How long will a bread ferment last before it is no good?
I have a bread recipe that I would like to try, but it requires a ferment using Guiness. The recipe says to leave it for 4 - 6 hours to get it going.
All of this is fine, but what I would like to know is how long can I leave the ferment fermenting before it becomes no good? Can I start it the night before and use it the next day?
Thanks
Best Answer
It's hard to say exactly how long it will take to overprove because there are many variables involved - the amount of yeast, salt and enrichment in your dough, and the room temperature for example. However, it should be fine to ferment overnight, if you cover it well and put it in the fridge.
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Can bread ferment for too long?
Signs of over-fermentation in your baked loaf: If your dough gets too warm for too long or you ferment for too long even at the right temp, some of the things you might notice in your baked loaf are: Hard crust. Lack of crust color (very hard to brown even if you leave it in the oven longer)How long can you let bread ferment?
If you want to let you dough proof for longer, try bulk-fermenting it in a cooler place, but don't allow it to go longer than three hours or structure and flavor may be compromised. For the workhorse loaf, a bulk proof of approximately two hours gives us the optimal balance of flavor and texture.What happens if you leave bread to prove for too long?
If the dough is left longer it will over prove (the gas bubbles in the dough become too large) and when the loaf is baked it is less likely to rise in the oven and it is also possible that it will become mis-shaped on baking as some of the gas bubbles may be so large that they over-expand with the heat of the oven and ...How can you tell if dough has gone bad?
Pizza crusts and dough have physical \u201ctells\u201d which let you know they're past their prime and could underperform:How long should you leave bread dough to rise for?
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Answer 2
Slow fermenting in the fridge will greatly improve the flavor of your bread. You do not say what other ingredients (leavening agents in particular ) are in the preferment (PF) and also in the final dough.
If it is the only leavening agents than letting it go to long could exhaust it and it will not have the power to leaven, if there are other leavening agents then you have a little leeway but is best to use it at its peak activity. Also, as well as time, the hydration level of the PF will determine how quickly it reaches peak activity.
Doing some test will help you to have better understanding of this PF and the bread. (this is true of all bread formulas.)
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