Bread has been baked too soon after shaping / under proofed. Overproofed bread will also have a pale crust because the yeast has used all the sugars and therefore there are none left to caramelise the crust. High temperatures can cause premature over fermentation, which will result in wet, sticky sourdough. Dont try traditional kneading techniques like punch and turn with moist sourdough. This is mainly because sourdough is higher hydration, meaning it contains more water. If you want to you can spritz your dough with extra water before you put the lid on. It might be that your sourdough is too sticky because there is insufficient gluten development. While sourdough is a wetter, stickier dough than what you may be used to, it should still be able to be stretched, folded and shaped without too many issues. During shaping, we want to wet our hands to prevent the dough from sticking to it. Mix by hand until all the dry flour is incorporated. The recipe I followed was from "a beautiful plate". Please take that into account. We retarded the dough for 16 hours. Evenly roll out your small 2- to 4-ounce balls into small circles a scant quarter inch thick. This could be a result of problems with a thermostat, heating element, or possibly the timer. If youre struggling with high hydration dough, then you should absolutely lower the hydration and see if you get better results. 1. Unfortunately, this results in tougher bread. Sticky and unmanagable sourdough. If your dough is too dry, add a little moisture and mix it, adding just a little more water if necessary. This blog contains scientific explanation on all matters related to baking written in simple words; I hope you will find something useful here and leave as a better baker. The stickiest of doughs are the ones that dont have a developed gluten network. Dont forget about your dough or leave it in a warm area for too long or youll end up regretting it. This is the preferred method used by professional artisan bakers. Sourdough does not stop cooking when you take it out of the oven. Mix the drier dough until it has developed into the desired dough strength. Pour the hot water from the kettle into the tray to create steam and shut the door. Third, mix in the soaker, mixing and incorporating the grains and seeds into . This is the sourdough baking course you need if you are just starting out in sourdough bread baking. STEP FOUR: Pour the starter/water mixture into the flour mixture and stir, using a fork, into a thick, sticky ball. Both of you mentioned a point in common on the hydration where I made a huge mistake on as I did not account for the hydration of the starter added. So if you're over-shooting the original formula's hydration due to miscalculattion, that would be the first thing to correct. However, the dough may be too hydrated for your location. Lightly Flour One Side Of The Dough During Shaping. Cover with plastic wrap and keep covered in a warmish place in your kitchen at around 77F (24C) for 1 hour. Another reason we want to minimize dusting is because the additional flour from dusting is not well hydrated and when baked can leave unsightly gray streaks on your sourdough bread that taste raw. Maybe try leaving it a bit longer? If you cant shape it, the sourdough is too sticky. Be sure you open with an autolyse, a step far easier than it sounds. Without these it will be sloppy and hard to handle. Add the sugar and salt. Your dough might be too sticky because you added too much water when making the initial mix, too. Wet and sticky dough is caused by a few different issues. 3. If you're using all purpose flour, it can be a good idea to add some vital wheat gluten to the mix. A simple way to check that your dough is cooked through is to tap the base. After every fold, you will notice a significant improvement in dough strength and significant reduction in the wetness and stickiness of the dough. Final internal temp 211F Sliced after cooling for 4 hours. Agree with the previous comments and hotter, longer and let dry, https://www.abeautifulplate.com/artisan-sourdough-bread-recipe/, Lamination butter for croissants - question, Mexican buns aka coffee cookie buns aka rotiboy buns, Farmer's Market Week 18 (Whole Wheat Walnut YW/SD Combo), Red Fife x 4 = Awesomeness!!! Sourdough starter is wild yeast and bacteria. If you're using a young sourdough starter, there's always a chance that it's just not quite ready to bake with and will cause your dough to be too wet and sticky. This method of developing gluten should prove to be much cleaner and easier, but its up to you to figure out which gluten-development method you like the most. Ensuring that you a strong gluten network is also essential in aleviating this issue. Too much dusting of flour can also reduce stickiness to the point where sufficient skin tension is not able to be developed. We would like to share the recipe we used here, hopefully to get some help from the experienced bakers around! If you only want decorative scoring, you will need to push your bulk fermentation to the limit. Make sure that you're not using too much flour when shaping your dough. It really is a delicate balance to ensure that the yeast have consumed enough of their food to produce those beautiful pockets of air - but not too much so they can still provide oven spring at baking time. And dont let it sit in the fridge so long that it dries out. