There is nothing like a freshly baked French baguette on a Sunday morning. Or any morning for that matter. Crusty and beautifully colored on the outside, buttery soft and chewy on the inside, with a tiny bit of butter – it’s one of my favorite breakfast foods.
Baguettes took me the longest to master. Perhaps it’s because my bread baking adventure started (many years ago) right after I baked my second loaf of no-knead bread and I lacked necessary experience. So many factors here that can affect how your baguette will look and taste.
What French baguettes are made of?
A traditional French baguette is made of flour, water, yeast and salt. It’s fascinating how these four simple ingredients produce a beautiful, flavorful, crusty baguette. What’s even more fascinating is how different bakers, using the same ingredients, can make baguettes that differ from each other quite substantially sometimes.
Up to about a century ago making bread with natural leaven was the rule for bakers in France. Later it was a mix of natural leaven and baker’s yeast, which made the crumb lighter and more open. Lately, many bakeries seek efficiencies and switch to using baker’s yeast as using natural leavens requires more work.
Other factors that define a baguette’s appearance and taste
As was mentioned above, many French baguettes, while using same ingredients, differ in appearance and taste. This is largely due to the process that is employed. You can can make the dough rise very quickly using warm water and warm ambient temperature but it will lack flavor. Slowing down the fermentation process, known as cold retarding, results in complex flavor and improved taste. Thus, how you ferment the dough, how long you retard it, how you proof it, how you shape, score and bake it – all contribute to how the final product looks and tastes.
Baguette making process
This baguette recipe uses baker’s yeast and is influenced by the method used by Anis Bouabsa, winner of the 2008 Best Baguette in Paris contest. In an interview, Anis mentioned using baguette dough that has 75% hydration (meaning the ratio of water to flour), very little yeast, hardly kneaded, folded three times in one hour then placed in the fridge for 21 hours. He also added that baguettes are not fully risen when placed in the oven, it is the wet dough and the very, very hot oven (480F) that make baguettes get the volume.
The ingredients
In this recipe I use are King Arthur Flour all purpose flour, very commonly used for baguette making among home baking enthusiasts, water, yeast and salt. I also add a bit of honey. This is a big no-no for baguette purists, but that little hint of sweetness is what everyone I baked my baguettes for liked.
The equipment
The essential pieces of equipment to make a great tasting baguette are an oven and a baking stone. You want a large and, importantly, thick baking stone. It won’t crack easily and will promote a much better oven spring for your baguettes. Like this heavy duty baking stone. Even better, go to your local pottery supply store and get a Cordierite kiln shelf. They are thicker and can withstand spills with aplomb. You can also get one cut to your specifications.
Another piece of equipment that is extremely helpful is the Baker’s Couche that you will need for proofing. I used to get away without one for a long time but the are so effective and convenient, and in very inexpensive nowadays.
A bread lame is another tool you will be glad you have. It’s essential for scoring baguettes. I can use a serrated bread knife to make pretty good scores, but a lame will be much easier for novice bakers.
Finally, you will need a large pizza shovel or something similar to load baguettes in the oven. I find that that the easiest way to do it is to place the baguettes on a large piece of parchment paper, score then slide on the baking stone.
Mixing the dough and stretch and folds
The first step is to mix all ingredients in a bowl and let sit for about 10 minutes, followed by 3 stretch and folds over a period of one 1 1/2 hours, every 30 minutes. In each stretch and fold iteration, pull one side of the dough and fold onto itself. At the end of each iteration I pick up the dough ball and turn it up side down.
Do this in a warm room to get yeast activity going, otherwise the dough will have a hard time rising in the fridge. Examine the surface of the dough before putting it in the fridge and look for tiny blisters and slight sour milk smell. If you observe both, then the dough is ready to go in the fridge. If not, I let it sit at room temperature for another 1/2 to 1 hour.
Cold retarding
Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap to prevent the surface from drying out and place in the fridge for 12 hours. After 12 hours the dough will have doubled in volume. If not quite doubled, take it out and let stand in warm place for 1-2 hours. Oven with the light on is warm enough for this purpose. Alternatively, you could let the dough ferment in the fridge for another 8-10 hours.
Preheating the oven and steaming
Some time after taking the dough out of the fridge, start preheating the oven to 500F, with a baking stone positioned in the upper part of the oven and a small bread pan with hot water and a rolled kitchen towel inside, on the lower rack. Position your baking stone such that short side is parallel to the door. Water pan is needed for consistent steam release during baking to help the baguettes rise nicely in the oven (also referred to as oven spring) and prevent surface hardening. The towel helps control steam release.
Shaping baguettes
Turn the dough on a lightly floured surface. Divide into 3 equal pieces, shape into rectangles and let relax for 45-60 minutes.
Stretch into rectangles and roll each rectangle as shown below. Start with the longer side, fold it inside the rectangle and seal the seam with your thumb. Do it tightly enough but being careful not degas the dough. Repeat two more times until you formed a cylinder.
Seal the seams using your palm and stretch the cylinder to desired length by gently rolling it with your hands.
Proofing
Cover with flour (a mix of regular flour and rice flower works best as rice flower does not absorb water too well and prevents sticking) and place on a baker’s couche, seam side up. Let proof for 30-60 minutes at room temperature. You can tell that the dough is ready for baking by a gentle poke with a finger. If the dough is sufficiently proofed the indentation springs back very slowly. If it’s under-proofed, the dough will spring back quickly. You can read more about this and see pictures in the Basic Artisan Sourdough Bread post.
