March 3, 2019 - 5:51pm
Dense at the bottom
I am a first time poster here. New to the site as well. I have had the opportunity to read some of the posts here and most are far beyond my skill at baking. Pretty new to it, but wanting to provide my family homemade bread.
I have been experiencing the issue shown in this photo...or maybe it is not an issue. I don’t know. The bottom of the loaf appears almost crushed to me. While the top is lighter, the bottom is dense.
This is a 100% whole wheat bread recipe. Does anyone have input on what might be going on?
The photo is sideways.
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..ii's what you get when you use a loaf tin - the dough can only expand upwards so the sides and base will be compressed. A loaf tin with higher sides and more square in section would produce a better shaped slice.
Also, watch the dough when proofing - with whole-wheat, prove to around 85% increase (don't let it double in volume) - you may have overdone this with this loaf.
With previous loaves I have noticed the top expanding and getting very weak...to the point it can fall apart while cutting. Also a symptom of the overproofing?
The picture, and your followup description, are diagnostic for over-proofing the dough during final fermentation. The falls-apart weak upper section of the loaf and the compressed zone at the bottom are two sides of the same coin.
The upper portion has expanded beyond the dough's ability to retain gas or structure, which is why it is unable to hold together.
The bottom has exactly the same problem and therefore cannot support the weight of the rest of the loaf. Consequently, it is compressed under the burden.
You will need to bake the bread at an earlier stage of the final fermentation, before it has the opportunity to over-ferment. You might also want to forgo slashing the top crust, to help the loaf retain some of its structural integrity.
Paul
Thanks for this, great info. I guess I need to be satisfied with a more rectangular loaf with whole wheat flour?
Or, put more dough in the tin so that the dough doesn’t have to overproof to reach the height you want.
Paul
....two thirds full and let the dough expand so that the dough is just level with the rim of the tin - the dome of the dough will be above the rim at this time. That should give you approximately the correct volume increase.
This has been most helpful. I had a similar problem with my loaf (bread flour and dark rye) - any feed back would be most appreciated...