jimtrue.com : school : CUL115 : Week 4 - Salt and Sourdough Starters

Posted by Jim True on February 9, 2010 2:27 PM. Last Updated February 9, 2010 2:27 PM

Disclaimer for all material noted here is at the bottom of this web page.

Week 4 - Salt and Sourdough Starters

Salt

• Salt is added to bread dough at approximately 1.5 - 2% of the weight of the flour
• A pinch of Salt is less than 1/16 of a teaspon
• Salt has many functions:
1. Adds flavor
2. Strengthens gluten structure (prevents excessive tearing when gluten stretches, so bread is easier to handle and has better volume and a finer crumb
3. Controls the rate of yeast fermentation
4. Controls the rate of enzyme activity (rye flour is relatively high in enzyme activity and in the rate that it ferments)
5. Increases crust color
6. Used in decorative dead doughs
7. When added to butter, it keeps the butter and product fresher, longer (not all butters have the same amount of salt in their product = unpredictable); the amount of salt in butter is usually between 2% and 2.5%
8. Salt decreases meringues stability
9. It intensifies and sets colors in cooked green vegetables
10. Preserves flavor and color of flour
11. Prevents spoilage by drawing the moisture out of food - prolongs shelf life

Types of Salt

• Iodized: table salt that has had iodine added to it to prevent goiter
• Kosher (aka - coarse salt): a pure mined additive-free coarse-grained salt. It dissolves readily and has a crisp, clean taste
• Pickling: a fine-grained salt used primarily to make brine for picklers
• Popcorn: Made specifically for popcorn, it has a mild salty flavor, fine-grained with an anti-caking additive that allows it to cling to the fat on the popcorn
• Rock: Chunky crystals of unrefined salt, used to retard ice from melting when manually churning ice cream
• Saltpeter: made of 100% sodium nitrate, used to cure food
• Sea: A type of salt obtained by sun-drying ocean water until some or all of the water is evaporated and the mineral-rich salt crystals remain. The color and flavor depend on the refinement process and where it is harvested
• Table: All-purpose salt that has an additive added to it to prevent it from clumping

Sourdough and Levain Starters

• They have 3 stages of life:
1. Development: is the actual or initial mixing of the starter
2. Perpetuate: is keeping alive by normal feeding.
3. Elaborate: is to make large or double, triple in size
• Two type of LEVAIN Hydration Levels:
1. Liquid: 100% - 125%
2. Stiff: 50% - 60%
• One Type of Sour Dough Hydration Level:
1. Sour: 100%

Building the Culture: Elaboration

• Prepare the levain cultures 8-16 hours before the final dough is mixed
• Liquid levain cultures ripeness is indicated by a mildly acidic aroma and a subtle sweetness, numerous small bubbles, that cover the surface
• Stiff-textured cultures ripeness is indicated by a domed surface, and slightly receding in the middle

Epi de ble

• Means sheaf of wheat
• Requires a baguette that is a bit longer and more slender than an average baguette (beer bread with roasted barley)
• Flour bread on top thoroughly, place on bread befores before cutting dough with scissors, place in oven accordingly

Disclaimer: These are MY notes taken from classroom lectures while I'm in the classroom. While I'm perfectly happy to share my notes with my classmates and I know I take very good notes, you should still make every effort to attend the class and TAKE YOUR OWN NOTES. I will not transcribe everything the instructor says in the classroom, and I will NEVER post pre-exam reviews. My notes will not replace the value of actually attending class and taking your own class notes.I also cannot attest to their accuracy, other than they are what was provided in the lecture; you should not reference my notes as "expert opionion" by any means, and if you notice an error or omission, please do me the favor of e-mailing me with the correction and I will re-post my notes. End of Disclaimer.