Scoring
Transfer the baguettes onto a piece of parchment paper, seam side down, and dust off excess flour. Using a bread lame or a razor blade, make 3 cuts, in a gentle but firm motion. Bakers call this scoring. If the baguettes keep sliding when making cuts, hold them with one hand at the top end and make cuts from top to bottom. Scoring baguettes helps them open up and nicely rise in the oven, or as bakers call it to have an oven spring.
Loading baguettes in the oven
Once the baguettes are ready to bake, simply slide them off with the parchment paper onto the hot baking stone. Be careful with opening your preheated oven, it will be hot and steamy, and may burn your face if you are too close when opening the door. Using a water spray bottle, spray some water in the sides of the oven to boost the steam.
Baking
Once your baguettes are in the oven, reduce temperature to 475F. Bake for about 15 minutes, remove the water pan, rotate and bake another 15 minutes at 450F, until deep golden brown.
Ingredients
- 500 g all purpose flour King Arthur brand is recommended about 3 1/2 cups, using 'scoop and swipe' method
- 360 g water about 1 1/2 cups + 1 Tbsp
- 10 g salt about 2 tsp
- 3 g instant yeast about 1 tsp; also known as Quick Rise or Rapid Rise yeast
- 25 g honey about 1 Tbsp
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients in a bowl, cover with a plastic wrap and let rest for 15 minutes.
- Over a period of 1 1/2 hours, do 3 sets of stretch and folds, flipping the dough upside down after each set.
- Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap and place in refrigerator overnight for about 12-14 hours.
- Turn the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Divide into 3 equal parts and shape into rectangles. Cover and let rest for 45-60 minutes.
- Starting preheating the oven to 500F, with a baking stone positioned in the upper half the oven and a bread pan filled with hot water on the bottom rack.
- Stretch each dough rectangle slightly and fold into a cylinder, sealing the seams. Using your hands, roll the cylinders gently stretching them to desired length, about 14-15 inches.
- Place on a lightly floured couche, seam side up. Cover and proof at a room temperature for about 30-60 minutes, or until the dough has sufficiently proofed.
- Transfer the baguettes to a piece of parchment paper, seam side down and dust off excess flour. Using a bread lame, a sharp knife or a razor blade, make 3 scores on each baguette. When scoring, use a swift and firm motion to ensure nice and clean cuts.
- Open the oven, taking caution not to get burned by steam, and slide the baguettes off onto the baking stone. Close the oven and reduce temperature to 475F. Bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove the water pan, rotate the baguettes, drop the temperature to 450F and continue baking for another 15 minutes or until deep golden brown.
Notes
Nutrition
Pamela
Do you not use Bread Flour?
I have an Artisan Blend I use for my breads.
Any type of formula to use Wild Live Yeast?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Bread flour will work too, you will get a chewier texture. Wild live yeast / sourdough – yes I use it too. Prefer a mix of commercial and sourdough, will post my recipe on the blog in the near future.
Angie
I would like to know if it’s possible to use active dry in place of instant yeast. I’ve read that using more of the ad yeast will yield a satisfactory result.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Angie, I’ve experimented a lot with ad yeast and my results would vary but instant was a consistent performer in this recipe, hence why I recommend it. That said if you activate your ad yeast, get a good foam cap going, it should be sufficient. You could increase yeast by a little but don’t go too far as it will impact fermentation time/activity… could be a problem if you are following my instructions to the tee… otherwise, you could make some adjustments on the fly.
Fabiane Rouille
Amazing flavor, easy to make. I did not get such an open crumb dough.
It was nice and crispy out of the oven but it became stale very fast. How do you keep it crispy longer?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Fabiane, I cool down my baguettes completely then seal in Ziploc bags. Try to expel as much air as you can when sealing. That will help keep them fresh longer.
FABIANE
Hello! Can you put the baguettes after shaping and proofing in the fridge to bake at a later time?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Fabiane, there is a risk that your baguettes will over-proof in the fridge unless the temperature is very low. Probably best to shape and proof in the fridge. That said, there are a gazillion ways to make a good baguette, all are good and are driven by your style/preferences/schedule.
Simon
Bread was as described and delicious to taste. Could be an artisan bread maker, Dunsborough
Melissa
Thank you for the excellent recipe and clear instructions. This is the 5th baguette recipe I tried, and they came out well! Minor problem when I tried getting the dough onto the baking stone…the dough felt really soft and stretched out so much and hung over the stone (I do not have a pizza peel so that could be the problem). Just wondering if it’s a soft dough or did I add too much water. Still delicious, and will try again.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Yeah, that is a challenging task. I made a long wide ‘pizza peel’ out of a thin wooden board to help me load them in the oven. You can also decrease the hydration and literally transfer with just bare hands which I’ve done many times too.
Nora
Is it okay to use flour brand other then King Arthur
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Nora, it’s totally fine to use other brands. KA is my favorite one but there are many other excellent flours out there. I’d recommend experimenting with what you have readily available/economical and pick the one that you like best.
Sarah
Have you tried this recipe at high altitude?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Sarah, sorry, I haven’t.
Sally Jackson
Sensational! I’ve never made baguettes before, and these were wonderful. I still have some technical skills to work on, like scoring, and and should I mention not dropping one of the baguettes into the bottom of the oven? It landed on the baking element and burst into flames, producing prodigious amounts of smoke. That’s’s probably something to work on not doing. The other two loaves had a lovely crisp crust, soft crumb and a beautiful flavor. Great recipe, clear instructions and a great site. Thank you!!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome. Glad I could help. The joy of eating a freshly baked French baguette is priceless.
