Which do you usually reach for when you need a reliable crust?
I bought this fancy pasta roller and meat grinder kit for my KitchenAid, thinking it would be my gateway to homemade everything. The pasta roller stuck after three uses and the grinder jammed on chicken. Cost me $300 and now I'm back to using a hand crank model I got for $20 at a yard sale. The worst part is customer service told me it's normal wear and tear. Anyone else had luck with a specific brand of attachments that actually hold up?
I picked up a fancy rattan banneton from a specialty baking shop downtown about 6 months ago. Cost me $60 and I figured it would be the key to better artisan loaves. Honestly it just made my dough stick like crazy no matter how much flour or rice flour I dusted it with. I went back to using a simple mixing bowl with a floured tea towel and my loaves come out way better. The shape is fine, the crust is fine, but that fancy basket just sits in my cupboard now. Has anyone else had luck with those things or am I the only one who got burned?
The plastic kept holding onto faint vinegar odors no matter how much I scrubbed, but the ceramic kept the starter clean and active with no off flavors has anyone else noticed their tools affecting the final taste of their bread?
I spent 3 straight weekends trying to get my sourdough to stop being a flat, gummy mess. Turns out I was rushing the bulk fermentation at room temp. After a tip from the San Francisco Baking Institute website, I tried an overnight cold ferment in the fridge for about 12 hours. Huge difference in oven spring and crumb. Any of you folks tried different timing tricks for bulk fermentation?
I was making baguettes last Saturday. Couldn't decide if I should use the convection setting or just plain bake. Went with regular bake at 475. Came out with a better crust, crumb was softer too. Anyone else have a preference for crusty bread?
At a trade show last month, a big supplier told another baker he dilutes his vanilla with synthetic stuff. I checked my batch against a pure bottle I bought in Mexico and the taste was completely flat. Anyone else run into this lately?
Was pulling a batch of baguettes out of the deck oven at 4am and my oven mitt slipped. Grabbed the hot edge of the sheet tray barehanded for a split second. Blisters are still healing. Been doing this 12 years and I got sloppy because I was rushing. Anyone else got a burn story that made them slow down?
I've been using the same recipe for 2 years and never had this issue before. Any idea what could cause them to not puff up in the oven?
I always thought you had to pound dough into submission to get a good crumb, so I would knead for a solid 10 minutes like I was angry at it. She just laughed and showed me a light stretch and fold method that took maybe 3 minutes total, and my rolls came out pillow soft for the first time. What baking habit did you hold onto forever that turned out to be totally backwards?
Pulled it out yesterday and it was straight up green on top. No amount of feeding was gonna fix that. Anyone else ever lost a starter to neglect and had to start from scratch?
Honestly I've been making the same basic white loaf for like 2 years and thought it was fine. Last week my mom came over took one look at it and said 'honey that looks like a sad potato.' She told me I wasn't letting it proof long enough and my oven temp was too low. I tried her advice added an extra 45 minutes of proofing time and cranked the heat up to 400. The loaf came out golden and tall and actually looked like bread for once. Has anyone else had a family member call out a baking flaw you didn't even notice?
Last week I was halfway through mixing dough for a big order of cinnamon rolls at my shop and realized my yeast packet expired 3 months ago. I almost threw it out but figured I'd test it in warm water with a pinch of sugar first. It barely foamed after 10 minutes so I added a second packet of fresh yeast and let it sit another 5 minutes - that did the trick and the rolls came out perfect. Any bakers here ever salvage old yeast or do you just pitch it?
I moved from Denver to Seattle last year and brought my 3 year old starter with me. In Denver it would double in 4 hours flat with that dry air and high altitude. Here in Seattle it takes 8 hours minimum and the texture is way more slack. Some bakers say the local microbes adapt and change the flavor over time, while others think it's just the humidity affecting fermentation speed. Has anyone else moved locations and noticed their starter behave completely differently?
Last Tuesday I got behind on pastry prep at the diner and threw a tray of croissants into the proofer around 2:30 in the morning. Forgot about them while I was helping the morning guy break down cases of eggs. By the time I checked at 4, they had doubled in size and turned into these weird bloated dough balloons that looked like they were about to pop. I tried baking them anyway and they came out flat and greasy with this weird yeasty taste. Had to throw the whole batch in the trash and start over. My boss walked in right as I was scraping melted butter off the sheet pans. He just laughed and said I should set a timer next time. Has anyone else dealt with proofing disasters when you are running on no sleep?
Last Saturday I was making 4 dozen cookies for a catering order and my oven was running 50 degrees hotter than the dial said. I only noticed because the first tray burned in 8 minutes flat. Ruined half the batch before I grabbed my trusty Thermapen to check. Anyone else had a surprise oven calibration issue mess up a big order?
My KitchenAid motor burned out halfway through mixing a double batch of sourdough last weekend. Had to finish by hand for 20 minutes, and my arms are still sore. Anyone else keep a spare mixer around just in case?
Last Tuesday I tried to make crackers with my starter discard like everyone suggests. They came out like hockey pucks and I almost threw the whole jar away. Then I talked to this old baker at the farmers market who said discard works better if you let it ferment 12 hours first instead of using it right away. I tried that on Friday with some parmesan and rosemary and they actually turned out great. Has anyone else had bad luck with discard recipes and found a trick that saved them?
She told me she's kept it alive since 1972 just by feeding it every week, no fancy fridge or special flour. I've been overcomplicating my starter with hydration ratios and exact temps, but hers has been making perfect bread for 50 years with just water and all-purpose. Any other bakers here use a really simple method that works better than the complex stuff?
My grandma swore I didn't need to spend money on a fancy digital oven thermometer. She said just put a cheap metal one in there and adjust the dial until it reads 350. I tried that for a month and my sourdough loaves kept coming out with gummy centers and burnt crusts. Finally I bought a ThermoPro for like 15 bucks and found out my oven runs 40 degrees hotter than the dial says. Now I'm wondering if grandmothers just get used to eating mediocre bread or if there's some secret technique I'm missing. Anyone else have a family member give you baking advice that was totally wrong?