I use a long clay baker and also use an Emile Henry Italian loaf baker. Clay is much lighter and it keeps the loaves in a more traditional loaf shape for sandwiches. It’s also easier slice. I save energy by starting my loaves in a cold oven at 450 F for 55 minutes and take the lid off for 5 to 7 minutes. They turn out just right.
That's an awesome technique, Debra! I've tried many times baking from cold and it just doesn't work for the style of bread I'm making here. I need to revisit this!
I use a similar technique but with a cast iron pan on the bottom of my electric oven and get great oven spring. I recently made a 100% hydration dough for a bread from Catalonia called Pan Cristal and used the cast iron above the bread on the top rack and the bread came out with a great rise and a much better bread in the family of ciabatta..
Fantastic, that sounds like a similar and very effective technique! I've also played with a baking surface at the top of my oven. I can't say I've noticed much of a difference for me, I think it's because my oven has pretty consistent top-heat. Part of all of this baking in a home oven comes down to adjust for your own oven and it's quirks! Thanks for the comments, that Pan Cristal sounds delicious!
Didn't understand how axcactly you use your cast iron- bottom? Above? Open? With lid? The bread sitting in casy iron or on open surface in oven? Thank you
Thanks! I use a similar technique with a heavy skillet instead of the pan with rocks, I never though of the towels for that longer steady steam. I wish there was a commercially available device to inject steam into household ovens in a more repeatable and accurate way. Maybe a future project...
Tried it again with the gas oven. I plug the vent with a kitchen towel during the first 25 min. The steam is well preserved, but the oven has a hard time reaching 450F (stuck at 420F). I guess it does not have good ventilation for the temperature to spread. In addition, I run the risk of creating too much carbon monoxide in the room. The alarm actually is triggered 10 min after I finish my baking. The good thing is both bread came out fantastic, with very good oven spring and nice color in the crust. It is baker's choice if he/she wants to use this method should the gas oven have a large vent.
Thanks for testing this and replying with your results! Yes, I'd say for anyone out there with a gas oven, baking in a closed pot is the way to go given these hurdles.
Thank you! This is the Modernist Cuising Baking Steel at 3/4" thick. Though, any 1/2" steel would work just the same, and in fact, it would be okay if it were even thinner.
@@theperfectloaf Thank you for responding. I checked online for what is available in my area and the thickness is as far down as 1/4 inch. Hard to know what to buy for effective and efficient baking, so I appreciate your answer. ❤️
Pour boiling water into a shallow pan in the oven bottom when you start to bake. This gives a good initial steam burst and then you can adjust the quantity of water for the desired crust. Not really that complicated.
@@lyubovbochkareva7017 towels are optional! They provide more of a continuous steam during the beginning of the bake, whereas the rocks provide an initial upfront blast.
Thank you for this video, Maurizio! I usually use my Dutch ovens but will try your method when I make baguettes. Now, would you use this technique for the "soft dinner rolls" (on page 333) for a super soft crumb or it should only be used to bake "breads with crust"? 🙏🏻💖🥖
I have an oven with a steam bake mode. Water is poured directly into a shallow cavity on the floor of the oven to generate steam. Is this sufficient to create enough steam for baking with a large stone?
First, thanks for all of the detail and precision. I didn't realize baguette needed even more steam than normal bread, and I'm so happy I found this video and your channel. Second, the lava rocks were something I had never seen before but makes so much sense. Those rocks are porous which increase the heated surface area to maximize steam production. Awesome trick. Question: can I block the vent at the top of my gas oven? I have a standard gas oven with one vent at the top that shunts air directly onto the back burners. I have seen others suggest doing this to maximize steam retention in the oven, but I wanted to know what you thought. Thanks again for these hacks.
Glad you found all this helpful! Yes, the lava rocks really do help, though if you can't find any you can do without (also, ceramic briquettes work really well, too). Unfortunately, gas ovens are really hard to steam... I can't say whether blocking the vent is a good idea because I've never personally baked in a gas oven, just standard home electric ovens. If you try that, let me know how it goes, just be cautious, the vent is there for a reason most likely 🙂
Really happy I’ve found your channel after years of referencing your blog. Thanks for everything you’ve done to help my bread. :) Regarding the steam, is there any reason you don’t put the towels on the rocks pan? Figured it saves the mild hassle of juggling two hot pans. And for the rocks, I’m assuming most anything of sufficient thermal mass would suffice?
Thank you so much, so glad I can help 🙂 The towels might get ruined quicker on the rocks... But you could do it. Just be sure you remove them at the 20m mark (they should never totally dry out). Yes, anything oven-safe will work in lieu of the rocks.
Hello there! This question may have been addressed but I didn't see it. Regarding the rolled towels for steam - does it matter what the fabric content is? cotton, linen,etc? and any specific fabric content that should be avoided? Thank you!!
I have a question. I have always just put a shallow pan below the rack that I bake my loaves on and fill it with boiling water. It has always worked well for me but I have never seen anyone else do this. Is there a reason that this is not the best way to incorporate steam? TIA
Why is it necessary to remove the pan w/ lava rocks? Also, do you have a recommendation for the thing (I think you called it a steel?) you actually baked on? I used to have a Pampered Chef pizza stone, but gave it to one of my kids when they went to college (which they still have 22 years later!), so I want to buy something on which to bake besides a cookie sheet. Thank you for all your helpful videos!
