A couple of weeks ago, my family and I went up to the north of Sweden on vacation. We had a wonderful week filled with fresh air, wonderful weather, and skiing.
I also had time to think about new ideas for blog posts.
So when I came home, I was eager to start baking.
My sourdough starter was not.
Usually, it’s not a problem to leave it for one or two weeks.
But this time it was in a terrible mood.
After the first feeding, there were hardly any signs of life at all.
A few tiny bubbles were all I could see.
My starter made it clear what it thought of being neglected for so long.
I realized this would probably take some time.
Luckily, I had a plan B.
A couple of months ago, I wrote a blog post about baking with poolish. My intention has always been to follow up with a post about baking with Biga.
This was the perfect time for that.
TIME IS AN INGREDIENT
Now, baking with Biga means baking with commercial yeast, and I know that most people who visit this blog are looking for sourdough recipes.
But before you move on, please consider this.
Baking with Biga and Poolish has one thing in common with sourdough baking.
It takes time. And time is an ingredient.
It is that important if you want to bake bread that tastes anything.
At the beginning of the 19th century, many Italien bakers moved away from the use of sourdough. At that time, the baker’s yeast was introduced, and that meant quicker and more efficient production.
But what they gained in time, they lost in taste.
So to recover some of the flavor and aroma, the Biga was developed.
A Biga is a pre-ferment with quite low hydration, typically around 50-60%.
Due to the stiff consistency and small amount of yeast, the fermentation can be slowed down significantly, giving the bread a complex aroma.
It’s quite common to use 40-50% Biga in the final dough formula, but in this recipe, we will stretch that limit.
Instead, we will use 74%.
ABOUT INGREDIENTS IN THIS RECIPE
The Biga has a hydration of 60% and the final dough 72%.
I have used fresh yeast, but instant yeast works just as well.
Just remember to reduce the amount. The required amount is 1/3 of the fresh yeast.
But how much is 0.5 gram of dry instant yeast? Most kitchen scales start measuring at 1 gram, so it can be a challenge to find out.
One way is to measure up 1 gram, divide it into two equal parts, and then remove one of them. I admit that this method is a bit rough, but you will come pretty close to the target.
MIXING THE BIGA
I dissolved the yeast in the water, added the flour and mixed to a homogenous dough. There is no kneading required. I just made sure that all flour was hydrated.
After that, I left the Biga to ferment for 12 hours at room temperature, 70ºF/21ºC.
MIXING THE FINAL DOUGH
The next morning the Biga had tripled in size. It had a domed surface and a profound smell of alcohol.
I started by dissolving the yeast in the remaining water with a temperature of 86ºF/30ºC. Then I added flour, salt, and water to the Biga
I pinched the dough, followed by some folding to incorporate all ingredients to the Biga.
BULK FERMENTATION
Bulk fermentation stretched over two hours, and I performed two sets of stretch and folds during the first hour. The temperature was 73ºF/23ºC.
Now, commercial yeast is more vigorous than sourdough, so pay attention to the dough.
Fermentation goes quickly.
SHAPING
Normally, I pre-shape the dough before the final shaping, but not this time. The dough felt quite strong, and I wanted to keep some extensibility. So I quickly shaped the dough into a boule and placed it in a lined and floured banneton.
FINAL RISE
Again, pay attention to the dough, because this can go fast. After 40 minutes at a temperature of 72ºF/22ºC, I made a poke test and realized that the dough almost felt a bit over-proofed.
Make sure that you have started preheating your oven early. The temperature shall be 480ºF/250ºC.
BAKING
For the bread on the pictures, I used a combo cooker, but a dutch oven or clay cooker works just as fine. You can also use a baking stone or even a baking sheet. Just make sure to add some steam. The easiest way is to heat up an extra baking sheet in the oven and pour some water on it when it’s time to bake.
Make sure to score the loaf before baking. I know this can be a bit daunting, especially if you are a beginner, but it will help the bread to rise properly.
The total baking time for this bread was 45 minutes. I removed the upper part of the combo cooker after 15 minutes and lowered the temperature to 430ºF/220ºC after 25 minutes.
