Great article! I now understand some of the differences in my recipes with starter/levain, sponge, and poolish. I guess it’s about time to try that poolish one I’ve been scared of. ;-) Thanks!
Thank you for this article it really helps. I do have one question - in the ratio of flour to water in the preferment: Is this a ratio by volume or mass? I use mass but other folks I know go by volume.
2 Questions: What is the hydration (I assume it is a range) of a "stiff" levain? What is the impact on a finished bread of using a stiff levain vs. a liquid levain?
A stiff levain is in the 55-75% range, just like the final doughs it mirrors. As for the impact, stiff is _supposed_ to mean more acetic acid and thus more prominent sourness, but that is disputed. I prefer a liquid levain because it is easier to measure out, and I've not found any drawbacks, in flavor or otherwise.
I maintain my starter in a stiff state because I find, as a home baker who bakes infrequently (Andrew bakes much more frequently), it easier to manage. Stiff starters move more slowly than liquid starters, and I find them more forgiving of "abuse" and long storage in the fridge.
Feb 22, 2022·edited Feb 22, 2022Liked by Andrew Janjigian
Preferments also give more time for the enzymes in the flour (the portion in the preferment) to act. Some starch is converted to sugars, which changes flavor (you can't have sweet and sour without the sweet!) and helps browning. Some protein is affected, which increases extensibility. (Some bakers claim that this effect is most pronounced when using a Poolish.) Enzymes get to work in both commercially and naturally leavened preferments (and in soaks without any leavening at all!).
When I took a class at SFBI we taste tested yeasted baguettes with comparable total formulas, made with straight dough (not retarded overnight), biga (stiff preferment fermented a few hours), and poolish (100% hydration, 12-hours fermentation). No one preferred the straight dough. A majority preferred the poolish.
All true! That baguette comparison is a classic one (I did it with Jeffrey Hamelman and James Macguire at King Arthur long ago. The 'en bac' was as popular as the poolish, because its not that there is something special about _pre_ fermenting the flour, only that a long fermentation is employed.
Arg, sorry. For example, if I'm trying to make multiple loaves at once, I might make an off-shoot levain overnight, for a total of 20% of the total recipe. How much sourdough starter should I inoculate in this levain ? Hope I'm more clear !
Joram - Please see this post, which is more relevant to your question https://newsletter.wordloaf.org/p/starter-starter-kit-2023-edition. I think 5% will probably work for you. The seed amount you use has no bearing on how much levain you are using in the bread, only on how much you are making and how long you want it to proof.
Charlie - I'm confused. Isn't wheat flour potato-free?
Sorry, I have no expertise in this sort of thing. Maybe someone else here does.
I love the word 'poolish'.
I forgot to mention its etymology: as I imagine you know, it comes from "Polish", because the technique supposedly originated in Poland
I thought it might but didn't know for sure x
Best news I have read all day! If I had the time today, I would call it "Wake and Bake."
Great article! I now understand some of the differences in my recipes with starter/levain, sponge, and poolish. I guess it’s about time to try that poolish one I’ve been scared of. ;-) Thanks!
Thank you for this article it really helps. I do have one question - in the ratio of flour to water in the preferment: Is this a ratio by volume or mass? I use mass but other folks I know go by volume.
mass, always and forever around here.
2 Questions: What is the hydration (I assume it is a range) of a "stiff" levain? What is the impact on a finished bread of using a stiff levain vs. a liquid levain?
A stiff levain is in the 55-75% range, just like the final doughs it mirrors. As for the impact, stiff is _supposed_ to mean more acetic acid and thus more prominent sourness, but that is disputed. I prefer a liquid levain because it is easier to measure out, and I've not found any drawbacks, in flavor or otherwise.
I maintain my starter in a stiff state because I find, as a home baker who bakes infrequently (Andrew bakes much more frequently), it easier to manage. Stiff starters move more slowly than liquid starters, and I find them more forgiving of "abuse" and long storage in the fridge.
I've never had any trouble measuring it out. :-)
Great review! Thanks, Andrew! You never disappoint. (even if cold proofing never works for me! 😊).
I don’t have any questions right now, but that’s a really informative and useful article, Andrew. Thanks!
Preferments also give more time for the enzymes in the flour (the portion in the preferment) to act. Some starch is converted to sugars, which changes flavor (you can't have sweet and sour without the sweet!) and helps browning. Some protein is affected, which increases extensibility. (Some bakers claim that this effect is most pronounced when using a Poolish.) Enzymes get to work in both commercially and naturally leavened preferments (and in soaks without any leavening at all!).
When I took a class at SFBI we taste tested yeasted baguettes with comparable total formulas, made with straight dough (not retarded overnight), biga (stiff preferment fermented a few hours), and poolish (100% hydration, 12-hours fermentation). No one preferred the straight dough. A majority preferred the poolish.
All true! That baguette comparison is a classic one (I did it with Jeffrey Hamelman and James Macguire at King Arthur long ago. The 'en bac' was as popular as the poolish, because its not that there is something special about _pre_ fermenting the flour, only that a long fermentation is employed.
I would like to see an article on Sprouted Flours and if formulas need to be modified when using. I mill my flour and have been using sprouted grains.
Sprouted flours are a subject I haven't explored in much depth yet, but will add to my list to cover someday!
What is the percentage of sourdough starter usually in an overnight preferment ? I hear everything from 3% to 10....
sorry, not sure what you mean exactly by "an overnight preferment". My starter triples with 5% in 12h time.
Arg, sorry. For example, if I'm trying to make multiple loaves at once, I might make an off-shoot levain overnight, for a total of 20% of the total recipe. How much sourdough starter should I inoculate in this levain ? Hope I'm more clear !
Joram - Please see this post, which is more relevant to your question https://newsletter.wordloaf.org/p/starter-starter-kit-2023-edition. I think 5% will probably work for you. The seed amount you use has no bearing on how much levain you are using in the bread, only on how much you are making and how long you want it to proof.
Wow, exactly what I was looking for, amazing thank you so much!