Artisan Bread Baking

· By Marcus Chen

Artisan Bread Baking: advanced techniques and tips (36)

Artisan Bread Baking: Advanced Techniques and Tips

British bread culture has experienced a remarkable renaissance over the past decade. From the sourdough revolution sparked by artisan bakers in Bristol and Edinburgh to the growing network of community bakehouses across the country, home bakers now have unprecedented access to quality ingredients, information, and community support. Yet despite this flourishing scene, many enthusiasts find their loaves plateauing—good rather than exceptional, consistent but lacking the open crumb and complex flavour that defines truly outstanding artisan bread.

This guide addresses that gap. Drawing on techniques refined across commercial and home baking contexts, it offers a practical framework for elevating your craft. Whether you're working with aankoop flour from Shipton Mill or supermarket strong white, baking in a fan oven in a Leeds flat or a traditional gas oven in a Victorian terrace, the principles here will help you produce bread that stands alongside anything from your local artisan bakery.

Understanding Fermentation: Temperature as Your Primary Control

Fermentation is not merely the period when dough rises. It is a complex biochemical process during which yeast consumes sugars and produces carbon dioxide (for oven spring) and a spectrum of organic acids (for flavour). Controlling fermentation—not just accommodating it—is what separates skilled bakers from beginners.

In the UK, ambient kitchen temperatures vary enormously by season. A kitchen in August might reach 26°C, while the same space in January could hover around 16°C. This 10-degree differential dramatically affects fermentation pace. At 24°C, a typical lean dough might double in 90 minutes during bulk fermentation. At 17°C, the same dough could require three hours or more.

Key Data Point: For every 1°C increase in dough temperature, fermentation rate increases by approximately 10%. A dough at 26°C ferments roughly twice as fast as one at 23°C. This relationship holds regardless of flour type or hydration level.

Rather than chasing ideal room temperatures, experienced UK bakers control fermentation through dough temperature. The target is typically 24-26°C for ambient bulk fermentation, which means calculating initial water temperature based on your flour temperature and room conditions.

The formula is straightforward: water temperature = (desired dough temperature × 3) – (flour temperature + room temperature). For a target of 25°C with flour at 20°C and room at 18°C, you'd use water at approximately 37°C. In practice, most UK home bakers find water between 30-35°C works well for room-temperature fermentation in moderately heated homes.

Flour Selection: Beyond the Supermarket Shelf

The UK boasts an exceptional range of heritage and artisan flour producers, yet many home bakers default to supermarket strong white flour. Understanding what you're working with transforms your results.

Protein content determines gluten development potential. Strong white bread flour typically contains 11-13% protein, suitable for most lean breads and pizza. Wholemeal flours from the same wheat varieties contain slightly less protein by weight due to the bran fraction, requiring hydration adjustments.

Flour Type Protein Content Typical UK Sources Best Applications
Strong White (11-13% protein) 11-13% All major supermarkets, Shipton Mill Sandwich loaves, pizza, functional breads
Organic Strong White 12-14% Shipton Mill, Doves Farm Artisan loaves, sourdough
Heritage Wheats (Red Lammas, Marquis) 10-12% Shipton Mill, Gilchesters Complex flavoured sourdoughs
Wholemeal (from strong wheat) 12-13% (flour basis) All major supermarkets Wholegrain loaves, seeded breads
Rye (whole grain) 8-10% Doves Farm, Shipton Mill Sourdough rye, pumpernickel

Shipton Mill's "Modern Bake" strong white has become a benchmark for UK home bakers seeking consistent results. Doves Farm offers excellent organic options and a wider range of ancient grains. For those pursuing heritage flavours, Gilchesters Farm near Newcastle supplies stoneground flours from historic wheat varieties that produce notably complex tasting notes in finished loaves.

Pro Tip: When substituting wholemeal for white flour, increase hydration by 5-10% and extend autolyse time to 45-60 minutes. The bran in wholemeal flour acts as tiny knives, cutting gluten strands during mixing. Extended rest allows partial hydration of the bran and reduces the need for aggressive mixing that would overdevelop gluten in white flour.