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. The hardness of water measureshow much calcium and magnesium ion is present (expressed as ppm). Jack Sturgess. This makes it easier to handle. Yes you read that right! Sticky dough isn't necessarily a bad thing, although I appreciate how frustrating it is for a new baker. You can read more about this, Take some time to strengthen your sourdough starter (particularly if it's been in the fridge for a while or it's doubling consistently). And where in the process the wet, sticky dough is a problem. The dough has already fermented and the flour you add won't be incorporated well. Gently turn the dough out onto a separate floured flat baking tray (not preheated). One should be sticky, and one should be dusted with flour. Stretch dough into rough 10"x17" rectangle, laminate and move to clean vessel for bulk. Meanwhile chop the cranberries. STEP THREE: Stir down the starter, then mix 1/3 cup of sourdough starter (90 grams) with water (385 grams) using a fork. Thanks guys!!! First, in a large mixing bowl, whisk the starter, water, orange zest and juice, and maple syrup or honey. Remove the potion from the refrigerator before chopping and boiling it. - longer waiting period before cutting --> this to me seems where you should start. I went here and checked the recipe -https://www.abeautifulplate.com/artisan-sourdough-bread-recipe/ it called for 350 BF and 90 WW, for a total of 440, plus 45 from the starter ( which was 100% hydration) for a total of 485. Sourdough can be a little tricky as it can take time for the flour to absorb the water during the autolyse process. Be careful to use the right type of flour for your recipe and play around with the hydration level if you need to. This can result in your dough feeling wetter and stickier than normal. If you're having trouble understanding the timing of bulk fermentation, I've written an easy to follow guide. This helps keep the dough from sticking. The side thats dusted with flour is the only side that you or anything else touches. Ensure that you have scored enough - you need one good score to ensure that your dough expands. They are purposed for cakes, slices, muffins, and other cooking. You can make a loaf of perfectly good sourdough bread at around 65% hydration if you want to. If your dough is sticky, its going to stick to whatever is dry, so if youre touching it with dry hands, youre going to struggle. Is Cake Flour The Same As Self-Rising Flour? You can then start to increase the hydration if you wish. Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Generally, a good hydration starting point is 75% or so when working with bread flour, 80% or so with whole wheat. During this time, the flour has the chance to fully hydrate and gluten network is able to develop in spite of the lack of mechanical mixing. The Number #1 Reason your sourdough bread might be flat is using the wrong flour. If so, fix that, and try it with your standard bake temps/times, And then, if the problem persists, then add to the lower hydration the lower/longer bake temps/times, too. Carefully make it round again pushing the seams underneath. Internal temp when I took them out of the oven was, again, 211F Just a tiny hint of tackiness this time around, well within the bounds of acceptability (I.e. Content posted by community members is their own. Youre right, the actual hydration is around 77%, and I understood that from the start. It may just be that you need to leave it in the oven longer with the lid off your. Though my guess is, that if you are getting the internal final temp to 211 F (even 210 F is usually good enough even for a mostly whole grain loaf)and it's still gummy, then your hydration was too high to start with. Gluten is impermeable, meaning it doesnt allow gas or water to pass through, when there isnt enough gluten in the dough, water molecules can easily escape out of the dough, resulting in dough mixture that is only partly incorporated with water. It affects pretty much every part of the process. Avoid using cake or pastry flour for dusting as it contains a higher starch content and tends to lump up more than bread, rice or semolina flour. Alternatively, you could add a little oil to the work surface and your hands. Im the face behind The Pantry Mama and I want to help you bake delicious sourdough bread, no matter what your schedule. If you do have a watery starter, you'll need to adjust the amount of water in your dough or set about finding a solution to thicken it up. Bread needs gluten development in order to trap gas and rise, but this also helps the dough to become less sticky. If you've just completed autolyse and you feel that your dough is too wet, it is possible to add some more flour at that that stage. If the dough is too sticky at this point, add a little flour and knead it in. Thanks for the tip! Our problem was with the tacky, rubbery, sticky insides of the baked bread (I could press a piece of the inside