I think its to do with the simplicity of four ingredients, the fact that it is 'alive', and also that it grows of its own accord. Of course when its done it looks nice and you can eat it! Also if you make it rubbish, it's still good. So a little simple recipe follows, this is the most simple, easiest to handle, guaranteed recipe....later I'll do some variations so this is the least good bread!!
heres some
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| Beautiful bread using this recipe and method |
The numbers are:
500g bread flour
300g water
8g easy blend yeast
8g salt
Aha! you say, thats the same recipe that everyone has! Well no s**t, cos it makes bread. However I have followed thirty recipes from all sorts of well known books, and like I do with lots of things, analysed and analysed, and achieved paralysis by analysis! So got no-where fast. The secret, and its the same with meat curing and air drying, is confidence.
Now, I behave like I don't care when I'm making dough, so the dough doesn't fight back. I almost sneak up on the dough, catch it unawares with my nonchalance, and it in return, it forgets to be difficult! Now you haven't read that in any TV chefs baking book! (I know, I've read them all!)
Its difficult to explain, and it does mean you will have to make a dozen loaves to get the feel, but trust me, approach it matter of factly, handle it like you know what you are doing, and the result will be good.
If you watch the TV chefs, some of them are just presenters, not chefs at all, some, and I am hoping not to give anyone a heart attack with this revelation, are just there because they look good! (I would be in that category). Everyone ok? So how can you tell?
Just watch they way they handle the food and knives etc...a sous chef working 10 services a week, will grab hold of whatever it is and you can tell by looking that they know what they are doing. I think its called experience. Practise gives you experience.
So it is with bread. When you mix the ingredients together, do it vigorously as if you are in a hurry, that way the dough wont stick to your hands, same with kneading...vigorous..
Ok so to the bread, take your ingredients and mix them together, except the salt! Just add the water last and try to make sure its warm....just warm, no need to be more specific, if your can put your hand in it and leave there then its not too warm, if its too cold it just takes longer, and doesn't harm anything.
You can mix in a bowl, or in a food processor. The processor is quicker and also starts the kneading off, but sometimes I don't like to use it.
Ok you now have a rough looking dough, tip it onto the work top. Remember no salt yet...
Work the dough by kneading, stretching and folding. It will be patchy at first, some bits floury, some bits wet, but it only takes a minute or two to start to come together.
Then as you knead, it begins to look like proper dough....keep going....its now smooth and not sticking to your hands (as long as you are vigorous), but then....it starts getting sticky again. This is the gluten forming and showing that you are working the dough correctly.
Because we havent added the salt, the dough kneads up quicker, the salt tightens the dough, but is essential for taste. So once it starts to be too sticky, have your salt weighed out, stretch the dough and add about a quarter of the salt. Knead for a minute, stretch the dough out again and add the next quarter and so on. You will feel the dough tightening, and it will become less sticky. Nearly there..once all the salt is in knead for another two minutes to make sure its incorporated properly.
Tip number 1..when kneading use a clock. If you think you have kneaded for 5 minutes you have probably only done it for one! I dont know why but kneading alters the way the mind perceives time. Trust me on this and test yourself...this may explain why your bread isn't great. So altogether it takes about ten minutes to knead.
Put the dough back in the mixing bowl you started with, cover with clingfilm (or a plate if you dont want to waste clingfilm) and wait till its doubled in size.
Once its ready, scrape it out carefully onto a floured surface, and flatten it a bit. Then just grab a bit on the outside edge and fold it into the middle, rotate a little and do it again, til you have a nice tight ball. then turn it over (smooth side up now) and try to slide the edges of your hands under it three or four times, once again tightening the surface. I then place it smooth side down into a floured proving basket. Cover it and leave it to double again.
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| proving basket |
Put the oven on now, about 220 centigrade.
Can we talk about the baking part? A massive factor in how your bread turns out is in the baking. For crusty bread, I have tried everything, fan oven, conventional, tray of ice cubes, tray of boiling water, misting the oven with a water sprayer etc etc. The moisture is supposed to make the bread crust crisp, and it will in a commercial bread oven. The trouble with that and with most fan ovens is that the fan expells the moisture very quickly so it doesn't work.
Commercial ovens inject steam, but we cant achieve that at home.......but I have a solution......
The best way to make crusty (and I mean crisp not thick) loaves, is to cook the bread inside its own secondary oven. The best way is in a baking cloche, but almost as good is in a large casserole dish with a lid. I suspect that its to do with the ratio of bread to air and that the moisture in there can't escape.
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| Cloche and baking sheet |
So take your casserole with lid (Le Crueset type of thing), get a piece of silicon baking sheet and cut a circle thats slightly bigger than the base, and leave a flap one one side about four inches to act as a lifting point. It should look like the silhouette of a capital 'Q' . Then make some small cuts in the edge an inch deep so when it goes in the pot it bends up at the edges and doesn't form creases. It needs to go up the sides abit, cos if the dough touches the pot and sticks.....there'll be tears! Put this on your work top and stick the pot in the oven to heat up.
Once your bread has risen, put the silicon on top and then turn it upside down so the risen dough is on the silicon on the work top. Take a sharp knife (or bread knife) and slash the top. You decide on the pattern, but it does help the bread to rise in the oven and also makes it looks pretty.
Take your now hot casserole out of the oven, shut the oven door quickly, then take the lid off place the dough inside on the sillicon sheet, being careful not to burn yourself on the sides, replace the lid, and whack it back in the oven.
Do not touch it now for a minimum of 20 minutes, and when you get used to the process the less you disturb it the better. If you take the lid off the steam escapes and you lose the benefit, but when you do this for the first time you may need to adapt depending on your oven and pot size etc.
I normally do 20 mins at 220, then 10 minutes at 180c, then take the lid off for a darker crust or leave it on for a lighter colour and leave it another 10 minutes..et voila
Turn your loaf out onto a cooling rack, and leave it to cool......do not listen to anyone who tells you to cut it warm cos warm bread tastes best....it is utter rubbish. If you eat it warm from the oven it will be too wet and doughy and will give you indigestion. You need to let it cool and therefore dry out with the residual heat.
You should be able to hear it crack as it cools.......man the waiting is terrible.....I'll just get some oil and balsamic together....maybe get the butter out of the fridge to warm up.....
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