January 29, 2017 - 10:24am
Had a bad result using citrus zest, any thoughts?
I've been baking sourdough for the past 3 months and am learning a lot. I've been experimenting with add-ins; most recently, I tried a mix of dried cherries (soaked) and orange citrus zest (not soaked). It did not taste good. The orange zest took on a completely different and unappealing flavor- somewhere between bitter and soapy.
Do you think it's because of the way the citrus flavor interacted with the sour of the wild yeast? If I did a straight dough, do you think I'd get the same effect? I would love to do a rosemary lemon bread but not sure to how to approach it after this experience. Thanks!
Share
I just made a candied orange zest sourdough last week, with 4% zest by baker's percentage. It tasted great. I'm not sure what you did, but I know candying my zest was exactly what I was looking for.
I'll try that next time. I'll also have to convert the percentage to see what I used - it was 1/5 tbsp for one loaf.
When I use the colorful, outermost layer of the orange peel, it tastes fine in baked goods. The white pith below the zest, however, can be bitter or otherwise unpleasant.
Assuming you didn't peel or grate too deeply, then the possibilities include a) the quantity used should be reduced so that it isn't as strong a flavor in the finished bread, b) there was a bitter residue of something on the peel that didn't get washed away, or c) orange zest just doesn't tickle your taste buds.
Paul
I definitely used the zest with no pith. Definitely possible I used too much...I tend to go for more on everything, and I LOVE orange flavoring. I'm not sure of the baker's percentage, but it was 1.5 tbsp for one large loaf.