Ingredients
Baguettes
- A kitchen scale (trust)
- 1000 g flour + extra for powdering the dough and work surface
- 1750 g water + extra to stay hydrated :-)
- 21 g kosher salt
- Instant dried yeast (3g + 1⁄8 tsp)
- Smoked Maldon Salt (optional)
- 1–2 bulbs garlic (optional)
Pickled Veg
- 1⁄2 cup rice wine vinegar
- 1 cup hot water
- 1⁄8 – 1⁄4 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 large carrot
- 1 medium daikon
- 1⁄2 cucumber
- 1–2 jalapenos
Other toppings
- Sriracha
- Vegan mayo
- Tofu
Directions
For the baguette
This recipe is something I’ve compiled from two different sources. The first is this video, which I drew on to figure out the baguette-specific components of the recipe: the folding, the resting times, the baking duration, etc. The other source is this book by Ken Forkish. While I haven’t tried other books, I highly recommend this one as an effective introduction to making great bread.
Make a poolish the night before. Add 1⁄8 tsp instant yeast to 500 g bread flour in a 6 quart container and mix. Next, add 500 g water (with a temperature of roughly 30 degrees Celsius). Let sit 12 – 14 hours or until 2 – 3x its original size.
When the poolish is ready, add 500 g bread flour to a 12 quart container. Add 3 g instant dry yeast and 21 g salt. Mix well.
To the 6 quart container, add 250 g of approximately 41 degree Celsius water. If you pour it around the edges it will help to un-stick the poolish from its container.
Pour the poolish slurry into the 12 quart container and mix well by hand, ensuring there are no lumps. Next begins the folding and resting phase.
If you plan to add garlic to the baguette, now is the time! Add and fold to ensure it distributes evenly.
Let the dough rise for the next 2.5 – 3 hours. During this time, the dough will require 3 – 4 folds to build its strength. It’s easiest to do the folds in the first hour or so (e.g., every 20 – 25 minutes, fold all four corners of the dough to their opposite sides). After the second or third fold, you should notice that the dough is better able to retain its shape.
Once the dough has risen in volume to 2 – 3 times its size, it’s time to cut and portion the dough. With a dough scraper, cut the dough into 4 equal sized pieces (roughly 443 g each).
Give the dough an initial shape by stretching, folding the sides into the centre, and then sealing the top to the bottom against the working surface. See here for an excellent video description. They should now look elongated — vaguely baguette shaped, even!
Set your oven to 500 Celsius and start the pre-heating process. Make sure your pizza stone is in place if you’re using one, otherwise set a baking tray on the oven rack so that it heats.
Once the rough-shaped doughs have rested another 15 minutes, it’s time to do the final shaping.
Shape the dough into baguette form. Use the pushing and rolling technique as seen here.
Let the baguettes rest another 45 minutes. Ensure they are supported on both sides so that they rise up and don’t flop to the side.
Top with flaked maldon salt, if desired.
Score the loaves and insert them into the oven. Bake for 15 minutes or until they just start to acquire some burn-ish spots. I find that throwing an ice cube or two into the bottom of the oven helps to keep the oven humidity up, which aids crust formation.
Enjoy!
For the pickled veg
You’ll want to start this the night before, too, so that the veggies have time to absorb the flavour of the pickling solution.
Boil some water.
In the meantime, cut the carrot, daikon and cucumber into spears. Cut the jalapeno into rounds. Insert them into a jar. Inserting them aligned allows you to fit more, and it looks nicer too!
Mix the boiled water, rice vinegar, salt and water in a container.
Add the liquid mixture to the jar of veg. Let the liquid cool for an hour, and then store in the fridge overnight.
Assembly
If you’re using smoked tofu, it goes great just the way it is. Slice it up and get ready to put it on some fresh rounds of baguette.
Cut the baguette into rondelles. If you want to toast the fresh baguette slices, you can put them in the oven at 400 Celsius for 2–5 minutes.
Top the baguette with: vegan mayo, a slice or two of smoked tofu, some pickled veggies, and a few drops (or light drizzle) or sriracha.
Enjoy!