I used to bake my sourdough at 450 for an hour, now I do 20 minutes at 500 and then drop it way down

For years, I just threw my loaves in at one steady temp, like my grandma taught me. Then I read a blog post from a baker in Portland about steam and oven spring, and it clicked. I started doing a super hot blast at 500 degrees for the first 20 minutes with a pan of water in the oven, then dropping it to 425 for the rest of the bake. The crust is way better and the inside isn't as dense. Anyone else mess with their oven temps mid-bake like this?

3 comments

3 Comments

willowg8827d ago

Ever notice how we all start with the simple way we were taught? Then you find a better method and wonder why you stuck with the old one for so long. It happens with everything, not just bread.

zarat3827d ago

But is the old way really that bad? Sometimes simple works fine and the new method just adds extra steps for a tiny bit of improvement. We act like we wasted years, but maybe the old way was good enough at the time. Why stress over finding the perfect way to do every little thing?

mark_ward27d ago

Honestly, sometimes the old way is just what you had time for back then.