Loaf 78 – Sourdough w/Flour Variation
In preparing to make another batch of Tartine sourdough I reread the recipe in the book. He recommends using bread flour rather than the all purpose flour I’ve been using (not sure how I missed that the prior ten times I read this). Bread flour has a couple percent more gluten, which helps it stretch more when rising.
I fed the levain the night before and it grew properly by the next morning. I began mixing at 9:15am, and didn’t bake until 7:10pm. The bread usually proofs for about four hours, but it took five and a half this time to see it ready. The kitchen was cool at 68°, I’m not sure if that was the reason.
As I have done recently, I cooked one loaf in the dutch oven and the other in my regular oven, hearth style. The dutch oven loaf came out looking nicer with a crispier crust – typical.
I didn’t see any significant difference between these loaves with bread flour and my prior loaves with all purpose flour. It may be worth doing a real A-B comparison sometime, though.
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- Pre-proofed dough.
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- Post-rise dough.
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- Oven loaf ready to bake.
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- Dutch oven loaf ready to bake.
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- Dutch oven, left; regular oven, right.
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- Dutch oven crumb.
