Baguette
This recipe will produce a light and fluffy baguette with a semi open crumb. Baguettes are one of the trickier breads to make due to the shaping, but it's really fun and with practice it gets easier.
Method
Day 1 - Preparing the poolish
Combine all the ingredients for the poolish in a bowl.
Turn the dough mixture out onto your kitchen counter and knead with your hands until it's thoroughly combined, about 3-5 minutes.
Transfer the dough back into the bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 12-24 hours.
Day 2 - Baguette making time
Remove the poolish from the refrigerator.
In a separate bowl, combine all the dry ingredients (flour, salt,yeast), and give them a quick stir for an even mix. Then, add the water.
Tear the poolish into small, manageable pieces.
Begin kneading the dough, incorporating the poolish pieces gradually until fully combined.
If you're using a stand mixer, mix the dough for 2 minutes on low speed to combine, and then for 8 minutes on medium to develop gluten strength. If you're kneading by hand, knead for at least 10 minutes.
Tip!
The dough is ready when it passes the windowpane test. Wet your hands, take a piece of dough, and gently stretch it. If it doesn't break, it has passed the test! If not, knead a few more minutes.
Image courtesy of Ankarsum
Cover the dough with a damp towel and allow it to proof at room temperature for 1-2 hours, or until it has doubled in size.
Once the dough has proofed, gently deflate the dough to knock out the air, and divide it into 260g pieces.
Pre-shape each dough ball and let them rest for 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 240°C / 465°F.
Make the final shape which is exactly like the pre-shape, but with the extra step of kneading it to a baguette shape.
Cover the baguettes with a damp towel and let them proof for another 30-60 minutes.
Tip!
You can do a poke test to see if the dough is perfectly proofed.
Wet your finger and poke the dough lightly and observe what happens:
– Dough springs back quickly = underproofed
– Dough springs back very slowly = perfect
– Dough never springs back = overproofed
To create steam in the oven (which helps the bread rise), start boiling about 1000g of water. Place an ovenproof container at the bottom of the oven.
Score the dough by making three parallel slashes across the top of each baguette.
Position the baguettes on a baking tray, place the tray in the oven, and immediately pour the boiling water into the container at the bottom of the oven.
After 20-25 minutes in the oven, the baguettes should be done. Allow them to rest for at least 30 minutes after removing them from the oven. Cutting into the baguette too soon could cause it to lose moisture and become dry. Enjoy your homemade baguettes!
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