Madison
Do you have any recommendations for storing them? Its very humid where I live and I worry about the bread getting stale
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Cool them down and store them in a tightly sealed container or a Ziploc bag. That’s what I do but usually, the 3-baguette batch that I normally bake is gone by the end of the day.
Patrick
Hi Victor,
Can you recommend a good organic flour (I live in Florida) that would give airy french baguettes?
I tried Great River Organic Milling, Lily White Bread Flour, All-Purpose, Organic, purchased on Amazon and get a good looking baguette but too dense to my liking, even using 75% hydration. Is it possible to get a airy baguette using organic flour?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Patrick,
I’ve tried many flours and all of them worked well, some a little better than others, but they all worked. The differences sometimes are very subtle. I think you should experiment with what you have available to you and pick whichever one gives you the best results. I like KA flour a lot but I also like other flours. I haven’t tried the ones you mentioned so can’t comment on them.
As far as how to make the bread less dense, airier with more bubbles… Perhaps start with searching the comments section, we have discussed this a few times. In general, bigger holes, more airy product, has to do with higher hydration, gentle handling, no punching down, proper fermentation, proper bench rest, longer proofing, better oven spring (a function of good steam, good scoring), better gluten development. It takes some practice sometimes. It took me a while to get the results that I got but I’ve seen people use my recipe and get excellent results right away. It could also have to do with expectations, I suppose. What I may call soft and airy you may call dense. I will send you an email, send me a few good close-up pictures of the crumb that you would call dense. Perhaps I can suggest what you could improve.
Brandi
I’m excited to try this recipe, but I’m wondering if you can refrigerate longer?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Brandi, you can refrigerate for up to 24 hours. I’ve gone as long as 48 hours but you will start getting a more acidic taste. You have to experiment with you fridge. If it’s too warm, the dough will over-ferment.
Jeff B
Excellent recipe and instructions!
I started them last night and baked them off this morning. These are delicious baguettes that remind me of my time in France.
The only minor disappointment is that mine didn’t have the airy, hole-filled structure that the picture shows. They were great inside, just not open and airy like the pic. Is there anything specific that contributes to that texture?
Thanks for sharing the recipe and techniques!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Jeff, did you find the dough easy to work with? If so, I’d suggest you increase hydration to about 75%, which should help get a more open crumb. I also shared other tips for that in the comments below, just do a quick search.
Jeff
Yeah, I think it may have been 75%. After I mixed the dough, it seemed a little dry. So, I added more water. So, it was a pretty wet dough. I wet my hand to do the stretch and folds, cuz it was sticky.
But, I’ll check out the tips, thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Jeff, sometimes how wet/dry the dough feels depends on the flour you use. I’d recommend adjusting the hydration to where you feel comfortable handling the dough. My typical bread dough used to be fairly dry and so was my baguette dough, now I use a much higher hydration. Heck, I made two loaves of 50/40/10 white/ww/rye bread yesterday with 84% hydration and it was terrific. It was a little more difficult to handle but I’ve learned a good way so it was pretty easy for me. All it takes is some practice.
Kelly
Good Morning Victor! Thank
You for. Sharing your recipe! I have been baking for a couple of months now. My baguettes have been tasting delicious but I’m not getting consistent results on the shape of my baguettes. They’re not consistently elongated like the picture you have on your post! 🙂 advise on how to get that shape. Is the scoring? Shaping?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Kelly,
It takes a little practice to get them perfectly shaped so keep trying and I am sure they will be better and better each time. Mine initially were all over the place as far as shape, ears, oven spring… but got much better over time. That said, I’ve noticed that when the dough is not relaxed enough I would have a hard time stretching it and getting a uniform shape. Proper fermentation and bench rest are important. When the dough is tight, you will get thicker and thinner parts which will expand during baking unevenly. Hope this helps.
Christine
Definitely the best bread I have ever made! Easy to follow instruction, thank you
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome.
Mary Kelly
Great recipe! For proofing, I place the loaves (I make 2 batards from this recipe) on parchment paper, and put rolled up kitchen towels in-between and on either side so they hold their shape. Then simply slide the loaves on the parchment paper into the oven using a peel or cookie sheet. Easy-peach.
Mark
It seems to measure out 72% hydration, which seems too low to do the stretch and fold method. My dough came out as a taught little ball. Can’t do stretch and fold. I don’t think this will yield those large bubbles as seen in your picture.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
72% works fine for S&F, done it numerous times. The optimal hydration for baguettes is 75% though. My initial recipe specified 75% but many people had a hard time working with wetter dough so I changed it to 72% which seems to be the sweet spot for most and works very well. If you are comfortable working with a higher hydration dough, I suggest you try 75%. Really, there is no right or wrong here. I always recommend experimenting and settle on what works best. Ideally, you want the process to be so intuitive and easy that it becomes your second nature. Only that way you will be making baguettes often and enjoy making them.
Charlie
Can I just not add the honey or does not adding honey (no other substitutions either) change the weight amount for the other ingredients?
I prefer an unsweetened baguette!
Thank you!!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Simply omit the honey. Simple as that.
Petar
Hello! Great recipe!
I was wondering – how is gluten developed without kneading? Last time I did it, my baguett became flat before going to owen.