between my fingers and it would stick on without falling) no matter how long we bake it for (Charlie was baked for 40 mins in the cast iron and 20 mins on a rack, and the picture attached shows the insides). But you could also use other methods such as kneading or coil folds. Is rye flour good for . Thank you for visiting! We should aim to minimize the use of dusting flour in the baking process as the introduction of additional flour into our mix can significantly change the hydration level of the dough, resulting in a crumb that is drier and denser. So I suspect a miscalculation, and you might actually be doing 80% final hydration. no one but me would notice or care). This is called having over-proofed bread. A dough scraper is your best friend when handling any kind of dough. In a separate smaller bowl, add 220 grams of warm water. The more gluten it contains, the better it holds together. It should be room temperature. The flour you choose can have a big bearing on how your dough feels throughout the whole sourdough process. Instructions. Place the sourdough into the pot using the silicone sling or parchment paper as a handle. Make sure that you develop your gluten network really well during the stretch and fold stage. Well, sourdough is a stickier, wetter dough than regular yeasted bread. I wouldn't reduce temperature, but rather increase baking time. Youll notice that you can stretch the dough further and less will cling to your hands by the time youre done. If all has gone well, the dough will be in a tight ball and ready for proofing. Even with parchment paper, the base of your bread is sitting on the hot base of the Dutch Oven causing it to cook more quickly. Baking parchment paper is characteristic for its non stick ability without the need for any dusting of flour or oiling. Let your sourdough bread come to room temperature before you cut into it. No matter how long you leave it to ferment, the yeast and bacteria won't actually grow or change. If you see anything inappropriate on the site or have any questions, contact me at floydm at thefreshloaf dot com. Similarly, if your sourdough starter is too runny you may also end up with a super wet dough. Semolina (used for dusting pizza dough) however is much coarser in texture and it really comes down to your personal preference; if you like the coarse texture by all means go for it. Give it around thirty minutes. 480F is not as hot as you could bake. From a gummy crumb to a lack of rise and everything in between. Maybe tomorrow but it can also be the day after tomorrow. Bake in preheated, covered DO at 475F for 20 minutes, then uncovered at 450F for 20 minutes. Make the Dough: Meanwhile, in a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the boiling water, pumpernickel, oil, salt, molasses, instant coffee, and chocolate. If the sourdough is unworkable at the very start, this obviously isnt because the oven temperature isnt set right for your elevation. water) slightly (eg. CAUSE - the dough has been over fermented and/or over proofed and has too much air trapped in the shaped dough. If you see anything inappropriate on the site or have any questions, contact me at floydm at thefreshloaf dot com. We want to mix the dough until it develops adequate gluten network which is indicated by a dough that is stretchable without tearing but at the same time offers a degree of resistance when pulled apart. Baking the Sourdough: Preheat your oven to 450F (225C) and a baking pan. When using a proofing basket, line it with a clean cloth and dust its surface with flour by using a sieve to ensure an even coating. Pale crust after baked. Ensure that your dough is well fermented prior to shaping. Youll find that the dough sticks much less and youll have a better time shaping it. 2. I baked a loaf this morning and I dont gone cute it until we ready to eat it. It's wider on the bottom and almost pointy at the top, rather than having a rounded shape. Flour blended and autolysed for 2 hours@85F. CAUSE - There are a few reasons your crust is too pale. I'll come back with the results in a week! Your guide to solving sourdough bread problems. Thank you for going the extra mile to check the recipe! Be confident in your actions. A tough crust can also be caused by a lower hydration recipe. By using the tips below, youll be able to learn how to handle your dough without it sticking to you, so you can actually manage it and make great sourdough bread. Dough made with a young sourdough starter just won't develop. This is particular difficult if you're working in humid conditions. Second sign: The dough has become loose and slack, and doesn't seem to hold any kind of shape. If your bread contains rye, it can take up to 24 hours! We performed up to 6 sets of stretch and fold during the first two hours of fermentation before leaving it to bulk ferment for the next two hours. When the dough is excessively over mixed, it first becomes very strong and stiff, then when mixed further, the gluten network starts to unravel and unknits, releasing the absorbed water out into the dough environment, causing it to be wet and sticky. Thanks for the suggestions about leaving the bread to cool