Bulk Fermentation –
The Key to a Great Oven Spring & Crumb

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This is the 6-12 hour window of time while you are letting the cultures do their work and make the bread rise. During this step you are building the gluten strength in your dough, which will give you height and oven spring. It is the time from when you first mix the dough to the time you put it in the refrigerator for the cold retard. What you do during this process will determine your crumb. During the bulk fermentation, you will perform some stretch and folds, lamination and some coil folds. During this time you will also be letting the dough rest for a few hours, then shaping the dough and putting it into your proofing basket. The colder your room temperature, the longer your bulk fermentation will be. Short bulk fermentation is achieved in a warm summer kitchen. Proper fermentation is key — not enough or too much will result in a dense bread.

Bulk Fermentation Time

Time varies greatly on your bulk fermentation. You should not go by time, but rather how the dough looks and feels, what percentage rise it has and temperature of the dough. The temperature of the dough is affected by the temperature of the water you use to make the dough and the room temperature. When your room temperature is cold, your dough temperature will be cold. It is the temperature of the dough that is important. If your dough is warm (above 70º F/21º C)., it will continue to rise in the refrigerator, so you do not proof it to full double (100% rise). For example, if your dough temperature is 73º F/23º C, you would only proof it to 75% percentage rise as it will take the dough some time to cool in the refrigerator before the fermentation process stops. Your warm dough will continue to rise in the refrigerator. (See chart below.) If it rises too much during the cold retard, you will not get much oven spring.

Bulk Fermentation Guide

This guide can be found at www.thesourdoughjourney.com

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