I finally got around to doing the experiment I’d discussed in this forum with @MTJohn
(Flour in recipe was 2.5 c Unbleached AP, 1 c Einkorn)
Yesterday morning, I pulled my starter from the fridge and prepared two bowls:
one with flour and water mixed
one empty
2.75 hrs later, I added salt and starter and a portion of the water I’d reserved to the autolysed dough
and
I prepped the other dough in the empty bowl all at once with the identical ingredients
I find Einkorn very soft and oozy to deal with, but the autolysed dough was a bit more manageable. I floured the heck out of my tea towels and did the final proof for another 10-ish hours in the fridge.
When I pulled the dough from the fridge, the autolysed dough was a little dryer and had less surface bubbling. It also appears to have absorbed less of the flour from the tea towel and it scored more easily. However, the crumb and ovenspring and taste are virtually same, if not leaning toward more rise from the no autolyse dough.
My conclusion is that any differences are mild, and possibly attributable to 1) my lack of use of scale, 2) my different cooking vessels (5 qt lodge and 9 qt staub).
It is also possible that using more whole grain flour would have yielded bigger differences.
Thanks for undertaking the experiment, and reporting back to us. I enjoyed both the comments and the photos. I’m beginning to think that there are as many different ways to bake bread as there are bakers – and that all bakers are kitchen chemists at heart.
I like your explanation of the differences between both samples, However I have been in the hospital for the last 4 months and my sour dough starter recipe disappeared. Would be so kind as to send me another copy of the recipe you use, I would really appreciate it. I am 75 and the family went through my things and threw away many things and I’ll never know. Thank you very much, Bud Benton.
I’m so sorry you were in the hospital, and that you now can’t find your sourdough recipe. I hope I can help, and that getting some bread baking in makes you feel truly back home.
This is my version of the Breadtopia No-Knead recipe - almost no variation (just shorter cook time and no oil/bran in basket).
2.5 cups All-purpose unbleached flour
1 cup Einkorn flour
1.5 tsp salt
1/4 cup starter
1.5 cups of water
8-14 hrs bulk ferment depending on the house temp and starter strength
stretch and fold on counter
15 minute rest
shape boule and put it into a proofing basket (I flour a tea towel and line a colander with it)
45-90 min second proof OR stick in fridge for 8-20 hrs and then pop into hot baking vessel straight from fridge
make sure to preheat your oven with the baking vessel in it at 500’ for 30 min
flip the boule into the hot vessel
500’ for 30 min lid on (option to lower heat to 450 after 20 min)
450 for 10 min lid off
