PastorDIC wrote:
> Google burped, so I'll publish this a 2nd time.
>
> On Jan 7, 12:48 pm, Mike Avery > wrote:
>
>> I don't know how familiar you are with
>> baking in general. If you don't have much experience as a baker, I
>> suggest you start with simpler yeasted white flour recipes. They are
>> easier and will help you develop confidence and your techniques.
>>
>
> Just because I am not a professional baker doesn't mean I don't have
> experience baking bread, or for that matter, using starter. I have
> both.
>
>
My comment was because I didn't know how much experience you have. If
you have said, "I've been baking for 5 years" somewhere, I never saw
that post. I like to cover my bets, so the disclaimer was needed. You
have no idea how many letters I get from people who have never baked at
all and suddenly want to bake whole wheat sourdough from a starter they
made themselves and they don't know why things aren't working for them.

> After baking your bread multiple times, I gave details and asked
> questions. I get you saying this, and all the experts saying "too many
> rises". "Not long enough rises". "To many rises and not long enough
> rises for the ones you should have". If I am to blame, then it looks
> like you need to really rework all your material, or no one seems to
> agree with you.
> Russ
I don't recall saying you are to blame, just that you seem to be having
a lot of trouble. I think the issue might be "all the experts." Cut
the babble out of your life for a while by sticking with one book,
website or teacher. Avoid the newsgroups and mailing lists and work on
a single bread.... control your variables until you get a handle on what
the results are.

My usual suggestion for a "teach yourself to bake" class is to go to a
bakery you like and buy a loaf of bread. Then dissect it. Examine its
flavor, its crust, its crumb, its color. Take notes.

Then find a recipe for the same sort of bread and make it. Compare the
two. Again, take notes. They will probably not be terribly similar.

Now change ONE thing in your recipe or procedure to make your bread more
like the one you bought. Dissect the bread again.

Again, take notes, again, make ONE change. You will learn what changes
what in baking.

Repeat the steps above until you think you're close to duplicating the
loaf you purchased. Then go buy another one and see how close you are.
You'll probably have to repeat the steps above again a few more times.

The goal is not to make a loaf better than the one you bought, but one
just like it. You'll probably make a number of loaves better than the
store bought loaf. Keep your notes so you can repeat those loaves when
you're ready. The goal is to match the loaf you bought. You'll learn
about changes in flours, hydration, kneading, rise times, multiple rises
and baking. And when you're done, you'll have a much better idea of how
to get from where your recipe is to where you want it to be.

None of the things talked about are good or bad, some are just more or
less appropriate for the bread you may want to be making today.

Good luck,
Mike


--
....The irony is that Bill Gates claims to be making a stable operating
system and Linus Torvalds claims to be trying to take over the world...

Mike Avery mavery at mail dot otherwhen dot com
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