Khorasan sourdough baguettes

12 February 2021

I started using Khorasan flour in bread baking a long time ago, but since I have my own sourdough starter things are getting better and better, and above all, I should say tastier and tastier.
Sourdough and Khorasan are undoubtedly a gorgeous combination, both from a flavor point of view and from a nutritional one.
This ancient grain is also known with the trademark Kamut and has a buttery and nutty flavor that combines very well with the complexity and depth of sourdough.
I usually use organic Khorasan flour (there are different brands on Amazon) because I think you can get the best flavor from it.

Using Khorasan flour generates a tighter crumb and a denser bake, but the creamy texture is scrumptious. Actually, in my experience I find this flour is a bit tricky: at first, mixing the dough, it seems to absorb much water but later on during bulk fermentation, the dough gets much loose and it can be challenging to shape it. That’s why I usually add 10 or 20% of strong bread flour, with at least 12% proteins.

I used a Birkmann non-stick baking pan for baguettes, which helps a lot.

What I like most is that, depending on what kind of flour I add, I can choose my timing table: adding a medium-strong white flour (W200 or 250) I can get to have my bread on the same day, because fermentation time and maturation time are the same. Actually, Khorasan flour has a short fermentation time because it is a weak flour (it has around W130).
If I mix it up with strong white flour, such as W400 like in these baguettes, I usually use cold overnight proofing in the refrigerator.

Here is what you need:

400 gr. of Khorasan flour [80%]
100 gr. of white flour W400 [20%]
400 ml of water [80%]
100 gr. of sourdough starter [20%]
10 gr. of salt [2%]

How to do:

Feed your starter and allow it to become fully active and ready to use
Mix together flour and water (leave aside 50 ml) in a medium bowl to autolyse for at least 30 min. (I usually do 1 hour autolyse but you can check the dough consistency and decide on your own)
Mix the dough with the sourdough starter and knead until fully incorporated. At this point add salt.
For the next two hours perform folds every 45 min. (I choose coil fold, but you can choose the folding technique you prefer)
After you finish the folds place it in a bowl and put it in the refrigerator overnight for at least 12 hours.
Next morning take it out of the fridge, sprinkle with a little flour on your work surface, and directly dump the dough out on it so that you can divide it into equal pieces.
Once divided preshape the baguettes and let them rest for about 45 min.
Give the final shape to the baguettes and let rest for about 45 min.
In the meantime preheat the oven to 250 degrees
Turn down at 230 degrees and bake for about 30 min. till golden brown. The internal temperature should be about 97 degrees.
Let the bread cool on a cool rack