The speed of your actions when handling your sourdough makes all the difference. Over time, youll become more confident and comfortable working with dough, so you can gradually increase the hydration and get better at handling it. Required fields are marked *. Why Is My Sourdough Too Sticky? While the dough is proofing, preheat your oven to 230 C (450 F) and place your Dutch oven inside to preheat as well. We actually followed this recipe twice, the first time was in the exact proportion mentioned with a hydration of 81% and "Betty" turned out tacky and moist. Then remove lid and continue to bake for another 20-25 minutes. The gluten structure has become weak and is unable to hold up. Content posted by community members is their own. This helps keep the dough from sticking. . The usual choice of flour for dusting includes bread flour, rice flour, semolina; all these flour works just as well for preventing sourdough from sticking. Simply combine your flour and water before any of the other ingredients, fully incorporating the flour. Rest 50 minutes. Oiling works just as well as dusting to create a non-stick surface which prevents your sticky dough from sticking and tearing. The only solution for this is to toss your dough and put your time into strengthening and maturing your sourdough starter. 3. Once mixed, the dough enters the bulk fermentaiton phase where folding also takes place which helps significantly to develop more gluten network as well as to incorporate more water into the dough making it feel less wet and sticky. We are compensated for referring traffic and business to Amazon and other companies linked to on this site. By using the tips below, youll be able to learn how to handle your dough without it sticking to you, so you can actually manage it and make great sourdough bread. Please take that into account. Why Your Bread Dough is Stick and how to Fix it Easily This will give the sourdough a chance to find new pockets of sugars and starches to consume. Once you get the hang of the sourdough process and the various phases, then start introducing whole grain flours into the mix. You want to be fast enough to limit any sticking, but not too fast or you might make a mess. Nonetheless we ended the bulk fermentation when the dough doubled in size (at the end of two hours after the last stretch and fold), and performed the pre shaping and final shaping. But if you leave the flour, water, starter and salt to autolyse, the flour absorbs all the water and becomes fully hydrated. Soft water has <50ppm, medium 50-100ppm (best for bread baking), hard >200ppm. Shaping it and baking very shortly afterwards is recommended. More often than not a tight crumb with a number of larger holes - but it's not even or open. What Basic Methods Are Used To Make Quick Breads? Gluten is the foundation for good bread, so you wont get very far if its not developed. Place in bannetons. if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'crustylabs_com-leader-4','ezslot_20',129,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-crustylabs_com-leader-4-0');If you are proofing your dough in a non porous material such as a metal or glass container, then oiling is preferred over dusting with flour. Another tactic is adding flour to the work surface before you start working with the dough. The chains of gluten give your dough strength and structure. We performed up to 6 sets of stretch and fold during the first two hours of fermentation before leaving it to bulk ferment for the next two hours. The recipe I followed was from "a beautiful plate". Makes 1 x 800-g/1-lbs. Then the dough cant stick to them. 8 oz active sourdough starter, 12 oz warm water, 5 oz rye flour, 12 oz bread flour. Thanks!! Second, mix the dough using a previously fed, active and bubbly sourdough starter, water and a mixture of bread and whole wheat flour. I baked a loaf this morning and I dont gone cute it until we ready to eat it. If you cant shape it, the sourdough is too sticky. full guide to stopping your sourdough bread from collapsing here, Flavored Sourdough: How To Make Additions To Sourdough Bread. We preheated the oven (which was constrained at 480F) for an hour, and baked Charlie for 40 mins (tried 25 mins for Betty) in the cast iron, and 20 mins on the rack. Starting at a lower hydration (70% is good) is best for beginners. I have done wetter doughs at similar times/temps without the gumminess but I take your point - your lower/slower suggestion makes sense to me and I may well try that on my next go-round. Add the sugar and salt. . An under fermented sourdough loaf will have a shiny, pale crust that lacks crunch. More often than not, gumminess is a result of under fermentation (cutting the bulk fermentation time too short). One set of strong Stretch & Folds. This increases the chances of tearing, which can make your life more difficult