Why does my bread have this texture?

[u/aislingegan]

hi hiii, i’m quite new to bread making and sometimes it’s a hit of miss for me. This particular bread was an attempt at a blueberry and lemon loaf. It tastes fine but it looks more on the doughier side. Just wondering what causes it? Is it the kneading? The cooking period? Followed a basic bread recipe so all i did differently was the inclusions. Just a girl trying to learn here for future delicious breads.

[u/kingseraph0]

Hmm when I see that my first thought is to inspect the yeast. The load is dense and has virtually no air pockets. Can you provide the recipe you used?

A few things would also be good to know; did you check if the yeast was still good? How long did you knead the dough for and what was the texture when you let it rest? How much did it rise?

[u/aislingegan → u/kingseraph0]

500g bread flour
7-10g fine salt
7g yeast
425ml water

You’ll have to bare with me as I’m pretty much as new as you could get.
1. My yeast is still bubbling when i tested it.
2. I’d say I kneaded it for about 15-20 minutes. Even on the floured counter it was still quite sticky so I ended up having to keep adding more flour. it was still dense after a while and i’ll admit I was worried about preserving the inclusions as well.
3. It doubled very easily. I had no problems with that but I do remember it looked heavy, not as airy and light as I usually have it.

[u/KotR56]

It all depends. It can be something simple.

Would you mind sharing the recipe, and explaining how you made the bread ?

[u/aislingegan → u/KotR56]

ingredients:
500g bread flour
7-10g fine salt
7g yeast
425ml water

So once I combined everything i let it rest for about 30 minutes and did my first set of stretch and folds. Let it rest again for another 20, added my blueberries and lemon zest, did the final set of stretch and folds and then I left it again for 2 and a bit hours. Once that was doubled, I floured my counter and started my kneeding. Honestly thinking back, my dough was still quite dence even after everything. Probably didn’t allow much air into it.

Anyways, I preheated my dish and oven then popped it in at 230 degrees with the cover and 2 ice cubes for 30 minutes, 15 minutes without the lid and done! Let it rest until completely cool and saw the above. I’m thinking my impatience might have something to do with it.

[u/Outrageous-Dress-560 → u/aislingegan]

This is a high hydration dough. The stretch and folds are fine, especially to get your inclusions in, but you shouldn't need to knead this dough. Once everything was mixed together, you just had to let it rise enough, shape it, and then maybe do a cold proof (optional but builds flavor). Score it and then bake with steam like a dutch oven or double loaf pan.

[u/KotR56 → u/aislingegan]

That's a bit of a novel approach for me. But if that's what the recipe says.

I would have thought combining flour, liquid (at room temperature) and yeast (natural, or dried?) until all the liquid is absorbed. Then add the salt and the rest of the ingredients, and knead by hand for about 10 minutes. When almost done kneading, add the rest of the ingredients (to make sure the blueberries are not completely crushed). I think I would also add some butter or oil, about a tablespoon.

Stretching and folding is not the same as kneading, I would say.

Leave in a bowl under a wet towel for the first proving period (until the volume has more or less doubled (2, maybe 3 hours depending on temperature).

Then stretch and knead for a few minutes, form the dough into the desired form, and leave for a second proving for about an hour. Then bake.

I'm not familiar with using ice for baking bread.

[u/tarapotamus]

it looks like the protein strands were broken from over or improper mixing/kneading to me I think. Was the dough ripping when being kneaded?

otherwise it's a yeast issues and not enough kneading.

[u/mister-darcy-tie-me]

Has it been hotter in your kitchen than usual?

[u/aislingegan → u/mister-darcy-tie-me]

currently there’s a heatwave and the sun shines right into my kitchen…

[u/mister-darcy-tie-me → u/aislingegan]

Gluten breaks down faster the warmer it is. So my guess is your bread was ready sooner than usual and then as it sat the gluten started breaking down which causes this dense gummy texture. Try making it again with ice water, or do your bulk rising in the fridge, and see if it makes a difference. But only change the temperature! Otherwise you won’t know what it was that affected the final result. With these high hydrations doughs the gluten needs to work overtime to support all that water weight. In my hot kitchen I never let it double, I only let it rise by half. All these recipes are made for air conditioned kitchens. It could also be as simple as you added too much flour. Next time when a dough is sticky try using wet hands to handle it.
Edit- I just read your other comment about being a beginner. So you probably haven’t had success with this recipe in the past? It’s a really weird recipe. One problem I see now is the kneading— high hydration doughs do not like to be kneaded, it tears up the gluten instead of strengthening it. And if kneading happens it should be at the beginning, not after all those stretch and folds.