(Check out my Buyer’s Guide to a Dutch Oven here). Baking your bread inside a closed Dutch oven will keep the steam inside for much longer than any of the other methods, and it will give you a much thinner crust. Here’s a couple of ways to keep that steam on your loaf for longer so that your crust can be thinner.ĭutch Oven – Although a big purchase, buying a Dutch Oven revolutionized my bread baking.
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Well, if you have a professional oven, you don’t need to worry about this, because those ovens don’t let steam escape from your oven, but that’s not helpful information to those of us with regular ovens! How do you increase the initial steam retention phase? Therefore, the longer you can make the crust formation time, the longer the bread has to continue to rise, and the less time the crust has to harden and thicken once it has formed. This rising of the loaf continues until the crust is formed, and once the crust is formed, it will continue to become harder and/or thicker. This initial big escape of steam causes the loaf to rise further, as its surface is still soft and pliable (usually referred to as ‘oven spring’). When the loaves are baking, steam escapes quickly due to the heat, and the gluten structure of the bread starts to set.
Steam will Affect Crust Formation on Bread
QUICK TIP: Try putting melted butter on your loaf just before putting in the oven to keep its surface more pliable for longer. Making sure it enters the oven at just the right time will give it a good oven spring, resulting in a thinner crust. The second ferment is also important in crust formation. In simple terms, this means the crust is more likely to come out thin, which is what you want if you like a softer crust. This makes the surface of the dough caremelise while depositing flavor onto the crust as the vapour escapes the loaf. And this makes sourdough bread have a very distinct character in its crust.Ī long fermentation time means the dough develops a more aerated protein structure. Sourdough Bread is fermented for a very long time compared to its commercially yeasted counterpart. Fermentation Time will Determine the Initial Development of Bread Crust Here’s what influences the type of crust you get on your bread. And finally, a thick crust that is flexible, will result in a chewy crust.A crispy crust, comes from a rigid crust, that is thin.To get an extra hard crust, you need a rigid crust, that is thick.To get a super soft crust, you need the crust to be very thin, and very flexible.There are a couple of things that will determine the result of your crust: (Check out my article “20 Tips to Make Sourdough Bread Less Dense and More Airy”) Factors Affecting the Crust on Sourdough Bread. Let’s take a look at what affects your bread crust… We all have different preferences when it comes to how soft or hard we like our crusts to be, and there ways to tweak how crusty your bread comes out. Some of it has to do with what you do after taking your bread out of the oven, but some of it has to do with what happens during the baking process, and even before that. There are many things that affect how thick, thin, crispy or chewy your bread crust can be. Once it has cooled, you can remove the damp tea towel and you’ll find a lovely soft crust!.Take it out of the container and place on a cooling rack still wrapped in the damp cloth for the remaining cooling time.
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After several comparisons, experiments, and lots of trial and error I came up with a solution that works for me almost every time. I had this very same problem when I first started baking sourdough bread at home. If the inside of your bread is coming out with perfect texture and flavor, but your crust is too hard, there are a couple of ways to fix this. One common problem that many sourdough home bakers have is that their bread crusts are too hard.