This has become my standard recipe for bread. It’s an extra step, but so very little extra effort is required, it’s only forgetfulness that keeps me from doing this all the time…
The “poolish” is a pre-ferment of a portion of the flour and water. I use 20% of the recipe flour (by weight – everything is by weight), an equal weight of water, and a tiny bit of yeast. This gets mixed well, covered (I use shower caps bought in bulk from Amazon), and left to ferment overnight, trying for 8 – 12 hours.
The next morning, weigh out the remaining flour and water, weigh out salt, yeast and oil. Combine to form a dough, knead for 10 – 20 minutes to achieve a smooth dough, and place the dough back in the mixing bowl to rise.
After the dough has risen by about half (not doubled!), pull the dough onto a floured counter to pre-shape loaves. I tend to make four loaves at a time, and divide the dough into loaves of about 870-880 grams (Oh yeah – everything is metric, too. It’s just easier.) The dough balls are formed into balls, pulling and stretching one side into a smooth round, tucking everything into the opposite side. These are left to rest, smooth side up, for about twenty minutes.
To shape the loaves:
– flatten a ball into a round, smooth side down
– roll left and right sides back toward the middle
– roll the top edge toward the bottom to form a loaf
Grease loaf tins to match your recipe, and place the formed loaves in the tins, covered with a towel, until the bread rises to just above the rim of the tin. I use a razor blade to slash a pattern onto the loaves, but a simple slash down the middle will work well.
Starting with a cold oven (it’s what I learned, it’s what I do) set the oven to 425F and set the timer for 40 minutes. Test the bread with an instant-read thermometer. The bread center should be above 190F.
Here is a table of ingredients for up to four loaves.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| Flour | 600 | 1200 | 1800 | 2400 |
| Water | 360 | 720 | 1080 | 1440 |
| Salt | 12 | 24 | 36 | 48 |
| Yeast | 6 | 12 | 18 | 24 |
| Oil | 20 | 40 | 60 | 80 |
I use exclusively King Arthur Organic Bread Flour and King Arthur Organic All Purpose Flour for my baking. I don’t necessarily think the organic stuff is inherently better, but it does help the pollinators, wholly needed for making crops.
