Something I used to stress on here is easy cooking that looks impressive. As time has gone on, I've come to find that there are more important things than being showy: cooking healthy food, proper planning, watching baking shows. Well, throw all that … | By musingsfromthecook on September 9, 2024 | Something I used to stress on here is easy cooking that looks impressive. As time has gone on, I've come to find that there are more important things than being showy: cooking healthy food, proper planning, watching baking shows. Well, throw all that out. There's this big myth about bread being some complicated beast, but it really isn't. Here's how to make impressive-looking bread, no sweat. We're making a boule—a round bread—and we're doing yeast instead of sourdough, because I have the bandwidth to feed two things and my kids edge out a sourdough starter. The yeast method means you can make one of these in two hours with no prior preparation. The boule looks pretty. It also fits in a Dutch oven, which I recommend but do not require. I also strongly recommend a kitchen scale, which makes measuring more precise, easier, and less messy. The recipe is below. In addition to the actual directions, I've added some commentary about what the step is trying to do, in case you're curious. Good luck! And bread is easy, but it can be finicky. If your bread doesn't work out perfectly, make another one and dispose of the first one. Maybe with softened butter, or olive oil, or make some French toast or breakfast casserole. Classic Boule Ingredients - 500 grams flour (4 cups, but a kitchen scale is the way to go)
- 350 grams water, divided (1 1/2 cups)
- 10 grams yeast (active dry or instant) (3 teaspoons)
- 12 grams salt (2 1/4 teaspoons)
- Equipment:
- Large bowl
- Proving basket (recommended) or medium bowl
- Dutch oven (recommended) or baking sheet
- Kitchen scale (strongly recommended, seriously, it's like $10 and you'll use it forever)
Directions - This recipe is very simple, but very detailed, so it looks long. Don't worry.
- Add the flour and 325 grams of water to a large bowl, and mix it—with your hand, or a metal spoon if you'd rather avoid the mess—until it's mostly combined. (Don't worry if there are dry bits at the bottom.) Cover the bowl with a clean dish towel, and let it rest for thirty minutes.
- This is called an autolyse. Basically, you're giving the flour time to absorb the water, which will make it more elastic and easier to work with later.
- With five minutes left, in a small bowl or large measuring cup, combine the yeast and the remaining 25 grams of water. Mix thoroughly to wet the yeast, then let sit until the flour/water mix is done.
- This step is necessary for active dry yeast, as it needs hydration to break down the coating that keeps the yeast stable until it's used. Instant yeast theoretically shouldn't need this, but it won't hurt and might help, and I didn't want to include two different sets of directions.
- Add the salt and the hydrated yeast to the flour/water mix. With your hand, mix/knead the dough in the bowl until combined. Then knead the dough right in the bowl, until the surface is relatively smooth and the dough stays together, about 10 minutes. (It's not going to come together into a ball; the dough's too wet for that. But you'll know it's ready when, if you grab some of the dough and pull up, it peels the rest of the dough away from the bowl.)
- I guess you could knead the dough on a floured surface, but you don't knead to (a-ha-ha!), and I make enough of a mess in the kitchen anyway. As for how to knead in a bowl, it's fairly similar. You can press the dough out in the bowl and roll it up, you can twist the dough around, or you can pretend like your hand is the dough hook of a stand mixer and just stir the dough like crazy. As long as the dough is being stretched and pulled, you're developing gluten.
- With one hand, pull the dough out of the bowl as described. That will leave you a hand to lightly oil the bowl. (I just use cooking spray.) Then form the dough into a smooth ball: With both hands, pull the edges of the dough out and towards the back, repeating until the surface is smooth and the dough keeps its shape. Place in the bowl seam-side down, then flip the dough once or twice to lightly coat all sides in oil, ending with the seam side down. Cover with a clean dish towel, and let rise one hour.
- Prepare a proving basket or medium bowl by dusting with flour, then set aside. Lightly flour a work surface.
- Gently turn the dough out onto your work surface. To shape the dough, pinch one edge of the dough, stretch it upwards until it resists, and bring it down over the dough ball. Repeat, going around the dough ball, until the dough no longer pulls easily.
- Then, flip the ball over seam-side down on an unfloured part of your work surface. Cup the back of the dough with your hands, with the edges of your hands against the work surface, and pull the ball toward you. Turn the ball 90 degrees and repeat the pulling motion until the dough is a smooth ball that keeps its shape well, then deposit the ball seam-side down in the prepared basket or bowl. Dust the dough with flour, cover with a towel and let rest about 30 minutes. Right away, put your Dutch oven in the oven right above a baking sheet, or just a baking sheet, and start preheating the oven to 450.
- This cup-and-pull motion is similar to what your did in step 4, and it serves the same basic purpose of creating tension along the surface of the ball. This helps the dough rise up, and not just out.
- When 30 minutes have passed, check the dough: With a floured finger, gently poke the dough, a half inch or so. If the dough springs back slowly and incompletely, it's ready. If it springs back quickly, give it another five minutes and test it again. If it doesn't spring back at all, it's overproofed, but keep going anyway, maybe it'll be great.
- When the dough is ready, open the oven door, pull out the oven rack you're using, and take the lid off the Dutch oven if you're using one. Then, gently tip the dough out onto a work surface. With a sharp knife at a 45 degree tilt (I use a bread knife, for the serrated edge), cut a deep crescent into the top of the dough ball.
- Pick the dough up with both hands, and--extremely carefully, don't burn yourself--lower it into the Dutch oven, or place it on the baking sheet. (If you have to drop it a few inches to be safe, do so.) Close it all up and bake 30 minutes.
- If you have a digital thermometer, the bread is cooked when the middle reaches somewhere between 195 and 200. Immediately transfer to a cooling rack, and let cool completely (at least 30 minutes) before enjoying tremendously.
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