u/GupptiTamberooly

Hey y’all! Before I ask any questions, here’s my recipe/process:

100g starter
350g water
500g AP flour (10% protein)
10g salt

Initial mix, another round of mixing after 15 minutes, then fermentolyse for 1 hr
4 stretch and folds every 30 min, 2 hrs total
Bulk ferment in the fridge overnight
Shape next morning, then into the banneton, and cold ferment for about 24 hrs
Bake at 500°F in a preheated Dutch oven for 15 minutes w/lid on
Turn down to 450°F and bake for another 15 minutes covered
Remove lid and bake for a final 15 or till golden

This loaf came out darker than previous attempts because I forgot to pull it from the oven, but I’m not mad! Now, time for concerns/questions:

My main thing is, I’m wondering how I can get a more even, consistent crumb. There’s some larger bubbles on the edges, but it gets more dense towards the center. Is it possible to achieve a big open crumb with basic AP flour like I have, or do I need to change that? Also, I don’t have an internal temp reader, so I have neglected that portion of the process from my loaves. Is that an important step I’m missing? Finally, any tips on shaping a batard/oval to look more like an oval once it’s baked? I think my loaves are just kind of miscellaneously round-ish despite my best attempts at shaping.

Long message, I know, but I definitely want to improve, and feedback and/or tips would be much appreciated!

Hi y’all!

I have been hovering around the r/Sourdough community for a bit, and I finally decided to make my own post! While I have baked about 7 loaves now, that’s still pretty new haha. This is a loaf I baked this morning, and I think it looks pretty decent, but my shaping technique needs work.

Just for reference, here’s my recipe:

100g starter
350g water
500g AP flour (10% protein)
10g salt

Initial mix, another round of mixing after 15 minutes, then autolyse for 1 hr
4 stretch and folds every 30 min, 2 hrs total
Bulk ferment (usually on the counter for 6 hrs, but I had Mother’s Day prep!) in the fridge overnight
Shape next morning, then into the banneton, and cold ferment for about 24 hrs
Bake at 500°F in a preheated Dutch oven for 15 minutes w/lid on
Turn down to 450°F and bake for another 15 minutes covered
Remove lid and bake for a final 15 or till golden

Any tips, tricks, and convos about recipes or techniques would be awesome!