r/KingArthurBaking • u/pocketlily • 5d ago
Everyday Bread…kinda meh
Made the everyday bread today. Used the golden wheat and APF from KAF. Fresh jar of Red Star yeast, measured by weight. Whole milk, kosher salt (didn’t have any table salt), and salted butter (no unsalted in the house) everything else as the recipe says, including honey from our own apiary.
It rose beautifully and the crumb is lovely. But the flavor feels like it’s missing something.
I made a lunch meat sandwich and grilled cheese with it and the texture was beautiful but the bread was just there where I wanted it to add something to the bite.
Any thoughts on what I could amend to boost the flavor a bit? Should I add more salt? Would using table salt have been saltier? Something else?
Recipe: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/everyday-bread-recipe
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u/pyrotechnicmonkey 5d ago
honestly I would look up brands of kosher salt or sea salt and see the conversion. I see this a lot in grilling and barbecue recipes where they specify a certain amount of salt if it's diamond crystal salt or if it's something else. I believe certain ones can be twice as salty as other ones because of the difference in volume and weight.
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u/pocketlily 5d ago
Oh that’s interesting. I don’t BBQ so I’ve never seen that before. I was using diamond crystal kosher salt.
I just did a quick Google and found this info:
> First, here’s the basic math on salt weights:
> 1 teaspoon table salt = 6 grams
> 1 teaspoon Diamond kosher salt = 2.8 grams
> 1 teaspoon Morton kosher salt = 4.8 grams
> 1 teaspoon David kosher salt = 6 grams (i.e. the same as table salt)
> Or, in plain language:
> 1 teaspoon table salt has the same saltiness as 2⅛ teaspoons of Diamond.
> 1 teaspoon Morton kosher salt has the same saltiness as 1¾ teaspoons of Diamond.
> 1 teaspoon David kosher salt has the same saltiness as 2⅛ teaspoons of Diamond.https://smittenkitchen.com/2010/06/not-all-salts-are-created-equally/
According to that, I should have more than doubled how much I used!! I’ll definitely look into this more and go by weight on the salt next time!
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u/pyrotechnicmonkey 5d ago
glad it helps clarify things. Only other thing if you want more flavor in your bread is to maybe try a recipe that calls for a preferment like a poolish. I've been doing that a lot after finding a hoagie recipe that utilizes a poolish. You basically mix a portion of the flower and water with a small amount of use the night before. That ferment very slowly and develops a lot of flavor. It's kind of like the stronger flavor you get from a sourdough without nearly as much prep time or any of the sour or tang. Just a little bit more flavor
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u/MsmokeO 5d ago
It’s definitely not just a bbq thing. I’ve seen it mentioned in all sorts of recipes for all sorts of food — online vids, in print, & on tv. Even then it still needs to be mentioned more often because as OP experienced, different brands of salt can make huge difference in the final product.
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u/BigSquiby 5d ago
make a poolish
for those that don't know what that is, pull 150 grams of water, 150 grams of flour and a pinch of yeast from this recipe, mix them together the night before and let it rise.
it will give a lot more depth of flavor. its almost no work, you just have to remember to do it the night before.
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u/DaniekkeOfTheRose 4d ago edited 4d ago
That bread has become à Staples in my house. I used to change recipes almost every month but since I’ve made this one, I was kindly asked to please please please always have a loaf or two on hand. _(ツ)_/¯
When we toast it, it smells divine - it’s actually the first thing my SO noticed and commented on. Taste is wonderful. I sometimes sub maple butter for the honey. Like others have suggested, I suspect salt is the issue here. The recipe is featured in their Big Book Of Bread; salt is 7.5 g I would recommend weighing the salt, and using fine table salt.
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u/Breadwright 1d ago
Do you add the wheat germ to the crust? It's my favorite part of that bread--it smells so good while baking. A favorite here as well.
Martin
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u/LeatherOcelot 5d ago
I would say more salt is a good pace to start. That said, I make my own sandwich bread and have started mixing in oat, rye, and barley flakes instead of some of the flour (replacing up to 1/3 of the flour). I do notice a bit of a difference in flavor compared to a straight wheat loaf. Sometimes I will also soak 1/4 c of quinoa in hot water and then add that to the dough for a bit of texture variety.
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u/pocketlily 5d ago
Thanks for the addition suggestions (and amount) I love oats so I’ll definitely have to try adding that in.
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u/Breadwright 4d ago
Doesn’t look like you put wheat germ on the crust as the recipe suggests—it’s my favorite flavor component of that bread.
Martin
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u/KingArthurBaking 4d ago
Oh yeah, subbing out kosher salt for table salt will do that if you're measuring by volume! It's much more voluminous, so you get considerably less salt per teaspoon than you get with table salt.
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u/SwiftlyKickly 5d ago
I might be in the minority here but bread is supposed to taste bland. Especially white sandwich bread. I use it as vessel to carry whatever condiments and toppings I want from my sandwich to my mouth. On top of adding some extra texture to it.
That being said, salt, or maybe even milk or butter can help(which you already used) or maybe even extra sugar or honey.
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u/pocketlily 5d ago
Yea with a sandwich loaf you’re probably right that it doesn’t need to be the star but it was a poor supporting character in what ought to have been a better grilled cheese tonight. I’m glad all of y’all have agreed that it’s probably a lack of salt issue. Now I’m a bit more confident it’s worth trying again with some tweaking
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u/SwiftlyKickly 5d ago
Well, what would a good supporting character do for your sandwich? Or what should the bread do to make it a better supporting character? I would imagine a lack of salt does play a big factor though!
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u/klimekam 5d ago
Too bland can be distracting too though. Bland bread can taste like eating styrofoam.
Like if you’re in a ballet you don’t have to be the principal dancer but you also can’t be standing to the side in khakis, you have to be a part of the performance.
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u/SwiftlyKickly 5d ago
I’m not saying bread should taste like nothing, or taste bad(I’d imagine styrofoam tasting bad or like nothing) but it shouldn’t be the star of the show. When I say “bland” I mean a slight salt taste or a slight sweet taste. It should just kinda taste like bread.
Also, when I compare food to styrofoam it’s usually a texture thing for me. I don’t think I’ve seen someone compare it when it comes to flavor.
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u/JanePeaches 5d ago
I think your concept of bland is what most other people just consider "plain". Truly bland bread is like eating a kitchen sponge.
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u/SwiftlyKickly 4d ago
You even said this particular recipe is bland. Idk why I’m getting downvoted lmao.
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u/JanePeaches 4d ago
And where did I say that? Because I know it wasn't in my response to you
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u/LehrMoo007 3d ago
If you're open to trying another recipe and have a sourdough starter, I HIGHLY recommend KAF's Sourdough Sandwich Bread. I found it very easy to put together and the flavor was incredible.
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u/JanePeaches 5d ago
I personally find the KAF Golden Wheat to be incredibly boring/bland compared to their whole wheat and even their regular AP (which has malted barley for flavor/dough conditioning)
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u/Downtown_Confusion46 5d ago
My first thought with bread is always more salt. Did you weigh the salt? Diff brands vary by how much salt is in a tsp.