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you look at the picture above, you can see that the crumb is rather tight.
But I can assure you it’s not dense. This bread feels almost as light as air.
But what about the taste?
Well, the crust is really good. Thin, brittle and crusty, and loaded with taste.
The crumb is soft and has a more mild taste. You may sense a hint of sourness, but it’s very subtle. Good news for all of you who have never understood all this fuss about sourdough bread.
But even if you are an avid sourdough baker, I think you should give baking with biga a try. You may be surprised.
Besides, you never know when your sourdough starter decides to go on strike.
Baking with biga
Ingredients
Biga
- 300 gram Wheat flour 12,5% protein content
- 180 gram water
- 1.5 gram fresh yest or 0.5 gram instant yeast
Final dough
- 75 gram Wheat flour 12,5% protein content
- 90 gram water
- 1.5 gram fresh yeast or 0.5 gram instant yeast
- 7 gram salt
Instructions
Mixing the Biga
- Dissolve the yeast in the water and mix with flour until everything comes together. Let the Biga ferment for 10-12 hours at room temperature, 70ºF/21ºC, or until it has tripled in size.
Mixing the final dough
- Heat the remaining water to 86ºF/30ºC. Dissolve the rest of the yeast in the water and add it to the Biga together with the salt and remaining flour. Incorporate the added ingredients to the Biga by pinching and folding the dough, or use any other preferred method.
- Let the dough ferment 2-3 hours depending on the ambient temperature, or until it has tripled in size. Perform one or two sets of stretch and fold during the first hour.
Shaping for final rise
- Preheat the oven to 480ºF/250ºC.
- Dump out the dough carefully on a lightly floured working surface. Shape it into a boule or any other preferred shape, and place it in a lightly floured and lined banneton.
- Let the dough proof for 30-60 minutes, or until it passes the poke test.
Bake
- Score the loaf and bake it for 45 minutes, or until it has a golden brown color. Take off the lid if after 15 minutes if you are using a Dutch oven or similar. Lower the heat after 20-25 minutes if necessary.
11 Comments
All of the Biga gets used for this recipe? Is that standard for baking with a biga?
No, it’s not standard to use that much. Normally you use 40-50% of the total weight of the dough. But it works. Commercial yeast is much stronger than a sourdough starter. Ken Forkish uses even more in a recipe in his book Flour Water Salt Yeast.
I’ve been making bread a while but never made Biga. My final dough just did not look as dry as this. I followed Ken Forkish’s recipe from his book, which is similar to this. I’ve gone back in my steps to try and figure why it’s still so wet. Any ideas?
The hydration of the Biga in this recipe is just 60%. That is quite low, so your dough should be stiff. Are you sure you have got the right proportions between flour and water?
Hi James, there are so many different variables to consider here, but for my money, it’s probably the type of flour used.
Not that it’s important really, I found the recipe the same, and decreased the quantity of water added in the final dough to 80 g rather than 90.
I’m sure you’ve figured this out by now, but just play around with water:flour until you get something you can work with.
Also, I found using oil to cover the work surface when performing stretch/folds as well as having wet/oiled hands and tools really helped.
hope that was useful!
Hi my Big did not triple in size, do you have any idea why? Thanks
Hi Steve.
It’s probably the yeast you are using. I would try to increase the amount to perhaps 1 gram instant or 5 gram fresh yeast and see what happens.
When I bake bread with fresh yeast, to 500 g of flour I add 15 g of fresh yeast, and that works just perfectly … I think that for the amount of 375 g flour in your recipe, I would definitely use a lot more than 3 g of fresh yeast, I mean 10 – 12 grams. I’m going to try it tomorrow this wah and let you know …
This is the best bread recipe I’ve ever used! Love it! My bread is hollow to the knock and crusty.
I make Biga bread all the time. I work every weekend 12.5 hour shifts so every Sunday I start the process. By Monday afternoon we have bread!
my Biga is only around 15% of the dough size and the first rise usually takes up to two days and the second at least 3 hours depending on the weather.. bit I like uuber sourness