One hundred percent whole wheat, no white flour anywhere, 92% hydration, and no raw bran taste. The mechanism is a scald: 20% of the whole wheat flour is mixed with boiling water and left to cool, which gelatinises its starch and softens its bran so completely that the finished loaf tastes like a mild brown bread rather than like health food.
The scald, in detail
Boil 200 g of water, pour it over 100 g of whole wheat flour, stir to a smooth paste, cover, and leave until it reaches room temperature — about two hours, or 40 minutes in a cold water bath. The starch gelatinises above 65 °C, and once gelatinised it holds water that would otherwise be stolen from the gluten by raw bran.
| Component | Flour | Water | Treatment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scald | 100 g (20%) | 200 g | Boiling water, cooled |
| Soaker | none | none | — |
| Main dough | 400 g (80%) | 250 g (total 92%) | Mixed with starter and salt |
| Starter | 150 g (30%) | included | 1:4:4 at 26 °C |
A wet dough that still handles
92% hydration sounds impossible for 100% whole wheat, but the scald has already absorbed 100 g of the water and its starch is holding it. The main dough is mixed with the remaining 250 g and behaves like a 78% wheat dough — sticky, but shapable with wet hands. Four coil folds, 40 minutes apart, no bench flour at any point.
Pan, not banneton
This dough goes into a greased 23 x 13 cm tin with the top smoothed by a wet scraper. A free-form loaf at 100% whole wheat spreads too far, and the tin gives you an even, sandwich-friendly shape. 225 °C, 20 minutes of steam, 48 minutes total, and the loaf must be fully cool before slicing or the crumb will smear.
- Crumb rating 3/5: moist, even, no raw bran bite, keeps four days.
- Tastes sweeter than you expect — the scald converts some starch to sugar.
- Toasts darker than white bread; watch it at the 2-minute mark.
The scald must be completely cool before it meets the starter. A scald at 45 °C will not kill the culture outright, but it will slow the ferment enough to make the schedule unpredictable.
Sources / 参考来源
Published reference works consulted for this log: