I agree. Lower hydration might be key. Of course it does matter what flours are being used. Some are thirstier than others.
I told @Fermentada today that when I use around 470-480 water I end up having to do quite about of kneading to mix it well. Higher water content does make for an easier to mix dough, but it doesn’t make for a better all around bake. -Sierra
Tried recipe twice. Baked in a Dutch oven for 60 min, then lid off for 30
Both times, very wet finished loaf. Taste is good, but seems wet inside.
Am going to try with 420 grams (10%) less H2O to see if that helps. Any other suggestions? Less psyllium husk? More gluten free bread flour
Thank you for the recipe!!
I am new to this and still trying to make my first great loaf using a dutch oven. I have looked at many g-free sourdough recipes and was wondering why there is such variation in the baking temps and times? I’ve seen temp ranges from 425 - 500 and various mid-bake temp changes and lid off times. Does anyone know or have a link to information on what different temperatures and times, lid on or off affect?
I do use an instant read thermometer and take the bread out when it hits 210. Thanks for any help!
I’d say your best bet it to try a recipe as it’s written but then modify based on your results. One of the times I made Breadtopia’s yeast leavened Artisan Style Gluten Free Bread, I took the bread out of the oven much earlier than the instructions said, because it was over 205F inside. The bread collapsed a bit when it cooled. This leads me to think that for GF bread, the customary very long bake time has to do with setting and dehydrating, not only temp.
In general, the more lid on time vs. lid off time, the paler and thinner the crust will be.
I don’t think there’s a right time and temp for baking a dough; you can get to the same end via more than one route.
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Thanks for the helpful info! It sounds like the lid off time after the initial oven spring with lid on just affects the crust and not so much the interior. Now I’m wondering about lid off temp, 425 vs 450 or 475. I’m thinking lower is probably better, but I’ll just experiment and see. Also I’m going to adjust my done temp to 205.
Glad to help. Some research I did leading up to writing a rye-oat recipe said to get rye up to the very specific 208F. So, maybe go to at least that for your GF bread. Different grains, of course, but if your bread isn’t burning, higher is probably good for reducing gumminess.
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Gotcha, yes I definitely still have some gummy issues to fix. I just read this article, which is basically saying taking internal temp of bread can only tell you when it’s NOT done, not when it IS done. So if you take the temp and it’s 195 or whatever then you know you aren’t there, but if it’s 210 it still may not be done and may need even another 15 minutes (the temp will still be around 210). I’m so used to taking meat temps I would have never guessed, very interesting.
Oh that is super interesting. Thanks for sharing. I guess the old school “knock the bottom of the loaf and listen for a hollow sound” is more important than I realized!
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@Fermentada @Bmeist The funny thing is that while I do rely on my thermometer before I take my bread out of the baker, when I do lift it out I tap the bottom of the loaf to see if it sounds hollow. It’s old school, but then again, so am I. 
Blessings,
Leah
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Hah, sometimes the old ways turn out to be the best 
I wonder if the thump test works on gluten free bread? I’ll give it a try next time.
@Bmeist I’ve never made anything gluten free so I personally haven’t a clue if the thump test would work on a gluten free loaf but it’s worth a try, right? After all, a quick thump on the bottom of the bread only takes a moment and certainly won’t hurt. You’ll have to let us all know if it’s a viable technique for gluten free loaves as I’m sure we’ve got plenty of gluten free bakers here on the forum. Here’s to your perfect loaf!
Blessings,
Leah
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Well I tried the thump test today with my latest g-free sourdough boule. It did sound hollow so I think it does work, however the loaf is still very heavy. I let it go an extra 15 minutes at 400 just to make sure it’s as done as it could be. I usually wait 4 hours or so to cut it, so I’m not sure how it turned out yet.
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@Bmeist From what I’ve read, letting it bake an extra 15 minutes was a great idea. I also think waiting to cut into your bread is also a great move. I usually wait quite a long time before cutting into my loaves too. Of course, I live in the desert southwest so our lack of humidity causes loaves to dry out a lot faster. When mine are totally cool but I’m cutting them yet, I just put them into a plastic bag and leave them on the counter until I cut into them. Yes, the crust softens but considering I just slice and freeze my breads anyway it really doesn’t matter. I just toast up what I want when I want it. I think you’re going to have a GREAT loaf!
Blessings,
Leah
I made this bread yesterday. It looked great when it came out of the oven, but was gummy and sticky on the inside. Inedible. I followed the recipe to the point, except I didn’t use breadtopia gluten free flour, but Bob’s gluten free 1:1 (sorry…) Did I not bake it long enough? Is there an internal temperature that I should have checked? Did perhaps the psyllium make it so gummy? I also live at 8000 feet and I know that things go wacky in this altitude. I really wanted this bread to work, and I would love to try it again… Any tips appreciated. Thank you.
My overfermented loaf was unfixably damp and it deflated as it cooled.
My underbaked loaf was very similar. I’d say either of these issues are possible.
Another possibility is flour type. I haven’t tried a different brand’s bread flour, but I have tried Breadtopia’s GF all purpose flour, and it is quite different from the bread flour. That might be something to look into too, if the Bob’s was a GF AP.
Thank you. That might give me a hint. In high altitude fermentation happens really fast, so next time I’ll try less fermentation time. However; my bread did not deflate with cooling, but was way too damp on the inside. It had a beautiful crust! Do you think the psyllium has anything to do with the dampness? Can I bake this bread without psyllium?
@SiePatters – the author of the recipe can probably weigh in on psyllium husk better than I can. I believe it adds more structure to the dough. Have you read all the comments above about baking until the bread passes the “thump test”? Also how the dough should be so dry it’s difficult to incorporate all the ingredients – not impossible though, of course
I’ve never baked gluten-free anything myself, but if I had a bread where the crust was done and the crumb was too gummy / moist, the next time I baked that bread I would drop the oven temperature by say, 20 - 25 degrees and increase the baking time by say, 10 - 15 minutes, and then iterate on that theme until I found the right temperature / time combination where the crust was good and the crumb was good.
Just wished to make an observation about gluten free bread. Since it doesn’t have gluten for structure gluten free bread will need some kind of substitute. While these substitutes will help give the dough some structure and trap bubbles they don’t perform the same way as gluten. They don’t have any extensibility as such and little elasticity. The dough can rise some, hold its shape and even stay risen for a while but it has over proofed. So what looks like perfectly proofed is actually over. They don’t rise much in the oven and if over done either remain dense, collapse or even collapse once removed from the oven (which can also be a sign of removing the dough too early). Better slightly under then over when it comes to gluten free (indeed even with gluten breads but they’re easier to recognise when its proofed well). Best baked in a loaf pan for support which makes it easier when it comes to proofing as one can fill the pan 80% and bake as soon as it just begins to crest the top. This visual will help judge when it’s done. Bake for longer at lower temperatures like @homebreadbaker said making sure it taps hollow. And don’t remove from the oven straight away allowing the bread to cool down slowly.
P.s. also I think two rises are not best for gluten free. If going down the sourdough route perhaps increase the levain then after forming the dough shape and final proof.