Anyone here into making sourdough bread?

[Will_D]

Musgraves C&C (Ballymun)

[Eoin]

What brand do they sell Will?

[Beermonger]

Eoin, your bread looks great, but 550 luksusowa isn't really a strong flour, it's more like plain flour.

The number system they use in Poland is similar to the German system: it measures the milligrams of ash in the combustion products of 100 g of the flour. 1600-2000 is wholemeal, 400 is the "plainest" flour, and good strong bread flour is around 700-850 (it's usually called mąka chlebowa, i.e., bread flour). That said, 550 is somewhat "strong", but it won't really give you the strength you're used to with the usual stuff.

I haven't seen Polish strong flour in Ireland. For that matter, in Poland you'll find the 400-550 type flours in every corner shop, but I could only ever find the strong bread flour there online, like here: http://allegro.pl/maka-pszenna-typ-750-5kg-chlebowa-promocje-i4927877805.html (the title means "Wheat flour type 750 (bread flour)"). I came to the surprising conclusion that Poles just don't bake that much bread at home. Cakes, on the other hand....

PS. Great thread. It's getting me back into the sourdough baking plan. Never had much success before.

[Eoin]

Eoin, your bread looks great, but 550 luksusowa isn't really a strong flour, it's more like plain flour.

The number system they use in Poland is similar to the German system: it measures the milligrams of ash in the combustion products of 100 g of the flour. 1600-2000 is wholemeal, 400 is the "plainest" flour, and good strong bread flour is around 700-850 (it's usually called mąka chlebowa, i.e., bread flour). That said, 550 is somewhat "strong", but it won't really give you the strength you're used to with the usual stuff.

I haven't seen Polish strong flour in Ireland. For that matter, in Poland you'll find the 400-550 type flours in every corner shop, but I could only ever find the strong bread flour there online, like here: http://allegro.pl/maka-pszenna-typ-750-5kg-chlebowa-promocje-i4927877805.html (the title means "Wheat flour type 750 (bread flour)"). I came to the surprising conclusion that Poles just don't bake that much bread at home. Cakes, on the other hand....

PS. Great thread. It's getting me back into the sourdough baking plan. Never had much success before.

Interesting, Internet research had lead me to believe it was the equivalent of strong flour. Also the results from it are quite good. That may be why my pizza base doesn't throw as well as it should, thanks for that.

[cruiscinlan]

PS. Great thread. It's getting me back into the sourdough baking plan. Never had much success before.

Let us know if you want part of a starter at all if you're in Dublin.

'Tipo 00' Italian flour used for pizza dough is apparently not strong flour either as I've seen it suggested. 

The various Cash & Carrys aren't really an option for me as I'm on the bicycle and don't fancy braving the M50. 

www.dublinfoodsales.ie/ in the Jamestown Industrial Estate [near the big parcel motel depot] will sell 16kg bags of Odlums and Rank Flours [Leviathan] direct to the public but again its a bit of a hike for me.   

[Jacob]

You should be able to buy odlums strong white in any tesco.

[cruiscinlan]

You should be able to buy odlums strong white in any tesco.

Peculiarly enough not in the Tesco on Parnell St. though available in the one in Phibsborough, Drumcondra & Dorset St. 

The real issue is I'd like other strong flours than Odlums to try them.  I've gotten the Bacheldre Watermill stuff off Amazon before.  Bakeries here won't sell flour either for some reason, as I tried to get rye flour from the Bretzel before and they wouldn't sell it to me  .

[cruiscinlan]

The number system they use in Poland is similar to the German system: it measures the milligrams of ash in the combustion products of 100 g of the flour. 1600-2000 is wholemeal, 400 is the "plainest" flour, and good strong bread flour is around 700-850 (it's usually called mąka chlebowa, i.e., bread flour). That said, 550 is somewhat "strong", but it won't really give you the strength you're used to with the usual stuff.

