Traditional Italian bread

👨‍🍳 The Preparation (Step-by-step)

1. The Preparation (Step-by-step)
2. 1. Prepare the Biga (The night before): Dissolve the fresh yeast in the water. Mix this with the Manitoba flour in a bowl. Do not knead explicitly into a smooth dough ball; the biga should remain a coarse, dry, and crumbly mass. Loosely cover the bowl and let it mature for 16 to 18 hours in a cool place (18-20°C).
3. 2. Autolyse (Next morning): Mix the 700 grams of semola rimacinata with 500 grams of the water (set aside 45 grams). Mix very well until all the flour is moist. Let this mixture rest covered for 45 minutes so that the semolina can absorb the moisture deeply.
4. 3. Kneading the dough: Tear the matured biga into small pieces and add it to the semola autolyse mixture. Start kneading gently. Gradually add the remaining 45 grams of water as soon as the dough begins to become homogeneous. After a few minutes, add the salt and knead until a smooth, elastic dough forms that completely pulls away from the sides.
5. 4. Bulk fermentation and Folding: Place the dough in a lightly greased dough container. Give the dough a set of stretch & folds after 45 minutes and after 90 minutes (fold the dough over itself from four sides). Let the dough rest until it has nearly doubled in volume (the total bulk fermentation lasts about 2.5 to 3 hours).
6. 5. Shaping and Final proofing: Gently turn the dough out onto a work surface dusted with semola. Divide into two equal parts. Shape into tight round balls (pagnotte) or elongated loaves. Place them seam side up in semola-dusted proofing baskets. Let them proof for 1.5 to 2 hours at room temperature until they feel clearly airy.
7. Baking methods (Choose your oven)

Method A:

In the traditional Wood Oven 

This semolina bread bakes on the declining, gentle residual heat without active flames.

1. 1. Slide all the coals/ash away once the dome is white-hot. Sweep the floor clean with a damp copper brush. Wait until the temperature of the oven floor has dropped to around 245°C - 250°C.

   2. Tilt the loaves onto a wooden peel and score them deeply (e.g. a cross cut).

   3. Shoot directly onto the stone floor and close the door hermetically. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes.

   4. For the last 8 minutes, leave the door slightly ajar (a spiffero) so that the crust dries out to ultimate crispness.

Method B:

In the regular Household Oven (Cast Iron Pan / Dutch Oven) The best way to replicate the heat and steam of a wood oven for perfect oven spring.

1. 1. Place a heavy cast iron pot with a lid low in the oven and preheat it to 245°C - 250°C. Let the pot warm for an additional 30 minutes after preheating.

   2. Tilt the risen bread onto a piece of baking paper and score the dough deeply.

   3. Carefully remove the blazing hot pot from the oven, take off the lid, and let the dough with the baking paper drop into the pot. Close the lid immediately. Bake for 30 minutes with the lid closed.

   4. Gently remove the lid, lower the oven temperature to 220°C, and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes until the bread is deep golden brown and crispy.

Method C.

In the regular Household Oven (On a Baking Stone or Baking Steel) For those who want to bake the free-form loaves directly on the floor.

1. Place a pizza stone or baking steel on a rack in the middle. Place an empty metal roasting tray at the bottom of the oven. Preheat for at least 45 minutes at 250°C.

2. Slide the sliced loaves onto the hot stone or steel with a pizza peel. Pour a generous cup of boiling water into the roasting tray at the bottom for a powerful steam burst and close the oven door immediately. Bake for 20 minutes with steam.

3. Carefully remove the roasting tray (or let the steam escape briefly), lower the temperature to 210°C and bake for another 25 to 30 minutes. 

In the last 5 minutes, leave the door ajar.