Cholent -HELP | Imamother

amother

Chestnut

Mon, Feb 26 2024, 3:14 pm

Thanks for the vegetable soup recipe. It sounds amazing. I will try it! Thanks for sharing

amother

Mon, Feb 26 2024, 3:41 pm

amother NeonBlue wrote:

Which detergent do you use for daily use?
and I see different sorts of oven scrapers on Amazon, do you use the metal or plastic one? do you know which one you have?

Regular Mr clean or Murphy.

I use a plastic scraper
Orange and blue color

amother

NeonBlue

Tue, Feb 27 2024, 12:06 pm

op-

would love your sourdough rundown!
should we start a spin off?

amother

Tue, Feb 27 2024, 12:36 pm

amother NeonBlue wrote:

op-

would love your sourdough rundown!
should we start a spin off?

I’m working on writing it out clearly.
I thought I’d have time yesterday but BH we had a family simcha.

As I stated before I’d love to record the process and upload it here, if there’s a possibility to do that.

I think we should start a spinoff but I don’t want to spam the board. Wonder if people would be interested.

amother

NeonBlue

Tue, Feb 27 2024, 12:45 pm

amother OP wrote:

Oh wow, you really are putting effort into this, thank you!!!! That is so special of you!!!
Mazel Tov on the simcha, only simchas and nachas!!
I am certainly interested!!! And I still want your kokosh recipe and anything else you make that is divine!! I can tell that it's not only the recipe, you have a lot of technique involved!!
Looking forward!!

amother

Tue, Feb 27 2024, 1:58 pm

amother NeonBlue wrote:

Ok, got it
I will type it up later I”H

Thank you for the boost of confidence. Can't Believe It

amother

Tue, Feb 27 2024, 7:19 pm

amother OP wrote:

Ok, got it
I will type it up later I”H

Thank you for the boost of confidence. Can't Believe It

Please let me be very very clear.
I am not a professional.
I have never taken any lessons and my method is not the only way to do it.
In fact, over the years(baking for a very long time, not since Covid explosion) I constantly tweaked and changed things if I saw a difference. Some things I do might just be habit, but not necessary. I don’t know.

Please do not jump at me if you do it differently. In fact your method might be better!

Use glass or plastic bowls.
I do not use stainless -
I also like to use a regular size bowl, not a tall jar I think it’s easier for it to grow in a round bowl.
Make sure your starter is well maintained. Which means it’s fed well, not underfed, and not overfed. You can feed 100 grams of flour to 100 g of starter…
You can also feed 100 grams of flour and water to 50 grams of starter. But you can not feed 1000 grams of flour to 100 grams of starter.
I feed at 100% which means equal amounts of flour and water.
Starter should be bubbly and smells sweet(or no smell)

Glass bowl-
Put the bowl on the scale and tare to 0
Pour 350 g of water
125 grams of starter
Mix with a fork. Make sure it's mixed well.
Add
450 g of bread flour
50 g of ww flour
Mix until shaggy dough.
Cover it and allow to rest for approx 45-60 min.
Put the bowl back on the scale, tare to 0 and
Add 10 g of salt and 20 g of water. Mix dough well (best to wear gloves) every 30-45 min for the next 4 hours stretch n fold.
Lift the dough with both hands and allow it to fold in , you can also lift each side and fold over, I like both hand method. Then cover and leave out on the counter not more than 6 hours. (Your kitchen temp matters, if it’s really hot, or summer months u can do less)
Put the bowl in the fridge for a few hours. I like to put it overnight. Then remove from fridge, allow to come to room temp slightly. About 30 -60 min.
If the dough hasn’t risen enough in the fridge , which can happen, leave on the counter for longer and it will rise more.
Shape dough the first time, just circle it into a ball. Let dough rest for 20 min.
(At this point quickly wash your bowls)
Line a Benneton with paper towel sprinkled with rice flour.
I put the rice flour into a confectioner sugar shaker and just shake it onto the paper towel.
Then shape by opening the dough to a rectangle and folding it into 3rds. Meaning bring one side of the dough to the center then the other side to the center then roll up and Circle it into a ball and circle it once more.
Allow to use the friction. Don’t be scared of the dough.
For those who like a sesame flavor-
Now make the dough slightly wet with ur hands and sprinkle sesame seeds. Invert into the Benetton and make the seam side wet carefully and sprinkle generous amount of sesame seeds. Cover the Benetton and put in the fridge until ready to bake.
It needs at least 6 hours in the fridge but 8-10 is ideal
I use a disposable shower cap to cover the dough, but you can use anything!
Also, if you don’t have a Benetton which you don’t need, just use any bowl. However size matters so don’t put it into a large bowl where the dough will just stretch.
Preheat oven and pot to 500.
Invert onto parchment paper sprinkled with rice flour. Sprinkle rice flour gently on top of the bread and Score. The way you score matters , don’t go too deep , but also not a slight mark.
Rather do several small ones to be safe.
Put the parchment into a Dutch oven
bake covered on 500 degrees for 23 min then uncover on 435 for 19-20 min.

amother

NeonBlue

Wed, Feb 28 2024, 12:13 pm

Thank you thank you thank you!!!!

I was waiting for this!!!! You are so detailed, it's fantastic!!!

Seems like me starter is the difference here! I am not so clear with how you feed your starter.

Once you feed your starter, how long do you leave it out on the counter?

