Is it possible to create dark-crusted bread at home?
MF: You can replicate that process at home pretty well by using a cloche (Mark owns the Sassafras La Cloche [sassafrasstore.com]). When I was testing recipes for this bakery, I baked them at home using 75-cent abrasive ceramic tiles I bought at Home Depot. I put those on the bottom rack of the oven, and then placed the plate part of the cloche on top of the tiles. You then preheat the oven with the cloche plate placed on the tiles. Once the oven is heated, you place the raw loaf onto the now-heated plate, and then cover it with the dome portion of the cloche.
Does it matter what type of starter you use?
MF: Yes. Definitely. There are three ways of starting a bread. One is with the direct application of heat. The second is by doing a sponge of flour, water, and a little bit of yeast, and allowing that to mature over six to twelve hours. The third is to have a sourdough starter, a self-perpetuating starter. All three of them can produce good bread. But for getting a wonderfully flavored bread, the essential ingredient is time.
What’s the best method for fermentation?
MF: Well, if someone is using a direct dough, the best way to do that is to use a small amount of yeast, and then extend the fermentation time by controlling the temperature. That’s not necessary if one has started with the yeasted sponge, because you’ve already extended the fermentation time by making the dough cold and allowing it to ferment for at least 12 hours. The sponge then becomes the leavening of the final bread.
What general bread baking advice do you have for the home baker?
MF: Give up baking and buy your bread from a good local bakery. (Laughs.) If you won’t follow that excellent advice, then you must always remember that good-tasting breads require a long fermentation. This is something that requires more planning than can be managed by home bakers who decide to make bread for tonight’s dinner. You can’t rush anything about the process. Bread is patience.
[…] bread is a novelty in this country,” says master baker Mark Furstenberg, of Washington D.C.’s Bread Furst bakery, who is often credited […]
I am originally from Germany. Where I live in California, there aren’t as many good fresh bakeries or bread choices. My sister, who still lives in Germany, laughs at me when I tell her about my bread baking adventures. Let’s face it, if you can’t get really good bread and you have the time to bake your own, there’s no reason not to do it. Practice makes perfect and I am having a great time practicing.
Hi Ms Inge Kohl,
We love your enthusiasm for bread baking! We recently came out with a no-knead dutch oven bread tutorial for Bob’s Red Mill Better Baking Academy that we would love for you to check out: https://bakefromscratch.com/january-dutch-oven-bread/
Happy baking!