when shaping or kneading it. SOLUTION - reduce proofing time. Stretching and folding the dough is a common method of gluten development in sourdough bread making. If youre using a lot of wholewheat, youre going to be left with a very sticky dough, especially if its paired with high hydration. Over proofing or fermenting the dough can also result in the gluten structure weakening causing sticky dough. Final internal temp 211FSliced after cooling for 4 hours. Thank you for the pointers, will be reducing the temperature to allow a longer bake the next round! When water is excessively soft, the lack of minerals results in a sticky andslack dough. Water was 350 plus 45 in the starter for 395. High temperatures can cause premature over fermentation, which will result in wet, sticky sourdough. Add 60g of sourdough starter and set the tare to zero again; then add the salt and water, again, I find it easier to set the tare to zero before adding the flour. Plastic and metal dough scrapers are useful tools and both have their own pros and cons. Stretch dough into rough 10"x17" rectangle, laminate and move to clean vessel for bulk. Bread has been baked too soon after shaping / under proofed. Baking parchment paper is characteristic for its non stick ability without the need for any dusting of flour or oiling. Pinpointing the cause of your wet and sticky dough will depend where in the sourdough process you are. Always ensure that youre using the right techniques for your sourdough to build the most gluten. What has gone wrong to cause this issue? (Top Reasons). But as it cooled, the crust wrinkled and collapsed what happened? I bake at 525F, sometimes 550. #7 The bread cooled in the oven When the bread looks ready, some bakers turn the oven off and leave it inside for 20 minutes to make their bread less gummy. water) slightly (eg. If your dough does not develop a sufficient gluten network, it will be wet, sticky and have no structure. The good news is, there's always a way to fix your sourdough bread problems for your next bake! Switch to a wood spoon. Overnight Sourdough Bread - The Pantry Mama Matching my work schedule. The easiest thing you can do to handle your sticky sourdough is to simply make it less sticky by cutting back on the water. Unfortunately, this results in tougher bread. If you find your dough to be relatively dry after mixing, but gets wetter and stickier over time, it means that the flour you are using contains a very high percentage of damaged starch particles; try changing to a different flour brand and use European flour instead of American flour. In a separate smaller bowl, add 220 grams of warm water. Sourdough baking is a never ending journey of learning - and that's what makes troubleshooting it so damn interesting! This will ensure that the bread is cooked all the way through. Temperature is one of the most important factors when making sourdough. CAUSE - cutting into your bread too soon! The reason most recipes are so high in hydration is that more water in the dough makes it easier to have a lighter, more open crumb, and a better crust, so its favored by most bakers. Cheaters No Knead Dutch Oven Sourdough Bread: so EASY, only 6 ingredients, made in 1 bowl, 5 mins mixing, then just rise + bake time! We should aim to minimize the use of dusting flour in the baking process as the introduction of additional flour into our mix can significantly change the hydration level of the dough, resulting in a crumb that is drier and denser. A mistake that nearly sourdough bakers have made is simply leaving the dough for too long. Place the bread pieces on a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer. Here are some options for working with wet, sticky over fermented sourdough. Just dont freeze it. Gluten is impermeable, meaning it doesnt allow gas or water to pass through, when there isnt enough gluten in the dough, water molecules can easily escape out of the dough, resulting in dough mixture that is only partly incorporated with water. It will give you a better understanding of what you can do when it comes to handling your dough at different stages. Gently turn the dough out onto a separate floured flat baking tray (not preheated). We know that flour is essential, but you need to make sure that youre using it correctly for the best results. Turn the mixer on 1-2 (never higher than 2 or medium-low) and let the mixer knead the dough for about 5 minutes. I hardly ever bake with BF or AP, but I think you might want to try something in the range of 75% to start. The yeast is responsible for the rise in the bread and will help create a light and airy sourdough. Steaming. Add the sourdough starter to a large mixing bowl. sourdough after baking. Rest uncovered for 25 minutes. We will hold back from slicing it too early the next time!! It may just be that you need to leave it in the oven longer