longer. This is the dry mixture. Its very important to avoid tearing the gluten as this causes it to become sticky again. This part is extremely important as its what determines whether you end up with a well-shaped sourdough or a mess. Another tactic is chilling the dough for a while. CAUSE - a tight and or uneven crumb is generally caused by under fermentation, but can also be due to not having a mature or active starter. SOLUTION - Lack of oven spring can be a complex problem. You don't want to add extra flour as this will affect the texture of the end product (which actually won't be very good at that point). To achieve a 75% hydration I will attempt again with the following: 390g of flour mix to 282g of water, adding on 90g of starter (at 100% hydration as I always to a 1:1 flour water ratio feed). First, in the evening, prepare the soaker by pouring hot water over the mixture of seeds and grains. Beginner bakers are best to start off with low to medium hydration dough before moving onto high hydration. An under fermented sourdough loaf will have a shiny, pale crust that lacks crunch. CAUSE - This most likely caused by under fermentation, but can sometimes be a shaping issue too. A basic sourdough is made with only wheat flour, sometimes just white flour and sometimes a combination of whole wheat flour and white flour. This increases the chances of tearing, which can make your life more difficult when shaping or kneading it. To calculate, add up all the flour, including the flour in the starter, then add up all the water, including the water in the starter, and divide the water by the starter. This is because of the moisture that remains in your sourdough. All original site content copyright 2023 The Fresh Loaf unless stated otherwise. Oil the mixing bowl, the bowl used for bulk fermentation and folding, and the proofing vessel. Some things to have on hand to work with really wet dough are: So how do you fix wet and sticky sourdough? Mix until dough comes away from the sides of the bowl . A hollow sound indicates that it's cooked. You might want to leave the bread in the oven for 10 minutes with the oven off and door ajar to help wick away some of the extra moisture. link to Yeasted Pre-ferment (Poolish & Biga) VS Sponge VS Dough, link to Pate Fermentee VS Poolish VS Biga VS Sourdough Starter, Stand Mixer (KitchenAid Type All Purpose Mixer). I've written about 6 things you can do to ensure you get good sourdough oven spring (and leave the hockey pucks behind) here. There are generally two causes of this (it can be a combination of both): SOLUTIONS - Depending on which of the above has caused your gumminess, you can fix by: PROBLEM - Your bread dough spreads and loses shape when you flip it out of the banneton to bake. Would really appreciate some pointers, thank you in advance!! 16 hour cold (38F) retard, in closed plastic bags. Over fermentation is a cause of wet, sticky dough. Skin tension during shaping is developed when one side of the dough sticks lightly on the work surface while the hands pulls the dough inwards from the opposite side, stretching the surface of the dough taut. As the gluten develops, the dough becomes less sticky and more manageable. It will stay very wet and sticky, rather than strengthen with each stretch and fold. the yeast has not fermented for long enough and still has too much energy to burn when it hits the oven, the yeast lets off too much gas all at once when it hits the oven. Youre aiming for maximum gluten development for the dough to become easier to manage. Bake the Bread. Nor should it be sticky after youve baked it. When using the autolyse method which call for the initial incorporation of only flour and water without salt, we may sometimes forget to include salt in the final mixing phase. This is the sourdough baking course you need if you are just starting out in sourdough bread baking. Acetaldehyde is a known stomach irritant and causes watery diarrhea. If baking in a pre-heated oven, turn on the oven to at least 200C/392F, once heated, add two big glasses of water to a dish on the bottom shelf Insufficient gluten development is what makes the dough so sticky, so if youre using a low protein flour (protein in flour creates gluten), it wont be able to create as much gluten in the dough and it will, therefore, be stickier. What has gone wrong to cause this issue? Now it is the sourdough starter or its use that is suspect. One reason why people add too much flour and mix it in is to try to get the dough more manageable. You can try to fix things like high humidity in your house or waiting until the kitchen has warmed to room temperature before getting to work. Modified: Dec 27, 2022 by The Pantry Mama This post may contain affiliate links. Add the all purpose/bread flour and whole wheat/spelt flour. You see, when your hands are wet, the dough cannot stick to them easily, so it just slips right through them. Make sure that you do your best to avoid this mistake by learning about sourdough fermentation timing and knowing when it's ready to move onto the next step. Step 3 - Total amount of flour is 80 grams + 600 grams = 680 grams. Cut one loaf of sourdough bread into 1" cubes.