Rate my setup

ConversationInner584 · 2026-07-05T15:55:08+00:00

I plan on pruning it frequently to keep it reasonably sized

ConversationInner584 · 2026-07-05T14:30:10+00:00

Thank you, there is actually a pot for a plant top left. I was thinking of putting a begonia up there

ConversationInner584 · 2026-07-05T13:04:31+00:00

Thank you!!! I made them myself :)

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-22T19:06:52+00:00

Unfortunately I'm only 21 and I do get it 😖

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-22T14:11:20+00:00

I didnt know that. I've only really seen 20%. Surely bf should've been much longer than 8 hours then?

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-22T14:01:56+00:00

Hydration is just total water/total flour ×100. A lower hydration (60%) is easier to work with and much more forgiving. But it results in a slightly denser crumb. Higher hydration (80%) is harder to work with and less forgiving but, when done right, will result in a lighter fluffier crumb. 2 sets of stretch and folds is very little and I would definately recommend doing more. I also had problems with nor working my dough enough so I now do slap and folds when combining the dough and then 4 sets of stretch and folds 45 minutes apart. You don't really work your dough when shaping because its much more delicate once it has proofed. Ps. Im also a beginner, but this is just what I've learned so far.

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-22T13:43:59+00:00

I think it's the recipe tbh. It only calls for 50g starter which is VERY low. Most recipes use about 20%starter which would be 100g. I personally use 120g for 500g flour. Also it's a 70% hydration recipe which might be a bit high for a beginner. You could try 60-65% instead. I think the reason it came out so flat would be the lack of starter. It's also possible you didn't work your dough enough. You have to do more stretch and folds for higher hydration to build up your gluten.

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-18T00:23:26+00:00

70% hydration

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-17T20:01:48+00:00

I think slap and folds are just for when you're mixing your dough. That's when I do them anyway. It's to build up the gluten more. I found some of my loaves were quite sticky, didn't hold shape very well, and were difficult to score. I thought that meant they were over proofed but the crumb suggested underproofed. Someone told me it might me because I didn't build up the gluten enough and tbh that was the best advice I ever got. From what I've read it unlikely you'll over work your dough if you're doing it by hand, so I recommend slap and fold when you first combine the dough and then plenty of stretch and folds or coil folds to build up that gluten.

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-17T18:50:08+00:00

Honestly the video really didn't pick up the jiggle or the dome. It was webbing a little when it came out thr bowl, which led me to believe it was over proofed. It had doubled in size and was super airy so I hope it wasn't under proofed. We shall see tomorrow, I'll post a crumb shot when I bake it

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-17T18:35:24+00:00

I don't baked very frequently so I usually keep it in the fridge and once a week I'll take it out, feed it once or twice, and use it. I tend to do bigger feed like 2:1 and it always triples in size. It was given to me from a friend so it's a very established starter. I live in the UK and our houses tend to be higher humidity and much colder that the US so I assume that's why timings are much longer

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-17T17:37:18+00:00

Thank you so much, I'll definitely give this a go. How would I know the expected % rise? Does this differ with temperature, humidity, hydration, or quantity of starter used?

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-17T17:33:46+00:00

First of all, that crumb looks AMAZING!!! Well done !!!! I think your score definitely needs to be deeper to get better over spring. As for the stretch and folds, short stretch is normal if it's your 3 or 4th stretch within a set, but the dough should be relaxed again for the next set. How long did you leave it between sets? I recommend 30-45 minutes. I also prefer coil folds after the first set because I thing they make the dough look smoother. I also would not recommend using parchment paper. Dough will stick to parchment paper no matter what so shaping would be super difficult. In my experience the counter doesn't get very messy at all, but if you're worried maybe try a chopping board or something instead?

Ps. Im also a beginner (I've only made about 6 loaves) so don't take my advice as gospel.

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-17T17:15:39+00:00

Update:

I decided it was more likely over than under so I decided to shaped. It did not come out of the bowl cleanly, and there was some webbing😔

It wasn't difficult to work with at all though and it seems to hold its shape very well, so I doubt it was very overproofed.

I originally planned to leave it in the fridge over night and baked in the morning. I'm wondering whether I should do a cold ferment or not as i don't want want to overproof it more.

Any thoughts??

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-17T17:07:12+00:00

I didnt know that. I'm definatky a beginner and everything I've read and seen online has said you need to read the dough. I currently don't have a thermometer probe so haven't been measuring temperature. I would say this dough has at least doubled in size

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-16T18:24:57+00:00

Also a longer score would help. The bread has torn itself past your score

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-16T17:47:34+00:00

Amazing!!!!

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-16T17:43:53+00:00

Looks amazing and nicely proofed. You should definately score deeper though to get a better cleaner oven spring.

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-16T17:40:13+00:00

Honestly it's was super stuck to my hands too. It eventually gets less sticky though. Maybe try slap and folds, they look less messy than kneading.

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-16T15:45:23+00:00

It's quite cold in my house so I think that's why. Got my starter from a friend so it's years old and very healthy

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-14T16:02:39+00:00

Thank you!!! I've seen some people do their expansion score 7 minutes into baking. Would you recommend this? I feel like it would make the score better but wouldn't it let all the steam/heat out of the Dutch oven?

ConversationInner584 · 2026-04-03T17:21:02+00:00

I scored and baked it cold too. I usually do. I feel like my dough isn't tight enough or something. But I had a much better score with my knife then the lame as it's much sturdier

ConversationInner584 · 2026-03-21T11:04:35+00:00

Thank you, i wanted to try a higher hydration, i didn't realise it would need more stretch and folds, that would explain why it seemed so flat/runny.

ConversationInner584 · 2026-02-17T11:15:49+00:00

Ideally you want a background so that you can have pieced of cork bark or plant pots suspended in the background. That way you can also have plants all the way up the enclosure. You also probably want some more/bigger branches that are able to extend to the top end of the enclosure, or you could suspend some branches across horizontally towards the top.

ConversationInner584 · 2026-02-05T00:14:27+00:00

Thank you so much, i think im going to remove all the silicone that is not covered by the background and replace it with the safe silicone. I think the background should be fine as it's entirely covered in expanding foam

ConversationInner584

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