Appreciation post: My friend's advice about dough hydration saved my 3rd loaf

I was over at my buddy Mike's place last weekend helping him move some furniture, and he mentioned how he used to end up with glue-like dough every time until someone told him to actually trust the recipe's water amount instead of adding more flour when it felt sticky. He said (and I quote) "the stickier the dough, the better the crumb" and that stuck with me. I tried it on my next loaf yesterday, using 350 grams of water to 500 grams of flour, and I let it sit for 20 minutes before kneading. The dough was a mess at first, real sticky and hard to handle, but after a couple folds it came together smooth and the bread came out fluffy instead of dense. Has anyone else had that moment where they just needed to stop fighting the dough and let it be wet?

2 comments

2 Comments

lisa_ross161d ago

Oh man, that moment when you finally stop fighting the dough is the best! That wet sticky mess scared me for so long. I used to add flour like crazy until my dough was tough and dry. Then someone told me to just wet my hands instead of adding flour. Total game changer. Now I embrace the stick and get those gorgeous open crumbs every time.

coleman.henry1d ago

@lisa_ross16 wet hands club for life. No more hockey pucks here.