Thanks for answer!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Petar, gluten development is a function of kneading and time. Stretching and folding strengthen the dough and also promotes gluten development. Your dough should have a very strong gluten structure by the end of fermentation. If the dough goes flat before you stick it in the oven, most likely it’s over-fermented and/or over-proofed. There could be something else, of course, but it’s hard for me to say without knowing more details at each step.
Mary miller
Can you use a marble slap to cook it on x
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I would not, unless it clearly states that it’s oven-safe. I don’t think I’ve seen/heard of anyone using marble slabs for baking.
Syb
Can you recommend baking time and temperature for convection oven? Thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I haven’t really experimented with convection baking for this recipe but check the comment below – it looks like 15 minutes produced great results.
Friederike
So yummy. In my convection oven it takes only 15 min baking.
Katie
Fantastic recipe!! So easy and makes perfect baguettes every time. Will definitely become a regular addition to my baking schedule.
Laura
Hello, if I can’t find the istant yeast it’s better if I use the dry one (3grams) or the fresh one (and in this case how many grams)?
Do you suggest adding 3 spoons of sourdough?
Thankyou for your advice
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hello Laura, my apologies for the late response. Hope I can still help. If you don’t have instant yeast, you can use traditional yeast but activating it first. Fresh can be used too, I normally use 3x fresh relative to dry yeast. E.g. if a recipe calls for 3g of dry yeast I will use 9g fresh yeast. Adding sourdough starter is fine but account for the added water and flour of the starter accordingly. That said, in this recipe starter is not necessary. Someday I will post my hybrid baguette recipe that uses yeast and sourdough.
Glen
Great recipe. I hadn’t tried the stretch and fold before. Thank you!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are welcome, Glen.
Anais
Am I able to use bread flour in substitute for all purpose flour?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I’ve made my baguettes using bread flour and it worked fine.
Nina
Just took the baguettes out of the oven – outstanding recipe, many thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome.
Sam
Victor
Thank you for the amazing recipe!
Have you ever done all of the steps to the final fold, and then put them in the fridge and baked the next day? Do you think it would work just as well or would it slowly over proof overnight? Thanks again!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Sam, apologies for the delayed response. Both fermentation and proofing can be retarded overnight. In this recipe, you do all S&Fs before putting the dough in the fridge to retard overnight. I think that’s what you want to do, no?
Vince
I made 3 baguettes yesterday and they came out rock hard but brown though. I think my Samsung oven is too hot with the heating element on top and with no element at the bottom. I also used convection bake, which might be too dry and too hot too fast. I think I will try standard bake (vs. convection bake) next time, and move the rack lower away from the top heating element. Thanks.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Vince, that makes sense. I would avoid convection and perhaps lower the temperature. A little bit of experimenting will be needed for sure in your case.
Vince
I made 3 baguettes yesterday and they came out rock hard but brown though. I think my Samsung oven is too hot with the heating element on top and with no element at the bottom. I also used convection bake, which might be too dry and too hot too fast. I think I will try standard bake (vs. convection bake) next time, and move the rack lower away from the top heating element. Thanks.
Dana
Hi, thanks for sharing your recipe! I am new to baking baguettes, and am excited to try this recipe soon (especially the addition of honey!). Many other recipes that I’ve seen knead the dough before proofing. Why don’t you knead your dough, and do you know how this could affect the texture?
Thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Dana, kneading is a fast way to develop gluten and, unfortunately, kill the texture. S&F and time is another way to get gluten developed without ruining the texture. Kneading will result in a more of a supermarket baguette, with tiny holes and crumbly texture.
Ryan
Hi victor. Here in Canada we don’t have king Arthur all purpose flour will Robin Hood all purpose flour suffice ?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Ryan, KA is not the only flour that will give you good results. Of Canadian flours, I really like organic La Milanaise all-purpose from Quebec, very nice but grittier than KA. Inexpensive unbleached Baker’s Hand AP from Business Costco is very good. Robing Hood is one of the few Canadian brands that I disliked. Haven’t used it for many years, perhaps it got better.
Irene
Thanks for the information about making baguette s. It was very interesting and informative. I will try it out and let you know the outcome .
Viara
Excellent recipe, thank you! Despite cold proofing in a bowl far too small, and not scoring them deep enough, they turned out very good. I think I’ll make four rather than three baguettes the next time to more easily fit them in my oven – but obviously that’s just due to the size of my appliance.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Glad to hear about your success, Viara. Happy baking!
Herman
Hi Victor,
Due to delivery problems, I had to switch flours from Montana AP to Heckers AP, which has a higher protein content. The water amount became a problem, producing a much more hydrated dough. It was so wet that simple tasks like rolling and stretching were impossible. I persisted and made believe the dough was workable. Out of the oven, the baguettes were delicious, with a very open crumb. However, they refused to brown deeply after additional baking so rather than dry them out, we ate them as is.
I’m sure using less water will benefit both the dough and myself next time. Love this recipe! Sending a photo..
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hello Herman, that’s a very good example of how little is needed to throw off the ratios. One type of flour may be more hydrated than the other and that’s sometimes enough to have a significant impact on the dough. When people ask me for measurements in cups and spoons I am terrified to think what kind of unpredictable results they may potentially get as there is so much variance in weight between one cup and another. And that’s on top of variances between different flours, as your example demonstrates.
To get a deeper color, you may try dropping the temperature by 25 degrees and bake longer, say 10 min longer. You could also move them up to the top of the oven, which promotes top browning. Another thing is removing the excess flour. Try to brush off as much as you can, that will also help with browning.
P.S. Thanks for sending me your baguette pictures. They look very well-made, with a beautiful crumb. Happy to see those wonderful results you’ve achieved.
