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Get a
Good Crust on Rustic Breads |
Slash the top of the bread
dough, put steam in the oven, watch the temperature and don't forget the
salt ! For more information, go to
Sourdough & Sponge Starters 101. |
Doughs used to make rustic breads,
such as French bread,
sourdough or an Italian-style loaf,
typically have crispy outside crusts. It is a wonderful contrast to
the bread's insides, which are soft and porous with small holes throughout, as
in the case with French bread, or chewy as in the Sourdough bread. But, how do
you get a good flavorful, well-browned crispy crust ?
 There
are several tips below, but the main ones are to use baking or pizza stone or
tiles and to create stem in the oven during the first 5 - 10 minutes. Rustic
breads that we buy in the store, are made with a commercial hearth oven, which
creates the perfect environment during baking, critical to a crispy crust. Steam
allows the yeast to work a little longer in the dough and this, combined with a
hot baking surface, produces an extra push of volume. In addition, steam
coagulating the starch on the surface of the dough gives the crust its
characteristic brown color.
The properties of a good oven include thick baking stones
heated with gas fire for more even heat distribution. The oven should have
heating elements at the top. They also have steam tubes which deliver large
amounts of steam, necessary for a rustic
crust. It is difficult to fully replicate the effects of a commercial hearth
oven at home, but we can come somewhat close:
Use the correct ingredients and follow
the necessary baking steps:
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Use a high gluten
flour, such as bread flour.
| Bread flour, because of its high
protein content, results in a chewy bread without being solid or
dense. It also results in a thin crispy crust. All-purpose flour gives
you a thicker crust. The lower the protein content, such as
all-purpose, the lower the moisture absorption rate of the flour and a
thicker crust results. The stronger the flour, such as bread flour,
the higher the absorption rate the thinner the crust. |
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Do not leave out the
salt.
| Salt helps in crust formation because
it retards yeast activity, leaving more sugar available to caramelize
and form a nice, brown crust. However, don't put it in with the
starter. |
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When kneading and
shaping the dough, use as little extra
flour as possible.
| A heavy coating of flour can interfere
with crust formation. |
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After a lean dough rises,
slash
the top 3-4 times with sharp knife, cutting about 1/4 inch deep. Spray the
knife lightly with vegetable oil spray before slashing; it will prevent the
knife from dragging on the dough's surface.
| Slashing makes a place for the bread
to expand, instead of a blow-out happening. Also, bubbles may appear
under a crust where there is no slashing. It is also done for
aesthetics. Historically, French rural ovens were communal, in a
sense: they were originally owned by the lord, and maintained by a
fournier, or ovenmaster, who kept the oven hot but charged for its
use. Since the bread of each household would be mixed with others in
the oven, a distinctive slash was one way to tell the loaves apart. |
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Lightly sprinkle a little flour on top of the loaf before baking to give a
rustic look. |
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Make sure
your oven is accurate.
| An oven thermometer, available from
the supermarket, is the best tool to use. If the oven is not hot
enough, the gases that cause fermentation, are allowed to expand
without boundaries; the low heat does not adequately set the structure
of the bread. The loaf will collapse and the crust will never brown
properly. On the flip side, if the heat is too hot, the loaf sets
before it fully expands and the crust burns. |
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Use a
baking or pizza stone to disperse
the heat evenly.
| Flat baking stones replicate the floor
of a professional oven, where loaves are set directly to promote a
crisp and brown crust. Place on the floor of the oven before
preheating. Some recipes recommend sprinkling with cornmeal so the
bread doesn't stick. It must get really hot, so I prefer to preheat my
oven for an hour ! To check if ready, drop some water on top of the
stone, and if it dances, it's ready -- never touch the hot stone
directly ! Then, place the bread dough on top of the stone to
bake. Use a baking peel or long handled spatula. Make sure your wear
long kitchen gloves to prevent burns. |
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Steam in the oven is crucial to making a
crusty loaf of bread ONLY for the first 5 - 10 minutes, until the bread
begins to brown. |
| Applying steam to the dough during baking
keeps the outer dough layer flexible and moist. This helps achieve the
greatest amount of oven spring and loaf volume. Once the outside layer of
the dough sets, gases in the loaf can no longer expand to increase the
loaf size. Steaming the dough as it bakes also gelatinizes starch on the
outside layer, producing a bread with a crisp crust and a brown crust
color in varying degrees; too much steam results in an undesirable crust.
Steam also helps to prevent wild breaks in the loaves because it delays
the setting of the bread's crust, allowing it more time to bake and brown.
However, in contrast, during the last stages of baking, a dry oven is
required when the crust is browning; after the steam is removed, the
gelatinized layer dries out forming a thick crunchy crust.
Commercial bakers inject steam
into the oven with special equipment. But, at home, many of us do not have
the luxury, so we have to create our own:
 | To start, while the oven preheats, spray the bread
all over with water. |
| One way to create steam in a home oven, is to do so
with a cast iron frying pan or jelly-roll pan filled with water. (Cast
iron is more effective because it gets hotter). To do: before
preheating, place a cast iron pan on the bottom of the oven. Preheat the
oven and place the bread dough in the oven to bake. Standing as far as
possible away from the oven, fill with 1/2-inch of hot water. This will
cause an immediate burst of steam. Quickly close the oven door to trap
the steam, and do not open for at least 10 minutes. Leave the pan in the
oven and remove when the oven has cooled. |
| I take aluminum muffin tins and poke tiny holes in
the bottom of each well. I fill the tins with boiling water and place
them on the bottom rung of the oven about a minute before putting the
bread in to develop initial steam. The water will drip onto the bottom
of the oven and create steam. After placing the bread inside, close the
oven door to trap the steam. Remove the tins after the first 5-10
minutes. |
| Another way to create steam is to use a spray water
into the oven with a spray bottle filled with water but, I have found
that it is not as effective as a pan of water, described above. To do:
right after placing the bread in a well-preheated oven, spray water on
the walls and floor of the oven, avoiding the bread and the oven's
light. Do this until the loaves begin to color. |
| Some bakers throw ice cubes on the bottom of the
stove to create steam. |
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The proper
storage is critical to keeping your loaf's crust crispy.
As soon as the bread begins to cool on the cooling
rack, the bread starts to go stale. The interior of the loaf dries out
and the crust starts to absorb moisture, making it soft. If you love
crusty bread, store it in a brown paper bag or let it just sit on the
counter. Don't use plastic wrap or a bag because it will soften the
crust and preserve the moist interior. |
 If
the bread goes stale, moisten the outside with water, by sprinkling it
on with your hands. Heat it in a 400 degree F preheated oven for about
15 minutes. |
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