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Using a Pasta machine to knead dough.

Wcsjohn@aol.com
Sun, 21 Dec 2003 08:26:40 EST
v103.n053.22
I was making a batch of very unadventurous poolish baguettes a couple of 
weeks ago. I ran them at 60% hydration and, when I got to the kneading, I 
just couldn't face the work of pummelling relatively stiff dough for 10 
minutes (not entirely idleness, Parkinson's disease and tendonitis can make 
hand kneading very difficult for me). I've been wondering for some  time if 
a pasta machine could be used to knead ordinary bread dough (I'd already 
used it successfully for Bagel dough) so, out with the chrome mangle.

I cut the roughly mixed and autolysed dough into 4 pieces, each about 200 
gm and passed them through the widest setting. Ropy, lumpy, very 
discouraging to anybody who's never made pasta. Fold in half, pass through, 
repeat, repeat, well look at that, we have real dough. amalgamate the 
strips of dough 2 at a time passing through  the machine each time. Fold 
and pass the single strip through another 6 times.

The result was the smoothest, most elastic bread dough I have ever 
produced. It even passed, with ease, the infamous window pane test. 
Shaping, without flour was a delight. Oven spring magnificent, slash 
definition sharp, the crumb was very elastic and extremely light. Lovely bread.

Since then I have made 5 batches of 60% lean breads all different recipes, 
all varying between excellent and superb.

The process is so easy that I've started keeping half the day's batch to 
make the next days bread, the way real bakers do it.

I know, I know, this is John "High Hydration" Wright speaking but the 
results are far better than anything I ever managed with a Kenwood or my 
own fair hands and sufficiently good to make me question, very seriously, a 
lot of my asumptions about the value of mechanical working of bread dough.

The current recipe follows.

PASTA MACHINE BAGUETTES

The batch size is 800 gm, 400 gm dough to make up into loaves and 400 gm to 
leave  for the next time. This is sufficient for 3 ficelles or 6 Petit 
Pains, enough for a day's basic bread for Mo and myself. The pate I'm using 
is now on its 5th incarnation and it just gets better.

Lean dough, indirect method, 60% hydration, 2 days to make. The pasta 
machine is kept on it's widest setting throughout.

Pate starter (I use the reserved dough from the previous bake)

10 gm rye flour
240 gm white bread flour - my regular 12.2% protein type
150 gm warm water
1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
1 teaspoon salt.

Main dough

The starter
10 gm rye flour
240 gm white bread flour - my regular 12.2% protein type
150 gm warm water
1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
1 teaspoon salt.

Roughly mix the starter ingredients and leave for 20 minutes to autolyse.

Divide into 2 pieces.(This is purely for ease of handling.) Pass 1 piece 
through the machine. fold in 2. Pass through the machine, Repeat 3 times, 
you should now have recognisable bread dough. Repeat the process for the 
other piece. You now have 2 strips of dough. lay one on top of the other 
and pass through the machine. Fold and roll another 6 times. The dough will 
be incredibly smooth and elastic. Roll up tightly, put in a plastic bag, 
seal and leave at room temperature til next day.

Mix the ingredients for the main dough, except for the starter, roughly and 
rest for 20 minutes. Flatten the dough out, flatten the pate starter to 
roughly the same shape and place on top. cut into 4 pieces and proceed as 
for the starter but, obviously, amalgamate the strips of dough in 2 
operations, pairs of pieces then the two larger pieces to produce one long 
strip. Fold and pass through 5 times, or 6 if necessary to produce a 
smooth, elastic dough that shows a windowpane. (Bet you never thought you'd 
see that instruction written by me.<g>).

Roll up, cut in half if you're going to keep some dough to make tomorrows 
's starter and put half in a plastic bag and leave til next day at room temp.

Now just use the dough as you normally would, giving it at least 1 rise 
before shaping. Proof to at least double and this dough would normally take 
3X. Slash and bake.

I bake at flat max , 300C in my oven, reducing as soon as the bread is in 
the oven  to 220C.

The spring is remarkable and the bread will be very light. The flavour from 
the room temperature starter is excellent.

The rye is important.

Any questions, just ask.

This is by far the best "conventional" 60/2/2 baguette dough I have ever 
produced.

John