Emily
I’ve tried 3-4 baguette recipes and this was a total winner. No poolish required. My crust was crisp and the inside was nice and fluffy with good holes. It did come out a bit more brown than I liked, and the second time I only did it for about 10 minutes after turning it. I might try to check in on 5 minutes next time. I don’t use a stone or couche. Instead, I have a baguette pan. It stuck to the bottom which my other baguettes didn’t. I might want to try to dust it with flour or butter to keep from sticking.
Jeff B
I have a baguette pan and I spray with cooking spray then dust with flour. I’ve never had one stick.
Jeff
I have a baguette pan and spray with cooking spray, then dust with flour. I’ve never had them stick.
Emily
I’ve tried for recipes for baguette, this is the only one that got me what I wanted! Crispy, and giant holes on the inside.interesting that you didn’t start with a sponge and just mix the entire dough. It worked out better, and it was easier!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Emily, happy to hear about your success. Enjoy!
Leslie
I’m new to baking anything at all and this was the second baguette recipe I followed, (we won’t talk about the first one) they turned out amazing!! Thank you for sharing this. Can this be baked as a loaf and maybe infuse different herbs in it?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Leslie, my apologies for the long delay with responding. Yes, this can be made as a loaf and you can add mix-ins. Take a look at my other recipes, especially the no-knead bread. Perhaps you can use that recipe for your loaves, it’s similar. You can experiment with substituting different flours. Rye is a great one. Rosemary and some cream cheese is a fantastic mix-in, as are walnuts and figs, my favorite.
Meg
Your recipe is spot on – thank you for sharing. I have French neighbors who unreservedly said it was excellent. My family adores both your baguette and advanced no knead bread recipes.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome.
Reva
Hi I’ve just made the baguettes and the top is dark and crispy and yet underneath is so pale. Whatever bread I make the underneath has no colour how do I get the underneath to go darker and crispier?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Reva, can you email me some photos?
Jeff B
I always turn mine over during the last 10 minutes or so, and the bottoms brown beautifully.
Jeff
Such a great recipe and instructions! I’ve made these four times now and just love them.
My only problem has been that they are hard to score before baking. I have a good lame, but it seems that the baguettes get dry or develop a “crust” while they are proofing for the oven and the lame cant cut thru the dough well. The dough kind of stretches and rips when I try to slash it, instead of making a ice clean cut. I even cover the dough while it’s proofing. So, I’m not sure what to do about this.
P.S. if you want to experiment, try replacing 10% of the flour (50g) with rye flour—very tasty.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Jeff,
crust during proofing means you need to do a little more to protect them – no drafts in the room, cover with a damp towel, or cover with a piece of Saran wrap. To be honest with you, I never came to like using a lame… I get lame results with it;) What I use now most of the time is my very old Wusthof bread knife – I score everything with it – baguettes, bread… It works very well and it’s right there, in the knife block and is easy to clean. Perhaps can you try something like that.
Speaking about adding rye flour, I do it very often. I think I mentioned it in the post or in the comments somewhere. Agreed, rye adds a noticeable flavor boost and subtle sweetness. I love it.
Julie
Hi Victor. Tried the recipe for the first time and for the most part my baguettes came out lovely. I did have to cut time in the second half of the bake as I think my oven was running hot so the loaves were getting a bit overdone. However, the one thing I’d like to know for my next attempt is the approximate size of the rolled rectangles – mine ended up being very long and skinny rather than a nice uniform shape. I do have to work on my scorning skillz, LOL! Thanks in advance!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Julie, I’d say 9-12 inches long.
Dayna
What you do if the dough is sticky when it’s time to shape?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
The only way is to use more flour for dusting to be able to handle it. Next time drop the hydration. It helps to weigh the ingredients as even 15-20 grams of too much water can make a huge difference. If you did, then drop the hydration by 1-2% next time.
Dayna
Good day, I’m making the baguettes for the first time and I don’t have cloche or a baking stone at this time how should I bake them?
Everything is perfect this far into the baking process light beautiful doughy in just a few short hours baking time can’t wait . Thank you
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I used to use a plastic wrap instead of a cloche and it worked great. Make sure to dust with enough of flour to prevent sticking. Paper towels will work too… A kitchen towel will work. You want to keep them very close to each other to keep their shape but without getting stuck to each other. A cloche is useful and easy to work with but is not a 100% requirement. You can get very creative here. If no stone, you can use a stack of baking sheets, unglazed tiles, etc… search the comments below, it’s been discussed, should help you.
Dayna
So do I still need pan of water ? And how many baking sheets?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
2-3 baking sheets. You need enough stored heat to give the baguettes a nice oven spring. yes, still need a water pan for the first part of the baking.
Mr Kelly
Absolutely amazing! Thank you for sharing your recipe! I’m a beginner and your website has help me make some amazing baguettes!!!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome. Happy baking!
Tracy Albright
Can this recipe be halved for smaller loafs and cook in a toaster oven?
Do you have a video avalable for this recipe?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Yes, you can halve it but I have no idea if you can do it in a toaster oven and how it will turn out. No video yet but I am planning on making it soon.
