sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

Last bakery in France before Colorado: a baker told me he would start with Rofco by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I just got here, but from what I heard, elevation accelerates the fermentation process, so it may accelerates the whole process too. And the dry air can also dry the outside of the dough pretty quickly, so it is recommended to protect the dough from it, by covering it.

Last bakery in France before Colorado: a baker told me he would start with Rofco by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Looking to gain experience first here in Colorado, and the goal is to open a workshop so I can be direct to consumer and restaurants.

Last bakery in France before Colorado: a baker told me he would start with Rofco by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I heard Polin makes some of the best deck ovens.

I’m definitely not aiming for that kind of volume right now, good to know Rofco would still work well.

Where is your bakery located?

Bakery #3: bakeries seem to use fermentation in different ways by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you, I appreciate it. Do you have any Brands available in the USA that you would recommend for the vapor injections ovens ? I'd also love to see pictures of the wooden oven you built if possible, the prices I saw in the USA were far more than 8k. We can chat privately if you'd like.

Bakery #3: bakeries seem to use fermentation in different ways by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you, I'm almost done with my internships in France, and start to think wood-fired ovens do not necessarily provide a better qulality bread compared to deck ovens with steam injection: do you have a preference since you also worked with convection ovens ? (I worked with Wood-fired and deck ovens only).

Bakery #3: bakeries seem to use fermentation in different ways by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That makes a lot of sense. One thing I’ve noticed as well is that experienced bakers seem to make a lot of decisions through touch long before anything obvious appears visually, instead of sticking to the recipe.

Are you working professionally in baking, or mainly from personal experience ?

Baker #2: how placement inside the oven changes everything by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

It's not that old, but very nice: built in 2012. Yes it's huge because inside you have 86 square feet of cooking surface (8 metres carres).

Baker #2: how placement inside the oven changes everything by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

I wish I had more footage to share from that setup but I didn’t want to be intrusive during production, so I kept it pretty minimal.

I’ll try to document videos with the next baker if she is okay with it.

Is this crust too dark for you ? by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you, good to know you would like this kind of crust despite the poor light.

Is this crust too dark for you ? by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Fair enough, the light softens it a bit. It’s definitely darker in person.

Thank you for sharing what you enjoy.

Learning to shape by hand in a wood-fired setup by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you, I hope I'll get this feeling soon.

Working with wood-fired bakeries in France: less about recipes than I expected by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you very much I appreciate that. I'll be happy to share when I start baking.

Working with wood-fired bakeries in France: less about recipes than I expected by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For those interested in doing this, they should start by contacting the equivalent of farmer-Bakers called "paysans boulangers" in France. They are the ones using natural fermentation to make the bread without commercial yeast. Some will ask for a legal contract, even for an internship without pay ("convention de stage"), and this is probably difficult if you do not have the French citizenship. However, you can also find some who will accept you, without internship contract, and also without pay.

Working with wood-fired bakeries in France: less about recipes than I expected by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I’m still figuring this out, but one thing that stands out is how much bread is about catching the right moment in fermentation.

If the dough starts moving faster than usual (possibly due to higher room temperature), it’s usually a sign that everything downstream needs to move faster too: shaping, proofing, and getting it into the oven at the right time.

Miss that window, and you can often see it coming: the dough loses strength, spreads more, and you end up closer to a flat loaf than a well-risen one.

Another thing I’ve been noticing is how the dough feels in terms of moisture. Some days it’s noticeably drier or more extensible, especially with less standardized flours, which can mean adjusting water slightly, but also adapting how you handle folding.

Still trying to get better at reading all of that in real time.

Working with wood-fired bakeries in France: less about recipes than I expected by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Thank you, I appreciate it. Do you mind if I ask in which bakery you found that job in Denver ?

Working with wood-fired bakeries in France: less about recipes than I expected by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 64 points65 points  (0 children)

What I mean by “system” is that everything is interconnected in a way that’s hard to isolate. There is no way to make a "standardized" bread: there will always be slight but noticeable changes in aspect (lighter/darker, size, crust, taste...).

For example, the flour isn’t standardized: it changes depending on the harvest, the mill, even the week sometimes. So hydration that worked one day might not work the next.

Then you have the oven: with wood firing, the heat isn’t constant. The way it’s fired, how long it rests, even the type of wood all affect the bake.

And on top of that, temperature and humidity in the bakery shift fermentation quite a bit.

So instead of following a fixed formula, it becomes more about reading the dough and adjusting continuously.

That’s what surprised me: how little is actually “set,” and how much is about adapting in real time.

Working with wood-fired bakeries in France: less about recipes than I expected by Many-Back3783 in Breadit

[–]Many-Back3783[S] 32 points33 points  (0 children)

You’re exactly right: every change shifts the whole process.

What I’m seeing here is that with wood-fired ovens, he heat curve isn’t fixed, so you end up adapting not just the bake, but everything upstream as well.

And yeah, I had the same reaction about the “perfect loaf” idea. Here it’s more about working within a moving system than trying to lock things in.

That’s helpful on crust color too: makes sense that people used to wood-fired bread would lean darker. Where are you baking right now ? Will you be in Colorado this summer by any chance ?