Does anyone here using flour from Carolina Ground or Anson Mills? I've been making my own bread for a while using King Arthur's and I want to experiment with some local variety
Eta: You guys are so kind with the awards. Thank you.
Tl;dr: results
Hi sourdough fans! I do most of my baking with bread flour from the grocery store (US based), and have recently noticed some differences in the way my bread bakes up using these two brands. On paper, they look similar; Bob's has a slightly higher protein content (6g per 36g serving vs 4g per 30g serving) but doesn't claim a certain % of protein. The website simply gives the protein content at 12-14%. KA lists its protein content at 12.7%. They are both American hard red wheats and contain added malted barley flour. My gut feeling is that the BRM is milled a bit finer, but I'm just going by feel. This week, I wanted to see if the differences I noticed were incidental to the particular day I baked or whether they were still present when controlling for day-to-day variables. So I made 2 batches of bread at the same time with the same recipe, except for the brand of flour.
https://preview.redd.it/ou0fz4iwfav71.jpg?width=3829&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cd3b8a995fc00e5491ff52f05db4dcad659e1f2f
First, the recipe and method (one batch per flour):
Make levain 2 days before baking (7pm):
17g whole wheat starter
129g water
129g bread flour, either KA or Bob's Red Mill
Let sit at room temp 12 hours
1 day before baking (7am)
Autolyze 60 min:
218g water
372g bread flour (KA or Bob's Red Mill)
Add 263g levain and mix, rest 30 min
Sprinkle 10g salt on top, rest 30 min
Bulk ferment and proof:
Mix and laminate after 1 hour
3x stretch and fold every 45 min
Neglect dough for 2 hours while running errands
Pre-shape (I made 2 loaves per batch) and let sit 30 min
Shape into floured bannetons and cover
Proof at room temp 2 hours and then neglect dough another 3 hours because I went out to dinner
Place bannetons in the fridge for 11 hours
Bake 7am the next day:
Score, spray with water 4-6 times, and place in DO
20 mins @ 485F, remove lid of DO
15 mins @ 450F (note that these are only 350g loaves)
Not surprisingly, my dough was a bit overproofed, but at least both batches were overproofed evenly. Luckily my house wasn't very warm (68F/20C). And science goes on! Here are my observations.
Starter: The KA flour rose a bit faster and higher than the BRM, with more bubbles, although the BRM was stringier and had more structure (thicker gluten strands).
https://preview.redd.it/uj1p4op6fav71.jpg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b8
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I have a stone flour mill at home (Mockmill 100), what whole grain should I use for my flat breads? For paratha how do I get a flaky product? For roti how do I get it softer? Just some general info on different grains and what kind of product they lead to would be helpful.
Trying to decide whether to invest into grain mill. I will also be using it for other sorts of flour: rice, chickpea, buckwheat etc. Not everything I make will contain yeast or bacteria, i.e. also making flatbreads.
- Would my baked/end product taste better? In what way?
- Is it healthier to use freshly ground flour? What is the evidence for this?
- Do you think you've saved much money?
Love to hear people's experiences.
Large-ish quantities for a home baker preferred although I'm willing to up my bread intake if bulk is the only option. Bonus points if it is unbleached and if they also sell other non-AP types of flour :)
Thanks!!!
Was gonna buy some flour. Looking through ingredients. I've bought Gold Medal flour before. I see the ingredient list in the store... "enzyme." No Barley flour. I check the website. It's not in the bread flour, unbleached flour, any flour. Check other brands. The store brands... enzyme.
Is this recent? What's this "enzyme?"
Trying to decide whether to invest into grain mill. I will also be using it for other sorts of flour: rice, chickpea, buckwheat etc. Not everything I make will contain yeast or bacteria, i.e. also making flatbreads.
- Would my baked/end product taste better? In what way?
- Is it healthier to use freshly ground flour? What is the evidence for this?
- Do you think you've saved much money?
Love to hear people's experiences.