Cat
How should the recipe be modified if using active dry yeast? Should it be mixed with warm water before adding it to the mixture? Can bread flour be used instead of all-purpose? How would the flour type change the texture? I’m trying to get the light airy inside (with lots of air pockets) and crunchy crust of the ‘tradition’. Thank you 😉
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Activate the AD yeast, make sure it’s alive and very active. I’ve had much better, more consistent success with instant yeast though. I don’t Any flour can be used. More gluten = chewier baguettes. Follow the process in my recipe, you should get a light and airy baguette. Don’t be afraid to experiment. Use different flours, change temps, baking time… you will be surprised how texture/taste changes with some tweaks.
Cat
Thank you for the recipe. I am excited to try it after reading all your replies to questions. I’m a novice and have tried King Arthur and Baking A Moment’s recipes without luck. Can you tell me what I can use if I don’t have a baking stone (can I invert a baking sheet or use tiles) or couche? Also, can you explain how oven temperature affects the crust? I know every oven is different and I would like to know how to troubleshoot as I suspect my electric oven is hotter than it says. How does opening the door affect the bread? Can I use table salt or sea salt and how would the measurement differ? Have you considered making a video to show the techniques? Thanks again!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Cat, welcome to my blog. Yeah, a video is coming. Search my comments, I’ve explained how to bake without a stone, it’s totally doable. You can use a stack of 2-3 baking sheets to get enough stored heat to help baguettes ‘spring’ in the oven. A cloche (long one) will work too. With a baguette cloche you don’t need to steam either. Tiles, unglazed, will work too. The higher the temp the better the color and the thicker the crust. Lower temps create thinner crust. You can get good color too with lower temps by increasing baking time. Also, make sure that the oven is as dry as possible. Humid air will result in a pale color. You can finish baking with the oven door cracked open, it promotes a very thin, crackly crust. The best way to find out is to start baking and experiment with your oven.
Cherylann
Hi Victor.
I’ve successfully baked your delicious baguettes numerous times. Thank you again for sharing the recipe and for the great tutorial that accompanies it. I recently tried the same recipe and technique using French T55 flour. The dough started out much wetter but became manageable and I thought showed promise, being supple and shiny albeit sticky. The resulting baguettes were a disaster! No oven spring, dense crumb and thick, hard crust. Same oven, same stone, same fridge, same water, same yeast. Do you have any thoughts about what could have gone wrong?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Cherylann, drop the hydration by 2-3% and try again. That should work. I’ve made baguettes with La Milanaise T55 (from Quebec) and it worked well for me. I didn’t adjust the hydration. But perhaps yours was very fresh and more hydrated so you’d need to adjust. T55 is grittier, perhaps a little more S&Fing to better develop gluten.
Herman
Victor,,
The baguettes I just pulled out of the oven are my best ever. Thank you for your well-crafted recipe. These are nice looking and so tasty. No more commercial baguettes for me!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Glad to hear it, Herman. We’ve stopped buying most of the bread products a while ago… not much of store-bought excites us anymore… homemade bread, even if not perfect, still beats commercial bread every time…
P.S. Thanks for emailing me your pictures, I attached one to you comment. Beautiful crumb and the crust, I can feel that crispy, crackly crust… Great job!
Christine
You had mentioned using a towel, but you never mentioned it t in your instructions?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Christine, I place a towel in the bread pan filled with hot water. Simple as that, nothing fancy here.
Grant
Very good crust, crumb, and chewy interior. Perfect amount of sweetness.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Glad to hear that, Grant. Thanks for the feedback.
Elle
Hi! Excited to try your recipe. Quick question: is traditional high-protein flour (approx. 13-14% protein) compatible with this recipe? I see that you use all-purpose flour, which is not traditionally used for baguettes. Why do you choose to use all-purpose rather than a flour with a higher protein content? I’m a passionate but amateur baker, so I’m asking just because I’m curious and I want to make the best possible bread. 🙂
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Well, that’s debatable. Traditionally, they use T55 and T65 flours to make baguettes. Without boring anyone with details, KA AP is very close to T55. It makes an excelent baguette and is easy to find. I’ve tried dozens of different flours and this one I tend to prefer when making baguettes.
Olga Woodrow
These turned out amazing! I used active dry yeast(and activated prior to its addition to my dough), and cheap flour. I used a pizza stone, and I didn’t have a bread lame or couche, but it was still good.
My only warning to you if you are novice to baking or worried about trying this recipe: don’t rush it, and follow the instructions!
I stupidly ignored instructions and shattered one of my glass pans due to adding cold water to the hot pan:)
Thanks for posting. Truly a great, dependable recipe
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Oh-oh, cold water and hot glass don’t play well together. You’ve made a very interesting point – even with mediocre flour and no special tool you can still make a delicious baguette. These are the tastiest when they fresh hot out of the oven. Can’t get that in 99.9 of the stores.
Durre
Long time baker, first comment ever, that’s how amazing this recipe is! I’ve recently started experimenting with bread and had multiple failures, none of them tasting like the baguettes I’ve had in France- this is a winner! Tastes just like the chewy crusty baguette in Panera!
One thing I’d like to add is that when I put the baking tray with water on the shelf above the bread I had much better results than the other way around. I think it makes the oven humid without the steam going up and directly hitting the underside of the tray the bread was baking on.
With regards to the measurements, I used my scales and did exactly as the recipe stated in ounces and had zero issues.
Thank you for this brilliant recipe!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Durre, thanks for the kind words. Water pan above baguettes? Hm, it never occurred to me to try that but thanks for the tip, I will try it.
Elle
Hi! I’m excited to try out your recipe. I have made baguettes a few times before (using a different recipe) and I’m interested in exploring other takes on the bread. I have a couple of questions for you, if you don’t mind!