Autolyse: The Technique That Transforms Structure

Autolyse—mixing flour and water and allowing a rest period before adding salt and yeast—remains underutilised by home bakers despite its profound impact. The technique, developed by French baker Roger Ringuet and popularised by bakery consultant Ciril Glasse, allows flour proteins to hydrate and begin forming gluten structures without mechanical work.

For simple lean doughs (flour, water, salt, yeast), autolyse of 20-45 minutes reduces mixing requirements by half. Gluten development occurs partially during the rest period, meaning less elbow work during kneading. More significantly for artisan bread, autolyse produces a dough with superior extensibility—the quality that allows the final loaf to expand rather than tear during oven spring.

The practical protocol: combine all flour with 70% of the water (room temperature, around 20°C) in a large bowl. Mix until no dry flour remains. Cover and rest. After the autolyse period, add salt dissolved in the remaining water, then work the dough briefly to incorporate. Complete fermentation as normal.

"The autolysed dough feels fundamentally different—almost silky. You notice it immediately when you begin shaping. The dough has already begun to organise itself, and your final folds and shaping feel effortless by comparison." — Andrew Whitley, Bread Matters

The Folding Protocol: Building Strength Without Overwork

Stretch and fold techniques replaced traditional kneading for most artisan breads because they build dough strength with far less effort and without the oxidative effects of extended kneading. The challenge is knowing when to fold and when to leave the dough alone.

During bulk fermentation, dough undergoes a transformation from shapeless mass to elastic, gas-retaining structure. This transformation occurs through three concurrent processes: gluten network development (from mechanical work and hydration), fermentation (gas production), and gluten relaxation (the network loosening under its own tension temperature evenly throughout the dough. The standard protocol for home baking:

Each fold involves four stretches—grab one side of the dough, stretch upward until resistance, fold over to opposite side. Rotate 90 degrees, repeat three times. After four stretches, you complete one "set" of folds. After four sets, the dough has received the equivalent of extensive kneading but with far better control over oxidation and dough temperature.

Key Data Point: Dough that has undergone proper folding during bulk fermentation will hold its shape for at least 10 seconds when you lift one edge. If it immediately collapses back, more folding sets are needed. If it tears, you've overfolded and should allow more rest between subsequent sets.

Shaping: The Critical Skills Most Guides Skip

Shaping determines how well the loaf holds its form during final fermentation and baking. A poorly shaped boule will spread during the banneton proof, producing a flat, dense finished loaf. A well-shaped boule will hold its tension, rising tall and round in the oven.

The goal is creating "surface tension" — a tight skin on the exterior of the dough that contains the gases within. For a boule, the technique is essentially the same as making a drawstring bag:

Turn the preshaped dough onto an unfloured work surface. Place your palms flat against the surface, fingers spread slightly. Apply gentle downward pressure while pulling toward yourself. This friction against the workbench creates the tension. Rotate the dough quarter-turn and repeat. After four to six rotations, the dough should feel firm and tight, with a smooth surface.

Pro Tip: The key error is using too much flour on your work surface. Flour creates a lubricating layer that prevents proper tension development. Use a minimal amount — just enough to prevent sticking — or work directly on a bare granite or wood surface. Some bakers use a damp cloth instead, which provides grip without flour.

Baker's Percentages: The Universal Language of Bread

Professional bakers express formulas as percentages of flour weight. This system, called baker's percentages, allows comparison of any recipe regardless of scale and makes adjustments straightforward. Once you understand it, recipes become infinitely adjustable.

The flour weight is always 100%. All other ingredients are expressed as percentages of that flour weight. A standard country loaf might be:

This formula makes 1.775kg of dough (100 + 75 + 2 + 0.5 = 177.5% of flour weight). If you want to make a smaller loaf with 400g flour: water = 400 × 0.75 = 300g, salt = 400 × 0.02 = 8g, yeast = 400 × 0.005 = 2g.

Key Data Point: Hydration percentages in UK recipes typically run 65-80%. Below 65% produces a tight, dense crumb suitable for enriched breads. 70-75% is the sweet spot for open-crumb artisan loaves. Above 75% requires increasingly confident technique but rewards with exceptional texture and flavour development.

