Have you mastered this essential gesture, which is carried out just before placing your bread in the oven, for a harmoniously inflated result?
After having put your dough in shape, one last precise, fast and assured gesture must be carried out just before
placing your bread in the oven. Called nibbling , counterboring, scarification ... this one is essential. It allows the bread to develop and swell perfectly.
Why nibble his dough?
These blade strokes given on the top of the dough pieces before baking are not only decorative. It is true that this "signature" affixed by the baker is very aesthetic.
Above all, they have a functional and technical role of "fireplace". During cooking, the water contained in the dough turns into steam and the carbon dioxide, which is formed during the last grows, must escape. These scarifications are their only evacuation doors from the top, thus avoiding the formation of anarchic tears and leaving space for the crumb to develop. Nibbling have a direct influence on the structure of the bread: an aerial crumb and a homogeneous volume.
How to do it ?
At first glance, it seems easy to make a few notches. But not so much, you need a certain know-how.
Too superficial, they will not fulfill their role, their depth should be about one to half a centimeter. The angle of penetration also influences the final aspect, vertical your bread will be marked but will not have these growths as in the baker. A beveled crumb, with an inclination of 30 to 45 °, will give this "professional" aspect to your bread with some pretty crispy and appetizing ridges. The gesture must be quick and straightforward to prevent the dough from sticking to the blade.
The 3 most common nibbling methods are: the Classic cut (eg baguette), polka (eg loaves, round breads) and the sausage cut (rye bread type breads) but there are many others. .. It's up to you to invent your own signature!
But not with just any utensil ...
You need a very sharp blade as fine as that of a razor. Even a sharp knife will not do the job properly.
The snack, the baker's blade, the incisor, scarifier ... this object with multiple names is essential to perfect this gesture. Compact, its blade is very fine, often curved, allowing incisions to be made with precision and efficiency.
