Id always wondered how to make real French baguettes at home Youre going to be fairly shocked when you realize just how simple it is The only way to make this bread any more French is to put some butter on it
Prep Time
13 hrs
Dificult
Medium
Servings
13 hrs 45 mins
Ingredients
Instructions
Place yeast into the bottom of a large mixing bowl. Add water and stir
then mix in salt. Add flour and beat with a wooden spoon until dough is thick and sticky and pulls flour from the side of the bowl
5 to 10 minutes.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let stand in a turned-off oven until doubled in volume
12 to 14 hours. Dough will be bubbly and very sticky.
Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat and dust generously with cornmeal.
Use a floured spatula to scrape dough out onto a well-floured work surface. Dust dough with flour. With well-floured hands
pat dough into a rectangle. Cut the rectangle into four equal pieces.
Dust one piece of dough with flour and stretch it with floured fingers into a log about 10 inches long and 1 1/2 inches around. Gently transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Wipe off excess cornmeal with a damp paper towel if desired. Repeat with another piece of dough. (Reserve remaining dough to bake later or prepare another baking sheet to bake all four loaves at once).
Dust loaves lightly with flour. Dust a large piece of plastic wrap with flour and drape it lightly over the baking sheet with the floured side down. Let loaves rise
covered
until doubled in volume
1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Set the oven racks to the bottom and middle positions and preheat to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C) or as high as your oven will go. Place an oven-proof baking dish full of water onto the bottom rack of the oven.
Cut four or five angled slashes into the top of each loaf with sharp kitchen shears. Poke down any sharp tips of dough left by the scissors. Spray the loaves with water
using a spray bottle.
Bake in the preheated oven until baguettes are browned
about 15 minutes
spraying loaves with water after 5 minutes and 10 minutes. Turn the pan around on the second spraying.
Transfer baguettes to a cooling rack and let cool to room temperature before slicing with a serrated knife.
Recipe Tips
For the best results
measure water and flour by weight
not volume. You should measure 325 grams of water and 500 grams (or 18 ounces) of flour.You can make 2 large baguettes instead of 4 small ones if desired. Divide dough into 2 equal pieces in Step 4 and continue as written.
