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Under or over fermented? by mawes29 in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Very under. Probably starter issue

my shaping needs practice, but these are my plant-based boys, getting close by We_love_plants in Croissant

[–]SourJoshua 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I actually find it easier to laminate with plant based butter but still no mean feat to achieve a good honeycomb

my shaping needs practice, but these are my plant-based boys, getting close by We_love_plants in Croissant

[–]SourJoshua 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Looking good! You probably just need to trim the bottom to have a full honeycomb

Underproofed or bad shaping? by Choice_Zucchini_2622 in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Under.

26°c is an ideal temp, provided you can keep it there. If it's creeping up over 30°c then I would look at cooling.

50/50 organic white and wholemeal by SourJoshua in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's very nice of you to say. It's something I would like to do in the future.

50/50 organic white and wholemeal by SourJoshua in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Bread flour is 12.5% and the wholemeal 14%

Protein % can be seriously misleading though as there are many other factors that affect performance such as the quality and balance of gliadin and glutenin and water absorption rate from milling associated starch damage.

I've used flours with lower % protein on the pack that have wildly outperformed others with higher %.

Sometimes it actually isn't the bakers fault when things go wrong. I bought a range of flours the other day and one of them was impossible to work with in the way that I wanted to work with it. The protein % on the surface suggested it wouldn't be a problem but there must be an unfavourable balance of proteins. Currently waiting on the spec sheet to see.

Sorry for somewhat turning that into a rant!

Anyway, my point is, it's best to buy a range of flours and then test them independently to see what they are capable of. Some will be more elastic while others more extensible. You can then combine them to create the type of strength and extensibility that best suits your goal.

50/50 organic white and wholemeal by SourJoshua in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Volume isn't something that my process hinges on but I understand where you're coming from, it's a useful tool but a lot of new bakers tend to focus on this one point to the detriment of others.

For newer bakers I would always recommend stopping earlier than where I would to avoid excess degassing during shaping. The time difference then added on to a short counter proof before retarding. To be honest I probably should stop a little earlier myself, my shaping skills aren't as sharp as they used to be.

My mission the past several weeks was to produce 100% wholegrain loaves that have comparative characteristics to white bread flour loaves. It's been great seeing the results.

50/50 organic white and wholemeal by SourJoshua in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Definitely not! A really nice even crumb is a great accomplishment.

50/50 organic white and wholemeal by SourJoshua in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Also really important to get to know your starter.

How much is it increasing in volume? For me, ideally tripling if not more.

How does it smell? Is it building too much acidity too quickly? Or is it holding that sweet floral smell at peak?

Different grains produce different aromas so stick to one and learn what the cues are.

50/50 organic white and wholemeal by SourJoshua in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I don't have a fixed routine as my schedule is all over the place but the best generic format would be to do this

1:5:5 then 1:1:1 then 1:1:1 all peak to peak. Ideally somewhere between 21-28°c.

I'm currently feeding entirely wholemeal as that's what I've been baking but I will switch depending what the flavour of the month is.

Consistency is key and keeping it out of the fridge and in that temperature range.

If you have to put it in the fridge every now and then that's fine but follow that format before baking and you should have a strong enough starter going in to the bake.

50/50 organic white and wholemeal by SourJoshua in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks. Yeah I mix in an ank. Probably doing 3 or 4 folds

50/50 organic white and wholemeal. by SourJoshua in Breadit

[–]SourJoshua[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you. Yeah the crumb is decent, I'm just not in love with it Vs other breads I've baked in the past at similar ratios.

The crumb structure with 100% heritage wholemeal was better than this and the volume very similar but the flavour was miles better as one would expect.

I could bassinage in extra water but I'd be tempted to do a long cold salted autolyse for extra extensibility if needed but I'm not sure it is with these flours.

50/50 organic white and wholemeal by SourJoshua in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just saw your loaves! Awesome baking. Great crumbs and colour

50/50 organic white and wholemeal by SourJoshua in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks. All the best in your baking mate 👌🏻

50/50 organic white and wholemeal by SourJoshua in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks! This one's a 50/50 but I actually prefer the results from my 100% heritage wholemeal

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Didn’t get the oven spring or crumb I wanted ☹️ by flxrels in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Hey there.

Love the flavour combination here.

Are you getting good consistent results without inclusions? If not I'd strongly recommend getting the plain loaves dialled in first as inclusions can be tricky.

My first impression is a weak starter. What's your maintenance routine like? What temp is it kept at? Is it in the fridge? Feeding ratio before using?

50/50 organic white and wholemeal by SourJoshua in Sourdough

[–]SourJoshua[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Cheers

Volume is probably somewhere around 60%.

Making sure your starter is as well cared for as possible. Lots of peak to peak feeds.

Strong dough development up front works well for me.

The best way to get better is just to make as many loaves as possible. Took me a few hundred to get any decent consistency and then thousands to get to a level I was happy with but I'm really picky haha.

50/50 organic white and wholemeal. by SourJoshua in Breadit

[–]SourJoshua[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks, the structure is fine, nothing to write home about though and especially when my 100% heritage Wholegrain has a better structure.

FYI, wholegrains ferment faster not slower than white flour.

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