You don't have to remove the pan with lava rocks unless it's still filled with water/ice. I have a link to my favorite baking steel on my baking tools page! www.theperfectloaf.com/my-baking-tools/
You're welcome, Francine! I prefer only steaming bread dough for the first 15-20 minutes in a home oven. If you steam the entire time, the crust will never get a chance to harden off, gain more color, and get crusty.
I tried this method and would say it works half-heartedly with my gas oven. The reason is my oven has a large vent, which provides a highway path for steam to escape freely. The bread comes out marginally good, with very dull crust. Ear is no longer prominent. All these are due to the drying of the bread during baking. Looks like gas oven with large vent can only use dutch oven. Too bad...
Are you putting your steaming pans directly on the bottom of the stove? My electric oven has a heating element that would obstruct the area to be used.
Yes, pans are directly on bottom. My oven doesn't have exposed heating elements. If yours does, you can put a rack at the bottom slot in the oven, then place the pans on top of that (then place another rack a few slots up where you'll place your baking surface and dough)!
@@theperfectloaf I have the same issue. The oven also isn't the biggest thing in the world so it seem if I put a pan like yours in that lower rack the rack with the bread would be too high (and hot) in the "chamber." I was wondering if deep, narrow bread pans to either side of the loaf would work or does the steam have to come from directly below? Alternatively I also wonder about the viability of using a shallow pizza pan below so the the bread's rack didn't have to be raised so much.
Great informative video. I am D.O. (Dutch Oven) baking in both the home electric oven and my outdoor Genesis III Weber BBQ. Both hold a steady 450F. I'd like to try baking in a 10" cast Iron skillet. Will inserting a pan of boiling water replace the affect of a D.O.? Please let me know your thoughts on this. Again, much thanks for this video.
Hey, Mike! Yes, that'll help for sure, but it also depends on how closed your BBQ is. If it's very open allowing the steam to escape, you'll have to steam significantly. I'd say give it a try, even if it's not as perfectly steamed as inside a DO, you'll still get great bread, it'll just have a more "rustic" crust that wont be quite as shiny (and that's okay).
QUESTION! I baked something last night in glassware, this morning, I prepped my bread as I always do but instead of glassware, I placed it on my nordicware with parchment paper, preheated the oven. Had a water bath going.. etc.. I have been doing this forever but this morning, I had a TON of what appeared to be smoke coming out of my oven. But the oven was pristine..! No food. When I use glassware this never happens. It has happened now twice while baking bread on the nordic but I use it for cookies and no problem. I have no idea what is happening. Any thoughts?? Thanks!
I actually think I answered my own question! i watched you place your bread on the parchment paper and yours was ALOT smaller than mine. I pulled the bread out and had only enough parchment to basically cover the bottom of the bread. However, WHY is my parchment paper sticking to the bottom??? Never happened before.. crazy!
@@theperfectloafThanks! I actually bought mine at a dollar tree so...there's that.. I WILL try another brand.. Could I also drop oil on the paper where the bread goes?
What about steam lost through the oven vent? Do you find that the addition of the second pan with the towels compensates for any steam lost through the vent?
Yes, that's the issue with home ovens; they're really designed for dry roasting. I find the second pan does help continually bring steam into the oven and helps offset those vents.
What are your thoughts on using a baking tray that's put above the dough while pre-heating for indirect heat from above? I feel I can generate a lot of steam using your methods but the surface hardens really quick (within 10min) despite putting it at the lowest rack in my oven. I pre-heat at 250c / 482f and then lower to 230c / 450f for the bake with the dough on top of a baking steel and said baking tray above it. The results seem fine but I'm worried I'm making a mistake here.
That baking sheet will help reflect some of the top-heat generated by your oven, so it could help overall. Have you tried reducing the temp at which you bake, too?
@@theperfectloaf I probably should. I'm just worried it wont shock the yeast/sourdough enough to get as much oven spring as possible. I should just bite the bullet and test it with as much steam as I can generate while on a lower heat.
My oven does not have exposed heating elements. What you can do is put an oven rack at the very bottom, just on top of the element (the bottom-most rung).
That's a fantastic question; surprisingly, I've not received it. So the BS is raw steel, so you'd think that would happen, but it doesn't. I keep it seasoned as I do for cast iron, with a very thin layer of veg oil when needed. It honestly looks brand new after having it for over 7 yrs.
Just a question: do you think this method may have a hard time creating shiny crust as seen in Challenger Pan and dutch oven method? It appears to me the steam will not be as dense as that in the dutch oven environment.
If your oven is sealed well and you steam heavily, you can get really good results, and I'd say, on par with a closed pot. Though, it really depends on your oven. In my oven you see in the video I get fantastic results, but it's electric and isn't super vented.
man i tried baggets thinking i could use half of my pizza dough and it did not rise to the size of ones from shop. and i thought i knew how to steam but there was zero steam from the pan even after boiling it and sticking it in the rack
You dont have to, but I do recommend removing the pans with towels after 20 mins so they don't get overly heated in there. The other pan can stay inside.
