6 c. water
3 T. salt
3 T. yeast
13 c. flour
- In a large container with a loose-fitting lid (I use a 9 qt. Tupperware) mix ingredients until incorporated (but don't worry about kneading the dough or getting it super-smooth). The resulting dough will be very soft and loose--that's exactly the way it's supposed to be (the high-hydration is what allows it to keep well in the refrigerator).
- Put lid on container (leaving a small gap for air to escape) and allow dough to sit on the counter for a couple of hours, then put container in the fridge.
For fantastic "artisan" bread, do this:
- Put a pizza stone in the oven, with a roasting pan underneath it, and preheat the oven to 450°
- On a pizza peel (wooden board with a long handle) or something similar (back of a cookie sheet, cutting board, etc.) sprinkle some cornmeal or a liberal helping of flour
- Remove dough from the fridge, dust a portion of the surface with flour, flour your hands, and reach in and grab a handful of dough (approximately grapefruit-sized for a 1 lb. loaf), using a serrated knife to cut the dough from the main mass.
- Gently (trying not to deflate the dough any more than you have to) stretch the surface of the dough (which was exposed in the container in the fridge) around the ball, forming a "gluten cloak", pinching it together at the bottom, then place the ball of dough on the prepared (cornmeal-dusted) peel and let it rest for 30 minutes (while your oven--and the pizza stone--heats).
- After 30 minutes, dust the top of the ball of dough liberally with flour then slash two or three times in each direction (in a tic-tac-toe pattern) with a serrated knife.
- Fill a measuring cup with around 1 c. hot water. Open the oven door, and gently slide the dough from the peel onto the hot pizza stone (the cornmeal will act like "ball bearings", allowing it to slide easily, though this may take some practice). Pour the water into the roasting pan (stand back! it will produce lots of steam!) and immediately shut the oven door.
- Bake bread for 20-30 minutes, until it is dark golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom.
- Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing--if you can manage to wait that long! :) The crust will be perfectly crackly and crisp and the inside as soft and flavorful as the best french bread you've ever had.
The dough also makes a wonderful pizza crust--just cut off a hunk, roll it out, put it on a cornmeal-dusted peel, top it, slide it onto a hot stone, and yum. :)
Of course the dough could also be shaped into baguettes, rolls, etc.
I understand that over the course of a week or two the dough will also "sour" slightly, so later breads will have more of a sourdough flavor. I think I've noticed that in my most recent loaf, though it wasn't incredibly strong. Hopefully it will continue to develop as the dough ages. I've read that many people will mix new batches of dough without washing the container between batches, so as to preserve the sour flavor that develops.
My next batch will probably contain some percentage of wheat flour. I've read that this method of breadmaking lends itself very well to wheat breads. Typically wheat breads are denser than white because the bran tends to cut the threads of gluten, limiting the dough's ability to rise. Since this method includes virtually no kneading or working of the dough, there is much less opportunity for the developed gluten to be damaged by the bran, so wheat breads (should) be lighter.
Anyway... So far we've all loved being able to have fresh bread with very little work and much less advance notice than would normally be required. Hope you all enjoy it too! :)