UK Oven Conditions: Compensating for Reality

UK home ovens present specific challenges for artisan bread baking. Most domestic ovens run 20-30°C lower than dial settings indicate, lack the steam injection of professional decks, and have inconsistent heat distribution. Understanding these limitations allows you to compensate effectively.

Temperature accuracy varies enormously. A simple oven thermometer — available from any kitchen shop for £5-10 — is essential. Place it on the middle shelf and compare readings to your oven dial. Many UK ovens are 15-20°C off. For a target of 230°C, you might need to set the dial to 250°C or higher.

Steam is arguably more important than temperature in the first 20 minutes of baking. Steam keeps the crust flexible, allowing maximum oven spring before the crust sets. Without steam, the outer surface hardens immediately, limiting expansion and producing a thick, pale crust rather than the thin, crisp crust of artisan bread.

The practical solution for home bakers: create steam by placing a heavy baking tray on the oven floor as it preheats. When you load the dough, pour a cup of hot water into the tray and immediately close the door. The water instantly vaporises, filling the oven with steam. Some bakers add ice cubes for a more dramatic steam burst. After 20-25 minutes, remove the steaming tray and allow the crust to colour properly.

Troubleshooting: Why Your Bread Might Not Be Working

Even experienced bakers encounter problems. Diagnosis requires systematic thinking about process and environment.

Dense, gummy crumb: Usually indicates underfermentation. The gluten network wasn't strong enough to hold the gas produced, or there simply wasn't enough fermentation to create proper structure. Increase fermentation time, check that your yeast is fresh, or raise dough temperature slightly.

Torn, collapsed crust: Typically overfermentation. The gluten has weakened beyond its gas-holding capacity, and the loaf collapses when the crust sets rather than expanding. Reduce fermentation time, especially during final proof.

Thick, pale crust: Insufficient steam during initial baking, or oven temperature too low. Check oven temperature with a thermometer and ensure proper steaming technique. The crust should colour significantly in the final 15-20 minutes after steam is removed.

Sticky, dense crust that sticks to teeth: This "gummy crust" results from improper cooling. The interior of bread continues cooking after removal from the oven. Cutting a loaf too early traps steam and moisture, making both crumb and crust sticky. Allow loaves to cool for at least 90 minutes before cutting.

Building a Sustainable Practice

Artisan bread baking rewards consistency above all else. The bakers who produce exceptional bread week after week are those who have refined their process through hundreds of loaves, not those who occasionally produce a single perfect bake.

Keep a simple log: date, formula used, room temperature, bulk fermentation time, final proof time, and brief notes on the result. Over months, patterns emerge. You discover that your kitchen in November requires 20% longer fermentation than in July. That your particular oven produces better crust when set 10°C higher than recipes suggest. This accumulated knowledge becomes your personal system.

The flour you use matters less than understanding the flour you're using. A baker who knows exactly how their local supermarket's strong white performs will produce better bread than one who buys expensive heritage flour but doesn't understand its characteristics. Master your ingredients, then consider upgrades.

Time is your most valuable tool. Bread made over two days, with long cold fermentation developing complexity, will nearly always outperform bread made in a single rushed session. Planning your bake to fit your life—starting the autolyse before bed, shaping before work, baking when you return—transforms baking from occasional project to sustainable practice.

Key Data Point: Cold fermentation (retarding dough overnight in a refrigerator at 4-6°C) effectively doubles the complexity of most bread flavours. A simple white sourdough retarded for 12 hours develops flavour compounds comparable to a bread fermented for 24 hours at room temperature. This is not a shortcut—it is a different process that produces different, often superior, results.

The UK bread scene offers everything a dedicated baker needs: excellent flour sources, a growing community of fellow enthusiasts, and decades of accumulated knowledge from professional bakers willing to share their craft. The techniques in this guide provide the framework; the thousands of loaves ahead provide the mastery. Start with one formula, perfect it, then expand. Your best loaf is always the next one.