1. Why do you choose to use instant yeast rather than active dry yeast? I’m a novice baking enthusiast and am slowly learning about the science behind it all. I have been under the impression that active dry yeast, rather than instant, is more compatible with prolonged proofing periods, but perhaps this is not the case. Anyway, just hoping to learn a bit. 🙂
2. Many baguette recipes that I have come across have called for a flour with a high-protein content, like the one I use, https://www.bobsredmill.com/artisan-bread-flour.html. I imagine substituting this for the all-purpose flour would create a chewier, more glutinous texture. Is this true? In what ratio would you recommend substituting, if at all?
Thanks for your help!!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Elle,
I use instant because it gives me consistent results. With AD had hits and I had misses.
Yes, the more gluten the chewier they will be. I’ve even made baguettes with KA high gluten flour and pizza flour (type 00). Way too chewy for my liking but some people in my family liked it. What ratio to use if you want to sub? It depends on your preference. No right or wrong here.
One variant that I like a lot is 10% rye and 90% AP. It makes a ridiculously flavorful baguette. One of my favorite variations.
Jill
Wow, turned out FABULOUS! How well do these freeze?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I never tried freezing them, but they should freeze as well as any other bread, which is quite well.
Monique
Jill, here is what I do and it is working out GREAT. After I bake the 3 loaves, since we can’t eat them all that day, I wrap 2 of them SEPARATELY in foil and put them in the freezer.
When I want to eat some great french bread (thank you Victor) I will pull one out, remove the foil, put it on the rack of the cold oven, then turn the oven at 350° and leave it for about 8-10 mn.
The baguette will be crisp and almost like you just baked it. My french sister gave me this tip ! You might have to adjust the temp or time in YOUR oven. ENJOY !!!
Jojo
Great recipe! Thank you! I’ve been struggling with baguettes using the KAF recipe.. I could never get a good crumb, but no problem following this.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Happy to hear that. Glad my recipe helped you. Happy baking!
Monique
Victor, your recipe for baguettes is wonderful ! I have made them quite a few times this past month and I am delighted at how well they turn out and the TASTE is delicious !
Thank you! 😊
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome, Monique. Happy baking!
Callie Hughes
I made this baguette bread to go along with a French onion soup and overall the bread was a absolute hit. My boyfriend and I both loved it. The only thing I changed is I left the steaming water bowl in for the entire cooking process because it is so dry here in Wyoming and i also didn’t have any rice flour so I didn’t want my bread to dry out too much. Thank you for sharing it!!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome.
Thomas
Great recipe. Out of all of my attempts to produce a great loaf this stands as one of the best. Due to scheduling and wanting to have fresh bread for New Years Eve I actually let the cold ferment go for 25 hours with delicious results. Great crust, crumb and oven spring.
JEFF
Just like in Paris – maybe better because it is so fresh. Incredible crackling crust! Success the first time and rave reviews from my family. Simple if you follow the steps and well worth the time. Resist the temptation to add more flour. Dough is sticky but manageable. Glad I had a couche for the proofing process.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Glad to hear it, Jeff. Happy my post helped. Couche is very helpful, makes things much easier. They’ve come in done in price considerably over the past 10 years.
Deborah Murray
Loved this recipe and planning to make it again this week. The only issue is the top of my oven, turns out, is quite hot – burnt the baguettes within ten minutes. I managed to salvage by moving them down and covering with tinfoil for the remainder of the bake; they were still delicious! Will bake on the centre rack from now on.
Lisa G
How would you adjust the recipe if you wanted to omit the honey? Thanks
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You can use an equal amount of corn syrup or maple syrup. Those work great in this recipe.
Andy
Hi
Have now used your recipe many many times. Always works great. Thanks for sharing.
Perfecting it, I would appreciate your advise
1. Compared to French baguettes from France, mine still has too firm a crumb. I would to make the a bit less beady.
2. Can you recommend a stand alone half standard sheet size electric oven?
We have a Wild but the measurement is strange and i can only fit a quarter size sheet in there.
Thanks
Merry xmas
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Andy, Merry Christmas to you too. To make your baguettes with a softer crumb, try proofing a little longer and baking at a lower temperature. Try mixing the dough in a stand mixer while skipping S&Fs. I am being a little humourous here with the latter suggestion but really, that’s how all that soft and airy supermarket bread is made. They mix the heck out of the dough, killing the texture, but it’s soft. I am not sure if you are looking for that kind of softness though. I also think much has to do with the ovens – pro ovens have a much better steaming/humidity/temperature control that can produce results not easily attainable in home ovens.
‘French baguette’ is way too generic of a term… When in Paris, I tried baguettes from over a dozen places, and the differences between them were staggering at times. The very first baguette I tried there was more like a very long sub roll that you would get at a supermarket and my first thought was wow, what a disappointment. I lived in Germany back then and was used to very good European bread that I was buying from local mom and pop bakeries. Then I tried another one from a different bakery and it was love at first bite.
Andy
Hi
Thanks for your reply.
Well, this has made me think a bit about what I am trying to achieve..
I guess what I am after is more flaky and crunchy but less bready.
Ill try to increase steam and shape them thinner.
Thanks again
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Take a look at the last picture of my challah bread recipe. Flaky like that? You can adap that recipe to make baguettes.
Kelly
Great recipe Victor!!!!! Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and expertise with a newbie like myself!! It was a total success!! My wife and kids devoured the baguettes!! I’m making them again soon!!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome, Kelly. Thanks for the kind words. Make my challah bread for your wife and kids, I have no doubt that they will love it.
