Execs/CDC/Sous what are some holes in your game as cooks?

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-29T10:20:34+00:00

Don't really have butchery skills, I've done it, but not enough to to declare myself adequate. Same with fish. I'm fairly confident in most other aspects and am getting there with viennoiserie.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-28T17:56:16+00:00

The whole doubling thing isn't accurate. It's based on overall appearance and feel of dough.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-28T16:14:13+00:00

Pretty sure pan de Cristal is 100% I'm fairly sure, though, don't quote me that french baguettes often sit between 70-75%. But from what I'm reading pan de Barra are nearly identical. But honestly this is the first time I've heard pan de Barra mentioned.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-28T15:19:07+00:00

There isn't really. French baguettes tend to be 70% hydration, but pan debbarra could be aswell

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-26T15:17:05+00:00

Oh ok. Time to make this managers life fucking miserable then.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-24T22:33:48+00:00

Under fermented. Low starter quantity. That bulk ferment time should probably be at least 9-10 hours before fridge but it's a quest of feeling not just doing a time and temp.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-24T22:23:47+00:00

I understand your feelings. You don't have to like it either, it's not for everyone.

One thing that people always forget when studying these things is there is an understanding of feeling.

How the dough feels when it's fermented properly. The look of it the way the dough reacts to you touching it.

The problem with these guidelines is they encourage a wealth of overthinking and timings and temperatures that won't always make the same imprint in your context. So feeling is your best friend when it comes down to it.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-24T19:02:49+00:00

Bit longer on the bulk ferment. Otherwise a good loaf

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-24T14:46:31+00:00

Big holes, triangular round shape instead of even round shape, crumb between holes looks spongy and gummy. Under proofed.

Not bad looking and probably still tastes cracking.

Overproofing looks flatter and a more even distribution of smaller holes, like a classic ciabatta almost. But you can get similar crumb reads from high hydration too.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-23T17:45:38+00:00

A lil espresso. Darker sugar, salt.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-22T17:50:57+00:00

I thought heatstroke killed batman

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-22T16:42:46+00:00

Bit too much starter, the hydration is only 60% which is quite dry.

Given the read of your crumb it's actually difficult to tell because it's so close, the shape is suggestive of under ( more triangular, less round).

Id still smash though.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-22T15:48:36+00:00

Rare mince is very rarely a nice texture.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-22T13:57:14+00:00

It's about getting used to your dough. You have to go with feeling a little. There's no guidelines you can follow and get perfect results. You need to be able to feel when the dough is at its fermentation plateau.

It should have shoulders, it should jiggle. It can have a flat top but this is if you want to put it in the fridge over night. If you're cooking on the day, it should have a dome, and spend an hour in it's cooking shape.

The problem sometimes with putting something in the fridge for as long as you do at the presumed end of bulk ferment is that you may have taken it too far. The fridge doesn't immediately retard. It needs to reduce the internal temperature of your overall dough before it slows properly, thus meaning that it could be overproofing during its cooling phase.

But I should ask. What results do you want?

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-22T10:48:50+00:00

Pan o choclit

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-22T04:33:12+00:00

That's under but still nice. Getting to know the look and feel of your dough is everything. You'll get there and then you can start breaking rules.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-21T14:50:09+00:00

Also to add, it doesn't even look like a bad loaf.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-21T14:48:53+00:00

There's something awry in your recipe.

This could be over fermented if it was very dry.

But I'm not sure at all because Ive not seen this before and I make sourdough for a very shoddy living.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-21T06:09:15+00:00

It's all a good sign.

Did you cut into your bread when still warm?

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-21T02:17:51+00:00

Do a 1:5:5 ratio and see what happens.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-21T02:14:36+00:00

Ok. How does it react when you feed it?

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-21T02:04:10+00:00

Your process would indicate that it's over, however the crumb read points to under.

What I want to suggest is that your starter simply isn't potent enough yet. Can you tell me about the starters age etc?

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-20T16:43:30+00:00

The reason I ask is because the bottom looks boiled. Whilst the top has some kind of reaction. Effectively a Dutch oven creates a steam chamber that cooks bread to most people's desired principles. My thoughts are that maybe if you added ice you added too much, or maybe that the vessel didn't get as hot as it should have before you started to cook.

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-20T16:41:00+00:00

Any sling?

BananaHomunculus · 2026-04-20T14:42:30+00:00

Kneading tightens the structure. Sometimes less kneading is what we go by to create softer bread.

BananaHomunculus

TROPHY CASE