<![CDATA[Bread People, what did I do wrong?]]>Bread People, what did I do wrong?

While the photos look nice, this loaf turned out just slightly wet/gummy feeling.

I did wait well over an hour before slicing. I have some ideas.

This recipe was about 94% hydration, as opposed to the 84% hydration I've been using.

Also, this was in a 2 quart dutch oven and I wonder if it is just too small for this loaf. (Over 740 grams)

Oh, I also did a two-day cold ferment.

(I guess I changed a lot of variables at once!)

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/topic/0d7efead-472c-49de-add5-a802e51aeac4/bread-people-what-did-i-do-wrongRSS for NodeFri, 01 May 2026 23:09:52 GMTWed, 29 Apr 2026 21:50:32 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to Bread People, what did I do wrong? on Thu, 30 Apr 2026 08:11:20 GMT]]>@loppear Interesting. I’ll definitely lower the hydration next time.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/rasterweb/statuses/116492643921057293https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/rasterweb/statuses/116492643921057293Thu, 30 Apr 2026 08:11:20 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bread People, what did I do wrong? on Thu, 30 Apr 2026 07:14:47 GMT]]>@rasterweb it certainly looks as if the starch is still not set. Longer cooling recommended. You’re not saying what flour you used, but the hydration seems very high.

At what temperature are you baking, and for how long?

At that weight, assuming the 740 g is the dough and not just the flour, I would heat the pot to 250 C and bake the bread covered for 15 minutes, then take off the lid, reduce temperature to 230 C and bake for another 35 minutes.

Then cool on a rack for at least 2 hours

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mendeddrum.org/users/Tho99/statuses/116492421516536519https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mendeddrum.org/users/Tho99/statuses/116492421516536519Thu, 30 Apr 2026 07:14:47 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bread People, what did I do wrong? on Thu, 30 Apr 2026 03:47:32 GMT]]>@rasterweb

Any chance your flour is absorbing moisture from the air? Could lead to variable results depending on the humidity.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mindly.social/users/cazabon/statuses/116491606618455477https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mindly.social/users/cazabon/statuses/116491606618455477Thu, 30 Apr 2026 03:47:32 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bread People, what did I do wrong? on Thu, 30 Apr 2026 03:05:09 GMT]]>@rasterweb 700g in a 2qt is typical for me, at 450F, but over 75% hydration seems a lot, maybe just needed more time than the crust could take at temp?

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.coop/users/loppear/statuses/116491439929908202https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.coop/users/loppear/statuses/116491439929908202Thu, 30 Apr 2026 03:05:09 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bread People, what did I do wrong? on Thu, 30 Apr 2026 01:20:17 GMT]]>@gcvsa Ah, cold ferment, allow to sit in my refrigerator for two days. I have the process down for my pizza dough, but obviously not for bread!

I was concerned about the hydration level too, so I probably need to dial it down. It was not easy to work with.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/rasterweb/statuses/116491027559940720https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/rasterweb/statuses/116491027559940720Thu, 30 Apr 2026 01:20:17 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bread People, what did I do wrong? on Thu, 30 Apr 2026 01:18:50 GMT]]>@gcvsa I did 450˚F preheat for about 30 minutes... maybe I should do more? I did 20 covered and then about 18 uncovered. Maybe that was okay for my smaller loaf but just not enough for this larger one.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/rasterweb/statuses/116491021848074256https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/rasterweb/statuses/116491021848074256Thu, 30 Apr 2026 01:18:50 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bread People, what did I do wrong? on Thu, 30 Apr 2026 00:54:03 GMT]]>@rasterweb I preheat my pot for 1 hour at 450°F, then bake for 30 minutes covered, and 10-15 min uncovered.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.plus/users/gcvsa/statuses/116490924421077460https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.plus/users/gcvsa/statuses/116490924421077460Thu, 30 Apr 2026 00:54:03 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bread People, what did I do wrong? on Thu, 30 Apr 2026 00:52:47 GMT]]>@rasterweb 94% hydration seems very high to me. Even 84% seems high. I generally use 400 g bread flour to 300 g water. As for wet and gummy, a "two day cold ferment" may have exhausted the dough, though I'm not sure what "cold" means to you, so maybe it just didn't ferment enough. I ferment at "room temperature", which varies according to season in my kitchen, but in Winter, my kitchen is about 17-18°C and I ferment about 20-22 hours.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.plus/users/gcvsa/statuses/116490919471599971https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.plus/users/gcvsa/statuses/116490919471599971Thu, 30 Apr 2026 00:52:47 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bread People, what did I do wrong? on Thu, 30 Apr 2026 00:30:30 GMT]]>Two people suggested it just needed a longer bake time and I think that was probably the issue. Live (and bake) and learn!

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/rasterweb/statuses/116490831822261369https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/rasterweb/statuses/116490831822261369Thu, 30 Apr 2026 00:30:30 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Bread People, what did I do wrong? on Wed, 29 Apr 2026 21:52:09 GMT]]>The bread was good when toasted, but that's usually the case. My previous recipe was about 450 grams while this one was almost 750 so I am wondering if that's just too large for my 2 quart dutch oven.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/rasterweb/statuses/116490209151199230https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/rasterweb/statuses/116490209151199230Wed, 29 Apr 2026 21:52:09 GMT