My 3rd attempt at sourdough, getting better but I know I can improve, the bottom always burns even with parchment paper. Any tips are appreciated yall!
Recipe:
500g bread flour
350g water
10g salt
100g starter
Steps:
Mix together active starter and water
Add flour and salt
Mix until there are no clumps, set for 1 hour
Stretch and fold every 30 minutes, 4 times
Bulk ferment on counter for 4 hours
Preshape, rest 30 minutes on counter
Shape again and add rice flour to proofing basket
Cold ferment in fridge for 14 hours
Preheat oven to 450F
Score and bake at 450 for 30 minutes covered, 15 minutes uncovered.
Cool and serve.
by Tejascacs
19 Comments
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Don’t stop
Cookie sheet on the rack below your DO. It looks great !
Eat it.
Looks great! A pizza stone or heavy baking sheet either under the dutch oven or on the rack below to hep disperse the direct heat from the bottom of the oven.
That is a pretty severe burn on the bottom. Do you have an oven thermometer that you can check what temp your oven is heating to when the elements are on?
If it is not overheating, then I think I would put a double layer of parchment under the dough in addition to the stone/sheet below it.
I put a thin layer of rice on the bottom of my preheated Dutch oven right before I put my bread in. The rice takes the burn but still holds the heat so the bottom cooks. I live in an apartment with a super old oven that doesn’t distribute heat evenly so I was dealing with the same burnt bottom problem lol
This looks amazing. Nice job!!
To avoid a burned bottom, make sure you preheat your oven 50 degrees above the temp you want to bake at and then lower it back down to the desired temp immediately after putting your bread in the oven.
Burned bottoms tend to happen when the temp drops from opening the oven door which means your oven needs to turn the bottom (usually) burners back on to get it back to temp. This results in excessive heat from the bottom which burns the crust. Doing it the way i described above makes it so the oven doesnt need to keep heating after the bread has been inserted which means you get a more uniform heat distribution during baking.
My tip is to write down whatever it is that you did and do it more.
Doesn’t look like you need any – great loaf!
Cookie sheet under the Dutch oven and I sprinkle some oats in the actual Dutch oven before putting my loaf in, comes out perfect every time.
Your loaf looks fantastic.
I turn down the heat to 400 about 20 minutes in, and add a pan full of ice to lower temps and make steam. I never use parchment paper; I use a paper towel to put a very light coat of corn oil on the cloche or dutch oven floor, and then I sprinkle some medium grind cornmeal (Bob’s Red Mill) where the loaf will sit. I place the cloche or dutch oven on a middle rack, about as high as it can go without scraping the ceiling. My loaves never burn. So you might try some or all of those things.
For my money your score is a little deep. If you want an ear, try a longer, curvier, but not quite so deep score, and undercut the skin of the dough towards the center rather than plunging the razor straight down towards the loaf’s center.
Just keep baking!
Maybe angle your “ear score” a bit more? Aim for 30-45° towards the inside of the loaf instead of slashing straight down. That’ll give you more of that ear effect and you won’t cut through the “belly” of the bread quite so much.
That crumb is amazing though! I’m so jealous! 🤤
Slice. Toast. Butter. Repeat.
can i have a slice ?
Did you add more flour? I use a good amount of rice flour in the banneton, but I don’t get that nice white contrast around the score lines after baking
I’d like some fucking tips, that looks great.
For the burnt bottom, I learned from smarter people on here to put the DO on a sheet, and/or place a cast iron pan on the lowest oven rack.
For your recipe I would cook the loaf directly on the rack instead of uncovered in the DO for the last 15 minutes. I’ve been doing that and it’s completely fixed the burning issue I was also having
I need YOU to give ME tips lol