<<An extended bulk fermentation (but not excessively) will still result
in uniform crumb appearance if the dough is divided and given enough
intermediate proof before molding.>>

I find that a longer intermediate proof helps to improve crumb
structure. In general, I believe the more gas there
is inside the dough at the time of shaping the better the loaf in terms of
holding it's shape well and having an open irregular crumb. This applies to
both the bulk proof and the intermediate proof after pre-rounding.
True, heavy handed molding can influence the structure of the loaf, but
the degree to which this results in a tight crumb is also dependent upon the
degree to which the dough has proofed. A dough that's full of gas can retain
an open irregular texture despite being shaped tightly. In fact, I believe
that more gas in the dough requires a tighter shaping, not only to give it a
resilient shape, but also to "pop" some of the larger air bubbles that might
result in a huge unwanted hole in the loaf.

Trevor

"Roy Basan" > wrote in message
m...
> "Trevor J. Wilson" > wrote in message
> ink.net>...
>> It's nice to see that you were able to achieve a nice crumb structure,
>> even with your lower hydration dough. There seems to be a common belief
>> that
>> only by using very wet doughs can a baker achieve an open irregular
>> texture.
>> In my experience this is just myth.
>> Certainly a wetter dough may have more potential to create an open
>> crumb, but it is not the main deciding factor. I've made bread with great
>> open irregular crumb texture using very stiff dough (60% hydration). I've
>> also made bread with dissapointingly tight texture using very wet dough
>> (80%).
> The difference there can be also due to the degree of dough handling.
> Some bakers tend to mould the firmer dough less tightly than they
> would with a softer dough.And that can influence crumb appearance
> also.
> Another is the molding of the dough that does not have enough
> intermediate proofing time, can contribute to irregular dough
> structure, while another dough piece that has attained sufficient rest
> if molded ( due to its extemsibility and less prone to
> buckiness)will result in a more even crumb grain.
>> In my experience, it's the bulk proof that is most important in
>> determining crumb texture. I'm curious what other bakers have to say on
>> this
>> matter.
>
> An extended bulk fermentation (but not excessively) will still result
> in uniform crumb appearance if the dough is divided and given enough
> intermediate proof before molding.
>
> On the other hand IF the dough has fermented long enough( much beyond
> the expected bulk dough fermentation time) then there is a higher
> level of gluten degradation due to gradual increase of proteolytic
> activity,so the resulting gluten bubbles during proofing will tend to
> exhibit a coalescence:
>
> I mean some of the gas cells are weakened and this fragile cells
> break and combine into two or more gas cells resulting in a (bigger
> holes) irregular crumb structure.
>
>
>
> Roy