June 18, 2018 - 3:20pm
Semolina problem
Hi,
Is 40% semolina too much for sourdough bread?
I knew immediately after autolyse that I wasn’t getting any gluten activity. Bit by bit I added BF and ended up adding additional 150 grams of BF. It lowered semolina content to 30%. And I got delightful tiny 430g batards. Perfect size for a small family and our toaster.
Just wanted to hear from the experienced bakers on the characteristics of semolina ...
Thank you!
Young Hee
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and get good gluten formation with oven spring. Many traditional Italian breads are 100% "semolina flour".
Now I say "semolina flour" but I wish to confirm that we're talking about the same thing.
Durum Flour and Semolina both come from the very same Durum Wheat.
Semolina is coarse and Durum Flour is fine. There are different grades to semolina ranging from fine to coarse but durum flour is even finer and is made from re-milling semolina.
So it's either "Durum Flour" or "Semolina". I have used fine semolina with great results but more often then not I use Durum Flour.
Terminology is often interchanged and Semolina Flour is often used.
So here the lesson endeth :)
Having said all that, you should have no problem using durum flour or fine semolina as long as you aren't using the really coarse stuff. The only thing i'll say is that for the same results and consistency one would need to drop the hydration if swapping durum flour for semolina in a recipe. However you should be getting good gluten formation even with using 100% of either.
Questions now are... what are you using? Are you following a recipe which calls for durum flour but you're using semolina? And any other detail you can include which might help.
as in the photo on this forum. That is exactly what I used. I started out with 40% durum flour - I called it semolina - and 90% water. It felt like sand to touch and didn't look like I was going to get any window pane. I kept adding more BF until I guess final hydration went down to about 70%.
Thank you very much for the explanation and information!
Young Hee
The photo is semolina! Grainy. Not as fine as durum flour.
At 60-65% hydration you should get a good gluten formation even using 100% semolina.
I pretty regularly bake levain semolina breads, always as durum (semola rimacinata), which range in flour percentage from 40% to 90%. Never an issue. If you search TFL for pane di Altamura or pane di Matera you will find ample evidence of 100% semola rimacinata breads, and that includes the levain too.
So something else is going on. Do tell...
I wonder whether Bob's Red Mill's durum flour is considered coarse?
I need to learn more about this flour. 90% hydration and 40% durum flour were the starting point and ended up being 70% and 30% durum.
Thank you!
Young Hee
I have a small bag of Bob's Red Mill Semolina I want to use up. It seems a bit coarse to use 100% and the bag is marked "great for making pasta by hand or machine". The texture is like a fine meal but not a powdery flour. Is this ok to use in bread dough or does it need a good soak first?
It needs 5% less water than when using durum flour. Sounds like fine semolina and you should have no issue using it. If as a percentage together with bread flour you should hardly notice any difference. Hold back on a little water and add as necessary. Not too long an autolyse because although it may help durum wheat degrades quite quickly.
for the information!
I will attempt another loaf...
of this flour was ok for bread for me. I got in trouble with 40% and 90% hydration.
Semolina 100%
Water 60%
Salt 2%
Semolina Starter 20% (at 60% hydration)
Keep a little extra water to add incase it needs it.
Combine everything and knead till full gluten formation.
Bulk Ferment till ready but careful not to overdo it as it ferments and degrades quite quickly.
Preshape and rest 20 min
Shape and final proof till ready.
Bake.
for the recipe!!
Where do you get your semolina flour? Not the one in the picture in this forum, right?
My pleasure. It's a basic Altamura type recipe. The salt should be 2% of all the flour and the water will fall anywhere from 60-65%.
I locally source durum flour aka semola rimacinata aka re-milled semolina.
talcum powder, then it is indeed coarse and not "semola rimacinata". Even the bag itself claims the virtues of semolina for pasta, but doesn't mention dough for bread. It's confusing because it is "durum wheat" from which semolina (typically #1, as here) is made into. That semolina is more finely ground down to the re-milled (rimacinata) durum flour. Semolina flour is more yellow in color that the durum rimacinata, which has a more washed out appearance.
Nomenclature, where art thou?
I am totally confused with semolina, semola, durum 00, Extra Fancy Durum Wheat Semolina...
I am going to Italian grocery store this weekend to see whether they carry the type you mentioned.
Thank you so much!
Young Hee
wait until you read about seed, starter, chef, levain, levadura, sourdough, lievito madre, masa madre...
If the grocery is big enough, and most of the "pure Italian" groceries are not, see if they have it in 50 lb. sacks for their own use. Perhaps they can sell you whatever quantity you wish at a better price point than the typical 1 kg. bag.
My old-time "local" Italian grocer is the most complete I've seen outside of Italy or one of the "Eataly" megastores. I always arrive with a few long batards/baguettes to give to the owner and walk away with the amount of semola rimacinata I desire from their 50 lb. bags. $1 US per pound.
What a great idea!!
What a great idea!!
Durum Wheat is the type of wheat from which semolina and durum flour is made. [It is important to note that when most people speak of semolina they are referring to durum wheat semolina. However semolina is just referring to the middlings of the grain - the coarse grind - but by no means can it only come from durum wheat. So perhaps to make it more, or less for that matter, confusing it should be called "durum wheat semolina" and "durum flour"]
It's is a hard coarse grain and it produces a hard coarse grind. This is called "semolina". It should not be followed by the word "flour". You can get fine semolina or coarse semolina. Both grit like. Even fine semolina is not as fine as durum flour. Although it can be substituted. If one uses fine semolina instead of durum flour then a drop in hydration is needed. Coarse semolina should not be used. Common uses for semolina is pasta, puddings and semolina porridge...
Gently heat the milk and slowly add the fine semolina stirring all the time. Keep on stirring, you don't want it to get lumpy, on a gentle heat until the desired thickness. Be careful not to burn. Serve how you like but childhood memories is with plenty of drinking chocolate sprinkled on top.
When semolina is ground the finer by-product is the flour. Another way to get durum flour is to re-grind the semolina. This is more used for breads. Although, as above, there is a bit of a cross over if the semolina is fine enough. This is also called semola rimacinata which is re-milled semolina.
Where AP flour can be used for bread or cake so to with fine semolina. It can be used for pasta or bread. What is confusing is this crossover and sometimes terminology can be mixed up. What is semolina flour? Is it semolina? Or fine semolina? Or durum flour? In my opinion the word flour should only be used for durum flour. But as you'll find out many mix up terminology.
Try this website http://www.differencebetween.net/object/comparisons-of-food-items/difference-between-durum-and-semolina/
It is incredible how you and other members jso generously share your knowledge on everything regarding bread baking. You clarified semolina for me and the link also helps me understand the differences.