On Tue, 21 Jun 2005 14:19:08 +0000, Gonorio Dineri wrote:

> "Dick Adams" > wrote in
> :
>
>>
>> "Mac" > wrote in message
>> news >>
>>> Can you quantify how much the salt slows the rise?
>>
>> http://aem.asm.org/cgi/content/full/64/7/2616/F2
>>
>> Also, from
>> http://www.kingarthurflour.com/stuff...eb4311b0be08b2
>> b590b39ac3f2c77/download/KAF-04-009%20Salt.pdf
>>
>> "Salt has a retarding effect on the activity of the yeast. The
>> cell wall of yeast is semi-permeable, and by osmosis it absorbs
>> oxygen and nutrients, as it gives off enzymes and other
>> substances to the dough environment. Water is essential for these
>> yeast activities. Salt by its nature is hygroscopic, that is, it
>> attracts moisture. In the presence of salt, the yeast releases
>> some of its water to the salt by osmosis, and this in turn slows
>> the yeast's fermentation or reproductive activities. If there is
>> an excess of salt in bread dough, the yeast is retarded to the
>> point that there is a marked reduction in volume. If there is no
>> salt, the yeast will ferment too quickly. In this sense, the salt
>> aids the baker in controlling the pace of fermentation.
>> Nevertheless, we should note that a careful usage of yeast,
>> control of dough temperature, and the type, maturity, and amount
>> of preferment used are better tools for fermentation control.
>> Salt quantity, as we have noted, should stay within the 1.8 to 2%
>> range."
>>
>> In my experience, forgetting ~1.5% (relative to flour weight) of
>> salt results in the rise going about twice as fast.
>>
>> (OT: Case of bread machine, where the rise time is fixed, the
>> quantities of salt and dry yeast, relative to other quantities,
>> are paramount importance -- that is one case where weight
>> measure makes sense.)
>>
>
> I calculate a teaspoon of kosher salt at little over 5 grams.
>
> I do use an analog kitchen scale ($10 at Wal-Mart) to measure my
> ingredients, but it does not accurately measure quantities as low as 5
> grams. So I measured 4 level measuring cups of kosher salt, and divided
> it by 192 (the number of teaspoons per 4 cups).
>
> My normal bread ingredient proportions by weight are these:
>
> 1x sponge (50% hydration)
> 5x flour
> 3x water
> .1x salt (ends up being 2% of the flour's weight)
>
> So, if I have 200 grams of starter, the right amount of salt is 20 grams,
> or 4 level teaspoons.
>
> 3% salt is, in my opinion, too much, for the bread tastes too salty, no
> matter how nice the rise is. 2% leaves me yearning a little.
>
> The higher the percentage of sponge in the recipe, the higher percentage
> of salt to dry flour, and lower the percentage of water. If you use the
> same weight of flour and sponge, then 3% salt is the right proportion.

Hmmm. When I say 1.8 g per 100 g of flour, I mean g of total flour,
including what is in the starter.

--Mac