FMTZ@aol.com wrote:
>Subject: Re: gummy no-knead and new NYTimes no-knead recipe
>Date: Sun, 2 Dec 2007 16:04:50 EST
>
>Dear Jeanette:
>
>We had the same problem even when the bread was baked for a full
>50-60 minutes - 30 minutes in the pot, 15 minutes in the pot with
>the lid off and 10-15 minutes out of the pot on a baking stone.
>
>THEN we decided to shut off the oven, put the door ajar and let the
>bread cool slowly as the oven cooled. Voila - nice crusty bread, big
>holes, no moistness or gumminess inside.
>
>I believe that what happens is that the crust forms fairly fast in
>the sealed pot - so fast that the moisture in the interior doesn't
>have a chance to escape or dissipate sufficiently.
This is a conjecture, but I believe that SLOW crust development is
one of the big factors in no-knead bread. The loaf is baked in a
SMALL tightly sealed vessel, which seals in steam/moisture for a
long(er) time, resulting in slow development of the crust which
allows the dough more time to do its "oven spring" before the crust
hardens too much.
>We might try, the next time, to take the lid off after 15 minutes of
>baking. By then, the benefits of the contained moisture should have
>been achieved. Experiment a little with a slightly lower temperature
>too and with the amount of water you use. You don't have to be
>slavish about the formula.
I agree: experimentation is definitely the key to no-knead bread,
indeed, to all of bread baking, since it's impossible to duplicate
EVERY factor in somebody else's recipe: the type/brand/composition
of flour and of yeast, water, weather (temperature, humidity), etc.
>Finally, have you seen the 'new' approach to artisanal bread?
><http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/21/dining/211brex.html?em&ex=3D1195880400=&en=3D38f2e2bf176e2383&ei=3D5087>
>
>New York Times
>November 21, 2007
>
>Recipe: Simple Crusty Bread
>
>Adapted from "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day" by Jeff Hertzberg
>and Zoe Francois (Thomas Dunne Books, 2007)
>
>1 1/2 tablespoons yeast
>1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
>6 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour, more for dusting dough
Holy smoke! 1.5 TABLESPOONS of yeast?! That is a LOT of yeast! By
my calculations, (1C flour is 4.5 ozs, 1T is 3t), that's 2.5% salt by
weight and 1.7% yeast by weight. By contrast, the NYT no-knead
recipe is about 0.6% salt and 0.9 % yeast by weight. I wonder if the
big amount of yeast is one of the factor in this no-knead recipe...
Andy Nguyen