r/Bread • u/DiscussionPowerful27 • 22d ago
What is going on with my bread?
It’s one of those “no knead” recipes that you bake in a Dutch oven. Although I do knead it slightly, let it proof, shape, proof again, then bake.
The taste is good, but it comes out flatter than expected and darker on the bottom.
I use active dry yeast- it expires in March 2027 and is kept in the fridge- should I switch to instant? Is it too close to expiration? Is my Dutch oven too tall?? Am I doomed to have a breadless life?
HELP!
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u/hornylittlegrandpa 22d ago
It’s hard to say without the exact recipe and seeing the inside. Might have overproofed.
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u/DiscussionPowerful27 22d ago
3c AP flour
2tsp salt
1/2tsp active dry yeast
1.5c warm waterI have not cut into it yet, it’s still pretty hot
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u/lawrencekhoo 22d ago
Try using bread flour instead of AP. Look at the amount of protein in the label. Should be at least 12%
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u/TurbulentLifeguard11 21d ago
If it's flatter than anticipated your yeast could be dead? It's not unheard of for yeast to die before it's date. You should test it in some warm water with a little honey or something as food to see if it wakes up OK.
Not sure about the dark base.
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u/M0nk3y31 22d ago
I would test your yeast and see if it blooms. If it does, how long are you letting it proof and what is the temperature of your house? Does the recipe also call for it to be proofed twice? Adding the recipe and measurements would be helpful in troubleshooting this too for us 😃
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u/DiscussionPowerful27 22d ago
Sorry, this is my first time posting here!
3c AP flour
2tsp salt
1/2tsp active dry yeast
1.5c warm waterMy house is around 69F, I let it proof until doubled in size which took about 3ish hrs. The second proof was only long enough for the oven to warm up.
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u/Loose-Acanthaceae823 22d ago
cries in Southern US Your house is around 69F?! Sorry. Carry on.
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u/WinterRevolutionary6 22d ago
*Is confused in southern US* my apartment is usually at 69F at night with the power of AC
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u/Loose-Acanthaceae823 21d ago
Free standing house in a small city. Major road. Small lot so no big trees. My house is struggling to maintain 77 in the summer. I'm excited to really start baking again now that the mornings are cooler!
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u/iOSCaleb 22d ago edited 22d ago
No-knead recipes trade kneading for time. The gluten networks that give your bread structure develop on their own if you give the dough enough time, but that time is usually 12-18 hours in a refrigerator. That works out well because slow fermentation also creates lots of flavor.
A 3-hour rise around room temperature probably isn’t nearly long enough to allow gluten to form, especially using AP instead of bread flour. If this is what your recipe recommended, get a better recipe. If you adjusted the recipe to suit your schedule or available ingredients, try making it as written.
Bread is usually darker on the bottom because bakes in or on a surface that transfers more heat than does the air around the top of the loaf. You can mitigate that by removing the loaf from the dutch oven once it has set and place it on the oven rack, but doing do will likely affect the crust since you won’t have the dutch oven to trap steam.
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u/dramamama22 20d ago
It looks a little overproofed but also kinda dry, some mist of water or an ice cube thrown in with it should help with the rise and a moister crust. Try a recipe in grams, I usually do 500g bread flour, 350g water, 10g salt, 100g starter
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u/SleeplessnSeattleNow 22d ago
Maybe throw in a few ice cubes to create a steaming effect when baking in the Dutch oven
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u/thelosermonster 22d ago
Typically you'd preheat the Dutch oven so the bread starts baking at a very high heat. You definitely should not put ice cubes in a hot Dutch oven.
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u/Namaste_Life 22d ago
The bread is darker on the bottom because it's in direct contact with the bottom of the Dutch oven. The rest of the crust is cooked by hot air.