More than 36 hours Sourdough Baguette

We love baguettes. We love the shape, it's easy to eat, has a lot of crusty crust and a nice tasty crumb. It goes well with soup, garlic butter, guacamole, with cheese, salami, as a side dish with pizza or pasta or in the evening as a main dish. It goes well with almost everything. You understand we love baguettes. 

I've tried a few different baguette recipes and they all taste slightly different. I haven't posted them all because most didn't look like baguettes. As you know, baking ciabatta can be difficult if you are not experienced enough. But the same goes for shaping baguettes. Everything goes well with the dough until you reach the moment of shaping. In the Netherlands we have a saying: "experience comes with age". Of course its true, but luckily when you want to bake baguettes it also helps if you do it often enough. My baguettes aren't close to perfection yet. But, I keep on trying. 

A while back I saw beautiful baguettes. Nicely shaped, scored as it should, good color, good appearance and full of nice holes. Of course I had to try. There are people who will try new things in life only when they are sure they will succeed. I'm not like that. That's a good thing, otherwise I wouldn't speak one word of Thai in public. Thai is a tonal language and Dutch isn't. There's a big chance that you don't pronounce the word correctly, even after six years in Thailand. Fortunately, I am not so worried about it and a smile brings you every where.

Those beautiful baguettes I tried this time, are baked by TX Farmer: " She puts everything she knows in this bread". 

Today is a day for challenge. Today is the day I start and tomorrow we’ll see. The whole process looks more about waiting and gentle handling than about kneading, feeling, seeing, smelling, you know the 'normal' process. 

It all starts with combining flour and water and a fridge. The next day it's about adding mature starter and salt, combining them by hand, waiting and a fridge. The day after it looks like a normal day for a baguette. Dividing, resting, very gently shaping, resting, pre-heating, steaming and baking. And then it’s time to see, smell and taste.

My conclusion: it’s a great baguette; it’s full of flavor and holes. It’s a great baguette if you know how to handle 70% wet dough. I’ve baked it twice since and it’s very high on my list of delicious breads. My next challenge is to bake it again with a better appearance.

Thank you TX Farmer for sharing your knowledge on this delicious baguette.

Specifics
Name                               36 hours Sourdough Baguette
Adapted from                    TX Farmer
Yields                                4 baguettes
Dough temp.                      24°C
Mixing                               1 minute
Autolyse                            12 hours
Fermentation                     2 - 3 hours
Stretch/Fold                      every 30 minutes
Shape                               10 minutes
Proof at roomtemp.            30 – 50 minutes
Prepare steam/bake           1 hour
Bake 230°C                        25 minutes

This is what I used:
Bakers formula                  %        grams
Flour                                100     425

Water                              70      300
Salt                                  2.3     10     

Sourdough starter 100%              grams
Unbleached All Purpose flour         75               

Water                                         75                         
Mature Culture 100% hydr.             15

Final Dough
Unbleached All Purpose flour         425              

Ice water                                    300    
Salt                                            10     
Sourdough starter                        150 (hold back 15 gr for next time)

This is what I did:

Starter: I mixed the ingredients for the starter. I left it in a plastic container with a lid for the night in my kitchen for 12 hours.

The final dough: I mixed the flour with the ice water in a plastic container until all was well combined, covered with plastic and left in the fridge for 12 hours.

The next morning:  I added the starter and salt and mixed with my hands until roughly evenly distributed.

Bulk Fermentation: I covered the container with plastic and left it to grow about 1/3 in volume, for about 2 – 3 hours. Stretch and fold the dough every 30 minutes until enough strength has developed. It took me 4 stretch and folds. Then place it in the fridge.

Shaping: I divided the dough into four pieces, covered with a towel and left for 40  minutes to rest. I shaped the pieces gently into baguettes.
I transferred them very gently to the floured linen couche, covered with a moist towel and a plastic bag.

Proofing: I proofed the baguettes for 30 minutes. Because of the warm/hot temperature in our house I watch them to prevent over proofing.

Pre heating: I pre heated the oven to 230°C and placed the steam pan with stones on the bottom of the oven.

Preparing and Baking: When the oven is hot enough I boil water and pour it in a glass bottle with a long neck. I pour some boiling water on the hot stones and quickly close the oven door to keep the steam in the oven.
I very gently placed the baguettes on parchment on a peel. Transfer them to the oven and quickly slide the loaves on the baking stone. After some minutes I add some more water to get more steam.

I baked the baguettes 12 minutes with steam and quickly removed the parchment paper and the steam pan. I baked the baguettes for another 23 minutes. TX Farmer has brown baguettes after just 25 minutes in total. Bake the baguettes until they are nicely brown colored.

Cooling: Let the loaves cool completely on a wire rack.

I send this to Susan’s YeastSpotting and to Bake Your Own Bread

What did you bake this month? Don't forget to show it.