Cooked - A Natural History of Transformat Part 26

This recipe is adapted from Chad Robertson's country loaf, in Tartine Bread. Simply replacing white flour with whole grain in his recipe will create a decent loaf of bread, but it won't be as airy or flavorful as it will be if you follow this revised version of the recipe. This recipe calls for 75 percent of the flour to be whole grain; you can adjust the percentage of whole-grain flour higher or lower as you prefer. In keeping with the custom for bread recipes, quant.i.ties here are given by weight rather than volume; you will need a digital scale, calibrated in grams, to follow this recipe. Note: Be sure to build your starter at least a week before you plan to bake. Make two loaves.

Active Time: about 70 minutes

Total Time: between 5 and 10 days

FOR THE STARTER

50 grams stone-ground whole-grain flour, plus more as needed to feed the starter (at least 150 grams more)

50 grams unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more as needed to feed the starter (at least 150 grams more)

100 grams warm tap water, plus more as needed to feed the starter

FOR THE LEAVEN

100 grams stone-ground whole-grain flour

100 grams unbleached all-purpose flour

200 grams warm tap water

3035 grams starter (recipe from above)

FOR THE BREAD

600 grams stone-ground whole-grain flour

250 grams unbleached all-purpose flour (higher protein bread flour is okay), plus extra for dusting work surface

150 grams rye or pumpernickel flour

900 grams warm (roughly 80F) tap water

3 grams or 1 teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast (or half of a -ounce packet) mixed with 50 grams warm tap water, optional

25 grams kosher or fine sea salt

Rice flour, for dusting proofing bowl, optional MAKE THE STARTER

In a small gla.s.s or plastic container (a clear container allows you to watch microbial activity), mix 50 grams each of the whole-grain and all-purpose flours until combined. Add the water and stir until the consistency of a smooth batter. Leave the mixture open to the air, stirring vigorously for about 30 seconds at least once a day or whenever you think of it. If the mixture dries out, add a bit of warm water to bring it back to the consistency of a batter. The wild yeast and bacteria in the air, on the flour, and on your hands will eventually start to eat the sugars in the flour and ferment.

As soon as you observe signs of microbial activity (e.g., lumps on the top, bubbles within the batter, or the smell of beer or yeast or ripe fruit)-which can take as long as a week-feed the starter daily: Discard approximately 80 percent of it and replace with fresh flour and water in equal amounts (about 50 grams of whole-wheat flour, 50 grams of all-purpose flour, and 100 grams warm water). Stir until smooth. Once it has become active again (i.e., bubbling), keep the starter covered at a warm room temperature. If you won't be baking for a while, you can refrigerate or freeze your starter. To do so, feed it, let it sit for a couple of hours at room temperature, then add enough additional flour (the 50/50 mixture) to dry it out in a ball; freeze or refrigerate. A few days before you want to use it again, wake up the starter by bringing it to room temperature; feed it with the same amount of water and flour as above twice daily, discarding 80 percent of it each time, until it's lively again.

MAKE THE LEAVEN

The night before baking the bread, make a leaven. In a gla.s.s bowl, combine the whole-wheat and all-purpose flours with the water. Add 2 tablespoons of the starter and mix thoroughly. Cover with a towel and leave out overnight in a draft-free spot.

MAKE THE BREAD

The night before baking the bread, "soak" the whole-grain, all-purpose, and rye flours: In a large bowl, combine the whole-grain, all-purpose, and rye flours with 850 grams of the water, mixing with a spatula or by hand until there are no lumps or patches of dry flour remaining. (A recommended extra step: In the case of the whole-grain flour and the rye flour, pa.s.s them through a flour sifter to remove the larger bits of bran; reserve the larger bits in a small bowl for use later.) Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave out overnight in a draft-free spot. The reason for this step is to thoroughly moisten the whole-grain flours before the fermentation begins; this softens the bran (making for a more voluminous loaf) and begins the breakdown of the starches into sugars (deepening flavors and color).

In the morning, test your leaven by dropping a tablespoon of it in warm water. If it floats, you're all set. If not, you'll probably want to add some yeast to the leaven as an insurance policy-mix 3 grams (1 teaspoons) of fast-acting yeast into 50 grams of warm water. After a few minutes, add to the bowl of leaven. It will seem alarmingly wet-the consistency of a thick batter. Don't worry.