In the Polonez shop on Mary Street (opposite The Church bar/restaurant) I got strong rye flour 'mąka chlebowa' 'mąka zytnia' 720. 900g for 99 cent.

[Beermonger]

Awesome! Strange that they have strong rye but not strong wheat ('mąka pszenna' ~700)

[Will_D]

Why doesn't anyone offer a "sour dough starter" like we do for yeasts?

I am sure that some are better than others. After all this is the way brewing yests developed over 200 or more years.

The idea that my jam jar of flour / water / sugar and the wild flora and fauna on MY kitchen window sill will make for great bread is a bit to hit and miss for this auld chemist!

[bachus]

1. on the right: Wholegrain wheat flour ('Pełne Ziarno' - mąka pełnoziarnista pszeniczna)  -  ~ €1.34  1kg
type: 1850 (very good for pizza etc.)

2. on the left: Whole Grain - Wheat Whole Grain universal flour or 3 Cereals Whole Grain flour, dedicated to baking bread. ~ €1.20  1kg



3. Wholemeal rye flour - mąka żytnia razowa - not cheap (€1.94), but very good quality, my favorite flour  0.9kg



4. Melvit's products - http://melvit.pl/products/maki/#!/maka-pszenna-razowa-1kg-typ2000 (EN version available)



Pictures from yesterday, POL-SMAK Aldi Drimnagh Dublin 12
https://goo.gl/13Zz93  (blue building)

[bachus]

 My last sourdough starter died after 4-5 years, my fault. Now is a good moment to start a new one.

* 100g of wholemeal rye flour  [http://s30.postimg.org/affcd0041/image.jpg],
* 160-180g of lukewarm water,


Temp: 23-25oC

Next feeding after 24h

[bachus]

Changing into a totally different field, this is where it gets weird... My favorite Polish soup is "ŻUREK" or "ŻUR". ZUREK is made of soured rye flour (akin to sourdough), pieces of smoked sausage and weisswurst. Served in an edible bowl made of bread with boiled potatoes and halved boiled eggs and grated horseradish root:

[molc]

I totally want that! Must start making some bread again now.

[Beermonger]

A couple of times in Poland I've had the experience of thinking "why do I smell coddle?" and it's turned out to be żurek! Must be the sausage. But the sour note of żurek makes it quite distinct.

Polish soups are really interesting and quite different from what we're used to here. There are a few sour soups, such as this żurek, there's ogórkowa which has the brine from salt-pickled gherkins in it (you can get a good approximation by making a potato and veg soup and adding the pickle water added to taste), and there are the different versions of barszcz, which are often soured with a souring mix of rye bread and beets,

I make a version of barszcz for Christmas (barszcz wigilijny) which is really very simple. The Polish Christmas meal is on the 24th, which is technically a fast day, so some of the dishes prepared are conspicuously simple. The Christmas barszcz can (exaggerating a little here!) be described as water made red with beetroot and flavoured with salt, pepper, and citric acid. There's that souring again! It can be incredibly tasty, but you have to get the seasoning just right. And the cep/porcini ravioli counterbalance the simplicity.

There's sorrel soup which isn't exactly sour, but is more less a veg soup with the addition of sorrel leaves. You can buy jars of minced sorrel leaves (labelled 'szczaw' or 'przeczier szczawiowy') in Polish shops. This is quite nice, and is improved no end by the addition of a quarter of a hard boiled egg to the soup (the yolk rounds it out, I think?)

Then there's the clear soups, the various kinds of bullion and consommé. I'm not too fond of these, but there seems to be an cultural preference for clear soups (barszcz is usually fairly clear, too.)

Then there's the ones that really make you go "what?" Sour cherry soup, wild strawberry soup and all the other fruit soups. No, you can't have it for dessert, it's the soup course!

And one of my favourites: chłodnik, which Poles blame on Lithuania, but is basically a Polish gazpacho. Made from beetroot (but don't let that put you off it), served chilled in summer.... it's lovely.

Mmmm... Polish soup. Excuse me, I'm off to drink some pickle water.