Miche (Low Inoculation)

Miche.  

65% bread flour

30% stone ground whole wheat flour

5% toasted buckwheat flour

80% water

2% salt

2% liquid rye sourdough

This is another bread from the "low sourdough inoculation" series.  All the ingredients go into the bowl at once and the dough rests for a whopping 12+ hours at ambient temperature before being shaped.  The low inoculation of sourdough allows separation of enzymatic activity from yeast activity.  When the dough is first mixed, water is the catalyst for glutenin and gliadin proteins to bond and form gluten.  Amylase enzymes go about their job of converting starches to sugar, and protease enzymes go about their job of degrading the gluten to make a soft, extensible dough that practically mixes itself over time.  Then much later the wild yeast from the sourdough finally gain momentum and go about their job of metabolizing sugars and releasing carbon dioxide into the dough. All of this magical activity happens while the baker is happily asleep.  

Did you know the two main gluten forming proteins have specific functions?    Gliadin is the "extensibility" protein, and glutenin is the "elasticity" protein.   

To learn more about the process steps and science behind this method, please read my earlier post titled "Mixing, Part II".