with the lid off your. bread sticky after baking. Turn out the loaf out onto a floured peel, make a cut in the top with a grignette and slide it onto the baking stone. You might want to leave the bread in the oven for 10 minutes with the oven off and door ajar to help wick away some of the extra moisture. Send your bread making problems to breadsos@bakewithjack.co.ukInclude your name, your location, a method or recipe if possible and the temperature of your kitchen if you know it and we'll get to the bottom of your most common problems right here. This site is powered by Drupal. During this time, the flour has the chance to fully hydrate and gluten network is able to develop in spite of the lack of mechanical mixing. It's possible that the dough is rising too much during the cold retard which will also cause this issue. CAUSE - This is typically caused by under fermenting your dough, but can also happen through using too much flour when you shape your bread. During shaping, we want to wet our hands to prevent the dough from sticking to it. Thank you in advance! So 180 grams would mean 80 grams of flour and 100 grams of water (because 80 x 1.25 = 100 grams; see above section for calculations) Step 2 - The recipe contains 600 grams flour and 360 grams water. Set aside. So I added 390 flour, plus 45 more from the starter ( assuming your starter is 100% hydration) to get 435 flour. . Also, if you find the outside is brown and the inside is moist, that normally indicates you should lower the baking temp. If you're not sure about some of the terms used in this article, you might find this sourdough glossary helpful. Sourdough does not stop cooking when you take it out of the oven. Sourdough bread offers a number of benefits. When using a proofing basket, line it with a clean cloth and dust its surface with flour by using a sieve to ensure an even coating. If your sourdough has a very thick base which is burnt or just very tough, there's a very simple fix for this. Turn the oven off, leave the door slightly ajar and place your bread directly on the oven rack. Be confident in your actions. Okay, so maybe sourdough is never going to be extremely easy to handle, especially when it has very high hydration, but you can get to a point where youre very comfortable with handling sticky sourdough. This is when you let the dough rest after it is mixed but before you start to knead it. In my other courses, I teach how to bake all sorts of sourdough breads, but in this course, I won't load you down with lots of information, just enough so it is easy and fun to bake your first loaf of sourdough. Put the lid on and place into the hot oven. Within eight to 12 hours of feeding your starter, you want to see a noticeable increase in volume and it should be putting off a pretty pungent. Inside of bread too moist and gummy - Sourdough Agree with the previous comments and hotter, longer and let dry, https://www.abeautifulplate.com/artisan-sourdough-bread-recipe/, Lamination butter for croissants - question, Mexican buns aka coffee cookie buns aka rotiboy buns, Farmer's Market Week 18 (Whole Wheat Walnut YW/SD Combo), Red Fife x 4 = Awesomeness!!! The Number #1 Reason your sourdough bread might be flat is using the wrong flour. There are lots of things that can go wrong when baking sourdough bread. no one but me would notice or care). Then the dough is less likely to stick to them. However, it is possible to get sticky sourdough that is hard to get out of the pan or cut into pieces. Another tactic is chilling the dough for a while. This method involves mixing the dough so the flour is fully hydrated before performing a series of stretch and folds. CAUSES - There are number of causes here, but the main one is that it was not baked long enough for the moisture in the dough to be baked out of the bread. Steaming is one of the most crucial steps when baking bread. Start taking internal temp at 45 min total time, and then allow 7 or 8 minutes for every degree it needs to come up. Second, to the wet ingredients, add the bread flour, whole wheat flour, and salt. Your email address will not be published. Bake the sourdough bread. We want to mix the dough until it develops adequate gluten network which is indicated by a dough that is stretchable without tearing but at the same time offers a degree of resistance when pulled apart. Mix by hand until all the dry flour is incorporated. 4 Key reasons why your sourdough bread is flat I wouldn't reduce temperature, but rather increase baking time. Instead of kneading your dough manually for 8-10 minutes, youd be better off using a series of stretch and folds to develop gluten. I have, however, always let my bread cool for at least 4 hours, until its at or very near room- temperature, and it continues to be sticky - even when left in the oven to steam out for a little while after baking is completed.