Bread-Making Equipment

Vintage pottery bread bowl

By Cat, May 19, 2014 (Photo, right, from Etsy.com (1)) Includes: 1. Bread Bowl; 2. Banneton; 3. Steel Bread Pan; 4. Sourdough Crock

See also: 1. Miscellaneous & Information Menu, under Equipment; 2. Baking Stone and Pizza Peel

I’m currently moving recipes from my old Cat’s Kitchen to my new blog (where you found this post); in my recipe for Ciabatta Integral, I found reference to a banneton and other bread-making equipment, so decided to do a post just on this type of equipment, as a reference. I will update this post from time to time, as I learn about different equipment using in rising and baking bread, making and storing sourdough starter, etc.

Bread Bowls

Vintage pottery bread bowl

Every week, my Dad made bread for us and a few of his customers at our bar; when he died, I inherited his old pottery bread bowl, which is large enough for making 4 loaves of bread dough. I also inherited his old, large wood spoon that he used exclusively for bread making, He never used a stand mixer – we didn’t even have one. I can highly recommend one of these old pottery bowls – you can still find them new, or old ones at yard sales and antique stores. (photo, right, similar to my Dad’s, from Etsy.com (1) For smaller batches, you can find smaller pottery bowls. I have one that is for mixing and baking one loaf of bread all in the same bowl. Pyrex glass bowl sets include a large bowl that is good for a 2-loaf recipe. Stainless steel bowls can also be used, such as those that come with a stand mixer, or on their own. I do NOT recommend using plastic bowls.

Banneton

Cane bannetons

I’d never heard of a banneton, until I started researching recipes for ciabatta bread. One recipe from Sourdough Companion (2) calls for using a cane banneton  (pictured left, from __), but a wood one can also be used.

The banneton holds the shaped dough during the final rise before baking. The dusting of flour, and the coils of the cane basket add a design to the loaf. Remove loaf from banneton just before baking (from fantes.com (4)).

You can also find ceramic and wood bannetons, and paper bannetons that are used only one time, or paper liners for reusable bannetons.

Steel Bread Pan

Steel bread pan

My Dad used pyrex glass pan for his bread, which I do as well, but when baking a bread at higher temperatures, it is better to use a steel pan, such as the one pictured, right, from Williams & Sonoma (6).

Sourdough Crock

Sourdough Starter Crock

The crock pictured here was a gift from my friend Ronny H. who participated on ESP’s Sourdough Panel presentation. She is my sourdough mentor.

This crock is used to store the sourdough starter, and should have a loose-fitting lid so that the starter can breathe. By this I mean that the gasses should be able to lift a corner of the lid so they can escape, and oxygen can enter at the same time.

Until you can find the perfect crock for your starter, use a mason jar with good-quality cheesecloth over the top of the jar, and secured with a rubber band.

References

1. Etsy.com: bread bowl (img0.etsystatic.com/000/0/6283669/il_fullxfull.242976172.jpg)
2. Sourdough Companion recipe Isourdough.com/recipes/ciabatta-integrale-wholemeal-ciabatta-multi-grains)
3. Cooks Direct (cooksdirect.com/product/matfer-bourgeat-banneton-oval-basket)
4. Fantes.com (fantes.com/brotforms.html)
5. Sur la Table (surlatable.com/product/PRO-20152)
6. Williams & Sonoma bread pan (www.williams-sonoma.com/products/usa-pan-traditional-finish-loaf-pan)
7. Ronny H.