Discussion
This recipe for Pain sur Poolish, a French bread made with a pre-ferment, is from Joe Ortiz's "The Village Baker." In many ways, this is the classic French bread made with a pre-ferment. It has all the proper things in it and makes a wonderful loaf.
The Poolish
| Ingred | Ounces | Grams |
| HK Flour | 10 1/2 | 300 |
| Water | 10 1/2 | 300 |
| Dry Yeast | 1 tsp | 5 ml |
The Dough
| Ingred | Ounces | Grams |
| Poolish | 21 | 600 | Use all the poolish from above |
| HK Flour | 24 3/8 | 690 |
| Water | 10 1/2 | 300 |
| Salt | 7/8 oz | 24 |
| Dry Yeast | 2 tsp | 5 |
Method
Poolish
To make a Poolish mix it up, knead it into a dough and allow it to sit, covered, on the counter for four hours.
Dough
- Mix all the ingredients together for 2 minutes. Then let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
- Mix for 10 to 14 mintues. The dough will become smooth and not very sticky.
- Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and let ferment for 1 1/2 hours.
- Fold the dough, then let it ferment back in the bowl for 30 minutes more.
- Divide the dough into two pieces. Let the pieces rest, covered, on the counter for 10 minutes.
- Shape each piece into a tight log about 3 by 6 inches / 75 x 150 mm.
- Let the loaves relax on a well-floured surface and covereed by a damp towel, for 15 minutes.
- Gently stretch the loaves to a length of between 12 and 14 inches / 30 to 35 cm.
- Place the loaves on either a lightly oiled baking sheet or parchment paper and let them rise for 1 1.2 to 2 hours. they should double.
- Heat the oven to 475F / 245C. Make provision for steam in the oven and place a baking stone or tiles on the oven rack.
- Slash the loaves down the center of the loaves.
- Bake, with steam, for 15 minutes, then turn the loaves and bake until done, an internal temperature of 200F / 93C or until the loaves sound hollow when rapped on the bottom.
- Let the loaves cool on a rack before eating.
Here we go:
Click the thumbnail to see a larger version of the picture.
Click the large image to return to the discussion.
