Wheat flour turns out gummy. Bread flour apparently not.
I've looked for fixes for having a gummy crumb, such as slicing after the bread has cooled and baking longer, but they haven't worked for me.
My problem seems to be related to whole wheat flour. I have KAF bread flour and KAF whole wheat flour. Following the basic bread recipe on this site, but changing the flour type, I made two loaves using half bread flour and half whole wheat flour. They had a pretty wet crumb, but they were still good enough to eat. Whenever I try using all whole wheat flour, it's like biting into a gross wet sponge, and this problem has happened at least 3 or 4 times, every time with 100% whole wheat. Given the pattern, if I use only bread flour, then I assume my bread will be less gummy. But I only want to use whole wheat.
Most threads about a gummy interior suggest using an instant read thermometer, but I'm not sure if it would help my problem since I baked 100% whole wheat loaf for almost 2 hours once at 350F and waited the next day to slice it, but it was still too gummy inside to eat.
One problem I have with working with only wheat flour is kneading. The dough appears coarse and tears easily. It never passes the windowpane test, no matter how much I knead. It tears apart like dry playdough. Using half bread flour and half whole wheat, the dough is a bit more elastic. Since hand kneading was giving me trouble, I tried following the NYT no-knead recipe with only whole wheat, but I get the same results.
I've tried using a loaf pan and baking on a tray with parchment paper. I'm using also using instant yeast. I also used a generic store brand whole wheat flour a few times, and the gummy texture was the same. Tried with and without vital wheat gluten and no changes.
sifting out the bran bits with a fine sieve and soaking them hours first (in the recipe water, to soften) before putting the dough together? They might be cutting up the gluten you're trying so hard to encourage. Just an idea...
I haven't heard about sifting and soaking before, but I'll definitely look into it and try it next time.
A quick update, I tried kneading in a food processor this time, and the crumb was much less gummy, and it tasted pretty good as opposed to being inedible like before.
Mini - I regularly learn from you. On the issue of whether bran bits "cut" gluten, I'm struggling to compare my practical baking experience with that theory. I cannot imagine that at the molecular level the edges of a bran bit are in any way sharp. Our lovely gluten is a long-branched molecule, isn't it? I've never had difficulty baking with coarsely ground whole wheat flour in any percentage.
So, I'm seeking a well-researched article that, based on believable date, suggests that that actually happens.
Perhaps you could come up with an basic experiment we could try to figure this out. Perhaps the bran is not "cutting" but something is happening when bran gets soaked longer than 2 hrs. Got any ideas?
Mini
I live in the UK so can not comment on the flour you are using but here in the UK I have found the flour can make a huge difference.
However something I have found that helps is to autolyse the flour and water for up to 2 hours before adding the levain (or yeast) and salt. I then knead for a good 10 minutes. The difference in elasticity and stretch is quite pronounced.
Something else I do is always run the flour through a sieve to 'fine it up' a little, I dunno if this makes any difference but it just feels the right thing to do!
I make wholemeal (wholewheat) all the time. I would say that the finished product is a little more 'moist' than when using white bread flour but not as 'gummy' as you are finding.
Different flours need different consideration when you are trying to develop a good loaf. First of all, it would be good to list your recipe so the hydration of the dough can be determined. Without that, the feedback you get will be generic but that will at least get you started in the right direction. Without knowing the recipe I surmise the usual suspects-a proofing problem or a hydration problem.
Keep in mind that bread is a mix of a starchy gel and gluten strands that trap the gases produced by yeast and then get "set" in place by the heat of the oven to enjoy later as a slice of deliciousness. The amount of rise (proof) will affect how dense or fuffy a loaf will be. It's like Goldilocks-too little rise and the bread is dense, too much rise and it falls in the oven and becomes dense, just right and it rises a little more in the oven before setting into place and stays fluffy.
Kneading, a good amount of water and time for the flour to absorb that water is what develops that starchy gel and gluten mix into a dough that can support stretching into a windowpane. This happens easily with AP flour or bread flour but WW needs a little different handling to achieve.
Whole wheat (WW) flour consists of the fine interior of the seed that makes a nice pasty gel when properly hydrated and the branny,sharp bits of the outer coat that give us the healthy roughage we need. When you mix WW flour and liquid, you MUST give the branny bits time to absorb a lot of water. WW bread is most successful when an autolyze, a little higher hydration or an overnight retard is built into the recipe. All these fancy words mean is some form of a waiting period after the liquids and ww flour are mixed together, whether it is with or without yeast. It can be as little as 30 minutes or much longer (overnight). Often I mix the WW and liquid to just a shaggy mess and just let it sit for 30 minutes before adding all the other ingredients. However, I always knead to windowpane. If you don't, the bubbles are not trapped in the starchy gel matrix,escape and the loaf is dense and crumbly.
So for the proofing, search "finger poke test". For fluffier, build in a soaking time, knead to windowpane and see how it goes. Fluffy Whole Wheat is possible. Search "fluffy whole wheat", too.
Thanks to everyone who suggested soaking. My bread is consistently getting closer to being dry. I tried soaking the flour for around 30 minutes for time reasons, but I want to try soaking longer next time and sieving the flour first too.
My op has a lot of random information, but the main problem now is kneading whole wheat dough correctly. With the information here though, I think I'm moving in the right direction.
The recipe I followed was this http://www.thefreshloaf.com/lessons/yourfirstloaf
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons yeast
1 1/8 cup water
But during mixing, I added different amounts of water and flour as I saw fit, and I made the mistake of not keeping track of the amount. If it's any help, with dry hands I was able to handle it without it sticking, but it wasn't exactly dry to touch. I feel kind of bad about not having an exact recipe that I followed. Whenever I try to follow a recipe, I always switch between adding flour and water until I'm comfortable handling the dough.
The last loaf I made was kneaded by hand by the way. I took 3 or 4 ~15 minutes breaks kneading for a few minutes at a time, and I achieved some translucence when I stretched out the dough, but it didn't stretch as easily and far as I would like.
If the dough is a bit sticky, dampen (not too wet) your hands rather than adding bench flour- this is where the added flour can really dry a dough out and prevent the starchy gel from forming properly. As you knead WW, really stretch this dough. Get a good frissage going as it really brings out the starch.
I would also increase the liquid a little more.WW really needs to start out wet feeling and sit until the extra moisture is absorbed into the branny bits. Ideally, it starts out sticky and a finger comes away with a bit of dough when touching it and after sitting, the feel becomes more tacky (like a post-it note) and comes away from the dough without any dough sticking.
I use a mixer for kneading (hand issues) and stop the mixer every few minutes to really stretch the dough ball before continuing to machine knead. It is easier to achieve windowpane if you hold back the salt until that happens and then knead in the salt. (but don't forget it!).
Keep baking! Every loaf is practice. Just keep a note of what you did different so you can duplicate it in subsequent loaves.
Remember to look up "finger poke test" and pay attention to the final proofing stage. That is the other issue you may be experiencing.
Bake at 450 with steam for 15 minute then turn down to 425 F and bake without steam. The other problem is that you need to bake WW bread to a minimum of 208 F on the inside and 210 F is better. You are definitely not baking it at high enough temperatures and getting it done on the inside.
50% whole grain wheat breads need to be 78% hydration minimum for US flours and a 100% one would need to be 85% or so with a 1 hour autolyse for both but 2 hours for the 1005 WW bread would be better. As an experienced baker I would do both at even higher hydration if I was looking for an open crumb.
You need an instant read thermometer - they are very cheap adn woth their weight in gold for all kinds of baking and cooking.
Happy baking