This morning I had 100 g of starter that smelled sour
and I fed it 100 flour and 100 water
are you saying that it is underfed now?

do you keep a lot of starter in general? I usually have 1/4 to 1/2 cup worth I would estimate sitting in the fridge.

I'm excited to try everything you mention, but I first need to work on strengthening my starter I believe.

Also, how many do you make at a time? If making six challahs, do you do it all in one large bowl, or each recipe in its own individual bowl?

amother

Wed, Feb 28 2024, 12:23 pm

amother NeonBlue wrote:

Yes, many don’t realize how the starter is such an important component, even more so than the method.

Ok, so if you had 100 g of starter and you fed 100 and 100 you’re ok.
If it smelled sour , I’d probably pour off half and leave only 50 grams and you can feed 100.

I think leaving too much old starter doesn’t allow it to strengthen.

1/4-1/2 cups of starter is ideal. But always feed it all, and even leave over 1/4-1/2 cup of that.

Are you feeding it in a glass bowl or plastic?

I leave it on the counter until it’s bubbly and fresh. I don’t know a time since sometimes my kitchen is super warm and it takes all of a few hours and sometimes it’s cold and takes many hours.

I prefer to take it out of the fridge the night before. Feed it approx 50-100 grams.
Leave on the counter all night. The next morning feed again for as many breads as you need.
This feed you should watch, as soon as u see it doubled and bubbly (before it falls) you're good to go.

I hope this helps.

amother

Wed, Feb 28 2024, 12:29 pm

amother NeonBlue wrote:

Forgot to answer the last question.
I wouldn’t recommend you do more than 2 doughs in 1 bowl. Meaning 1000grams of flour in total.

amother

NeonBlue

Wed, Feb 28 2024, 12:40 pm

ok, so that is usually how I feed it
I was thrown off by your amount of 100 g starter to 1000 g flour
what did you mean by that?

And if this is what I've done all along, then how can I strengthen it more? I was hoping that that was my issue!

Do you challahs rise till the pot cover?

amother

Wed, Feb 28 2024, 12:45 pm

amother NeonBlue wrote:

Oh wait, where did I write 1000 g of flour? Might be a typo!!

You might need to feed it twice before baking.
Also feed it weekly even if ur not baking.

It takes time to get a perfect starter.

How big is your pot?
My breads generally do rise almost until the cover, but I might have a smaller Dutch oven than you.

amother

NeonBlue

Wed, Feb 28 2024, 12:54 pm

amother OP wrote:

You can feed 1000 grams of flour to 100 g of starter…
I feed at 100% which means equal amounts of flour and water.
Starter should be bubbly and smells sweet(or no smell)
.

was the above a mistake?
lodge dutch oven 5.5 quart

how large is yours?

amother

Wed, Feb 28 2024, 1:03 pm

amother NeonBlue wrote:

was the above a mistake?
lodge dutch oven 5.5 quart

how large is yours?

Yes it was a huge mistake.
There’s an extra 0.

Can I fix that message ? I’ll try to figure it out now. I don’t want to misguide anyone.

I’m sorry!!!!

5.5 you should be able to get it really tall. Your goal shouldn’t be until the lid.
Focus on getting tall nice breads.

amother

Wed, Feb 28 2024, 1:07 pm

amother NeonBlue wrote:

was the above a mistake?
lodge dutch oven 5.5 quart

how large is yours?

I think I corrected it. Would you mind confirming if you see it on your end ?

Thank you

amother

NeonBlue

Wed, Feb 28 2024, 1:15 pm

yup, fixed!
but now, I don't do much different Sad

So, what should I do ??
I will try yours precisely iyH and see what happens.
How high, as in inches, do you think it should be?

amother

Wed, Feb 28 2024, 1:34 pm

amother NeonBlue wrote:

yup, fixed!
but now, I don't do much different Sad

So, what should I do ??
I will try yours precisely iyH and see what happens.
How high, as in inches, do you think it should be?

Everything counts. Follow and see if something changes.
I never measured, but don’t get fixated on that. Seriously just focus on getting it right and the breads will be perfect.

Temperature in the house matters, and honestly, I’ve had prettier breads and not such perfect breads.
Enjoy the process, focus on understanding what you’re looking for and you’ll be fine.

amother

NeonBlue

Wed, Feb 28 2024, 1:36 pm

You're a gem!
and it comes through in your writing
thank you!!!!
I wish I can hear more about your cooking Smile

amother

NeonBlue

Thu, Feb 29 2024, 2:15 pm

Ok, so I'm really enjoying following your method.
Some questions:
1. do you let the starter grow in a bowl, as well as the dough? Would you let the dough rise in a 5 pound container, or prefer a bowl?

2. What's the purpose of first shaping into a ball, to then just open it up and stretch it out? Why don't you first open it up and then form into a ball, wait 20 min and shape into a firmer ball?

3. Is the timeline ok, if I first put my dough together Wed 6pm, and put into the fridge at 4 am (I know, crazy, but between work and kids, sourdough is not that much of a priority!) and then shape at about Thursday 4 pm and then bake Friday am?

amother

Fri, Mar 01 2024, 7:20 am

amother NeonBlue wrote:

You're a gem!
and it comes through in your writing
thank you!!!!
I wish I can hear more about your cooking Smile

Thank you. I find it really nice when posters take the time to respond. Especially something so kind. Thank you.
I checked my spam folder and saw your message now.

Would love to talk all about cooking- and cleaning.
Bring it on.