January 30, 2012 - 4:19pm
Crust is lifting off the bread while baking ciabatta.
Haven't had this problem with any other shape/kind of bread but I made a large rectangular ciabatta and midway through baking (400 degrees) the top crust has risen and pulled off from the rest of the loaf. Any suggestions on how to keep the steam on the inside from creating a pocket in the top with such a lose crumb bread? Should I score/vent it at all?
Thanks!
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If, just before you load it, you will press your finger all the way down through the loaf on about 2" centers in both directions, these will stitch the top crust down so that it can't break them all and the loaf will rise between them. If you are not aggressive enough they will pull loose, if you stitch too tightly you don't get the rise you want, if you stitch too far apart they will not hold the crust down.
Do you flip it over and let it rest just a few minutes before sticking it in the oven, to let the bubbles re destribute? Terry R.
Thanks for the advice... both techniques sound like they would help. I'll keep working on it till I get the right crumb then I'll post results.