2 minute read
Feel Test
The Feel Test
From the moment we finished mixing, our dough has been inflating with gas. As we folded and shaped our dough, we organized our gluten so it would better hold gas, and maintain its shape during baking. When we bake, we want our dough to be fully inflated—all the way to the center of our loaves—but for our gluten
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to still be in charge of the situation.
In my experience, the best way to judge this is to press on the center of the loaves with a lightly floured hand. Push firmly but not aggressively. If we've shaped
our loaves properly, they should be able to handle this. As the center of the dough is pressed, the edges should billow outwards, like a water-balloon or over-stuffed pillow.
Pay careful attention to how much your dough resists your hand. The exterior of the dough will always feel soft, even when underproofed. To get the most lift during baking, we need to make sure that the center of the loaf feels aerated as well. If, when pressed, the dough feels significantly denser in the middle, then it isn't time to bake. But if the dough offers no resistance whatsoever, then you might be overproofing them, and
should bake immediately.
This is what it sounds like.
Poke your loaf. (Boooop!) Your finger should leave an imprint, but that imprint should gently bounce back and mostly disappear in a few seconds.
No finger impression:
Shows finger impression:
The gluten is still very taught from shaping. Your dough needs more time.
Bake immediately.
If you've performed these tests, and your loaves are fully risen, pillowy but secure, and can handle being poked around a little,
then it's time to get baking.
Setting up the Oven
There are many ways a home baker can set up their oven for bread, and some are more effective than others. In preparation for today’s bake, place one of your oven racks as close to the bottom of the oven as it will go, and, if you have a baking stone or Baking Steel, put it on that bottom rack.
On top of all that business, load your baking vessel into your big oven, and set the temperature to 500°F (260°C), for at least half an hour before you plan to bake.
I'm using a cast iron combo cooker—a skillet and saucier set that locks together—with the skillet half
on the bottom and the saucier used as a cover. A regular cast iron, stainless steel, or enameled Dutch oven will
work just as well.
Bread ovens are great at two things that home ovens aren’t: creating ambient heat, and retaining steam.
Baking our bread inside preheated Dutch ovens helps us as home bakers to address these concerns and
create more delicious bread at home.
The Main Event
With our ovens preheating, full of heavy stuff, and our yeast pre-gaming for their last hurrah, let's take a quick moment to assemble our bread-loading equipment and prepare ourselves to work fast.
Our Dutch ovens are going to be really hot, so start by
What will we need?
finding your oven mitts, and/or a large stack of dry
towels. These will help keep us from burning ourselves. I use a set of welding gloves because most oven mitts aren’t going to offer much at 500°F.