Add about half of the leaven to the bowl with the wet dough; reserve the rest of the leaven as your starter going forward. (If you use commercial yeast, put aside half the leaven before adding it.) Mix the dough thoroughly and let rest for at least 20 and up to 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a cup, mix the salt in the remaining 50 grams of the warm tap water. After the dough mixture has rested, add the salty water and work it in thoroughly by hand.

BULK FERMENTING THE DOUGH

This takes 4 to 5 hours, depending on the ambient temperature and the vigor of your starter. Every 45 to 60 minutes, give the dough a turn in the bowl-wet your dominant hand, work it down the side of the bowl, and bring up the ma.s.s of dough from the bottom, stretching it upward and then folding it over the top. Give the bowl a quarter turn, and repeat this action until you've completed at least one revolution of the bowl. These stretches will strengthen the gluten and fold air into the dough. Watch for the formation of air bubbles; smell and taste along the way. The dough is ready to be divided and shaped when it feels billowy and cohesive-it wants to stick to itself more than the bowl. It should smell mildly yeasty and slightly sour. If it smells distinctly sour, end bulk fermentation and proceed to the next step.

DIVIDING THE DOUGH

When you're ready to shape, sprinkle a work surface with flour. Spill the dough out on the surface. Using a plastic dough sc.r.a.per, divide the ma.s.s into 2 more or less equal halves. Shape these into globes, using your floured hands together with the sc.r.a.per to rotate the dough against the work surface until it forms a ball with some surface tension. Cover the 2 globes with a towel and let them rest for 20 minutes.

SHAPING THE DOUGH

Using the sc.r.a.per, flip one of the globes, which will have flattened somewhat, onto its back. Grab the edge of dough farthest from you with all your fingers, stretch it away from you, and then fold it back over the top. Do the same to the edge of dough closest to you, and then to each of the sides. You should have before you a rough rectangle of dough. Next, take each of the corners in turn, stretching and folding over the top. Now, cup your hands around the package of dough and roll it away from you until you have a short, taut cylinder, with the seams on the bottom.

If you sifted the whole-grain flour, spread the reserved bran on a plate or baking sheet and gently roll the dough in it to cover. Sprinkle either rice flour or any remaining bran into the bottom of a large bowl and then place the round of dough in the bowl, top side down. (Use a proofing basket instead if you have one.) Do the same with the second loaf, giving it its own bowl.

PROOFING

This is the second fermentation. Cover the bowls with towels and let them rest in a warm spot for 2 to 3 hours, till the dough gets puffy again. (Alternatively, put the shaped loaves in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight; this will r.e.t.a.r.d fermentation while continuing to build flavor. It's not necessary to proof it again after refrigeration, but give it an hour or so at room temperature before baking.)

BAKING

Place the top and bottom of a Dutch oven (or a large ceramic ca.s.serole or combo cooker) on the center rack in the oven and preheat to 500F.

With kitchen mitts, carefully remove the bottom of the pot from the oven and set it on the stovetop. Turn the bowl (or basket) over the pot to drop the proofed loaf into it. Don't worry if it doesn't land squarely; it will straighten out. Now, take a single-edge razor blade (or a lame) and score the top of the loaf, in any pattern you like. But be decisive! Now take the top of the pot from the oven and place it over the pot to seal, then move the whole thing into the oven. Lower the temperature to 450F and set a timer for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, remove the top of the pot. The loaf will have doubled in volume and acquired a pale brown or tan color. Close the oven and give it another 23 to 25 minutes to bake with the top off. The loaf should now be a dark mahogany with a bit of blackening here and there, especially where it was scored. Remove the pot from the oven and the bread from the pot, using an oven mitt and a spatula. Tap it on the bottom, which should be very dark. A hollow percussive sound means the bread is properly cooked. If the bottom is pale and the sound is not percussive, return it to the oven for 5 more minutes.

Set it on a rack to cool for a few hours. Whole-grain bread is usually at its best on day two and remains good for several days after that, kept in a paper (not plastic) bag.

4. Earth

Sauerkraut

Active Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 to 2 weeks, or longer

This recipe is based on Sandor Katz's version of sauerkraut, or "kraut-chi," though it is more like a template for cabbage-based ferments than a formal recipe. For spices, you can add juniper berries, caraway seeds, and coriander for a more Old World kraut, or add ginger, garlic, and hot peppers for something more like kimchi. But do use some spice-they inhibit mold from forming.

4 pounds cabbage (or a mixture of mostly cabbage, plus fruits and vegetables, such as apples, onions, daikon radish, carrots)

68 teaspoons fine sea salt