Salma
Started this baguette last evening, baked this morning, ate for lunch. Just too good and tasty and so easy to make. Gave away one loaf. Started again this evening to make another batch tomorrow. Love it. Thank you.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Happy to hear it, Salma. You must try my challah recipe. It’s my new hit – everyone keeps asking for it. I am baking 4 today and yesterday’s 4 are gone. Most of them I gave away to friends and neighbors. The one that I had left for us yesterday was gone in 2 hours. I will update the recipe though (today or tomorrow) – instead of one large one I am now making two smaller ones and do a 4-strand braid instead of 6-strand. Much easier that way and they look cuter.
shirley
The salt in your recipe, is it table salt or kosher salt? thanks.
Shirley
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I use kosher salt.
grant
Really nice baguettes, mine were a little bit too brown, but I wasn’t watching them very closely, so that’s to be expected.
Connie
We made twice already and now addicted to this bread recipe! You’ve inspired my 12 yr old son to the artistry of bread making. Thank you!
Mila
Hi Victor,
Can I skip the cold retarding?
Thanks,
Mila
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Mila, yes, you can but you will need to make some adjustments.
MONICA
What adjustments need to be made when not doing the cold method?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Well, the process will be very similar to what I described in my no-knead bread recipe. So, you ferment all the way, cut into pieces, bench rest, shape, proof, score and bake. Since the dough will be warm, all stages will progress faster so you have to see how your dough behaves and go from there.
Bob
I have two issues – not sure if they are related:
1. Dough was kind of gooey and quite sticky through the entire process, although I used a kitchen scale to measure ingredients. Suggestions?
2. Baguettes were quite golden brown after first 15 minutes baking at 475. I only baked for 5 additional minutes at 450. I don’t know my oven to run too hot, but maybe? Was baking on a stone with a pan of water and submerged rolled dishtowel.
Thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Bob, increase the flour by about 2% and see if you are more comfortable with that consistency. If needed, increase some more until you are. Also, try preheating to 485F then bake at 450F and 425F respectively. Experiment. Different ovens bake differently so you may need to find your optimal combination of baking time/temp.
Chris
can you use bakers yeasts for this recipe and if so how much? this can sometimes be called fresh yeast or compressed yeast.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Chris, I think you should be fine. I rarely use fresh yeast but when I do, I shoot for 3x times the amount of dry yeast.
Charlene
Followed the recipe exactly and also made sure oven was 475 when I cooked the baguettes in the baking stone. They were dark brown within 7 minutes and I quickly had to cover them in foil. I did not place them too high in the oven or too low. Inside texture was perfect, though.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Charlene, I’ve never experienced what you have… I am puzzled. No baguette can bake in 7 minutes. It’s possible that your oven bakes hotter than it reports. Also, not enough steam in the oven will prevent oven spring and start browning prematurely. But, if they turned out that’s all that matters. Enjoy!
Charlene
Thank you. The baguettes were not done in 7 minutes. Just the tops were dark brown. I had them in the middle of the oven on a pizza stone and baked at 475 degrees F for 15 minutes, then turned the stone and baked another 15. By the first 7-8 minutes the tops were already too brown. I also used boiling water in a pan in the bottom and water misted in the baguette. Advice? Cover loosely in foil until the end perhaps? Also they stuck badly to the stone. I want to do the whole thing over tonight. Thanks
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Charlene, I would try dropping the temperature first. Decrease by 25 degrees and see how that works. Covering is best during the first half of the baking… mine are pale brown at 12-15 minutes. Your oven must bake much more efficiently than mine so either decrease the temp or reduce the baking time. Stuck badly to the stone? Hm… try adding more rice flour, that should help. You can also try baking on parchement paper, I do it very often when baking baguettes or bread, no sticking at all and loading in the oven is easy.
Steve Michael
I’m just a beginner and have only tried 3 or4 different recipes. This recipe sort of put me off because I am lazy by nature. The time and care is worth it in the end. No other recipe I have tried has near the flavor in this one. I recommend you the investment for a superb result.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Thank you for the kind words, Steve. Happy baking!
Sherry
I love this baguette recipe. The flavor profile is just way better than the done in a baguette. My kids prefer sourdough flavor. How do I modify the recipe for a sourdough baguette?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Sherry, I use the same percentages only incorporate 50/50 poolish and sourdough starter, about 100g each.
Ethan Atack
This was so incredibly good, I think there was a problem with my oven so I put it on broil quickly at the end to get that dark brown crust shown in the picture and slightly burnt them ….. lol
After all that I screw ur up but thank you so much I’ll be using this again
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome, enjoy! Let me know if you need any help making that perfect baguette.
Mary
I loved this recipe … have been in search of one for ages. But while the crust was perfect shortly after it came out of the oven, by the next morning (to have as my prima colazione) the crust seemed soft and slightly rubbery. Is this a characteristic, or did I do something to make it that way?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I’d say yes, it’s a common characteristic. If you want it crispier, what I do is to bake during the second half with the oven door slightly ajar. What this does is it dries out the air in the oven, resulting is in a thinner, crispier crust. It will stay crispier longer and won’t be as rubbery the next day. What flour you use may also be a factor. How your oven bakes (too humid) may also have an impact. There may be several factors at play.
Donna
What temperature is the water you use in this recipe?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Room temp, I use re-mineralized RO water that comes from a tank that sits at a room temp. I’d say about 68F-69F.
Donna
Thank you victor! I couldn’t wait for your response … just a little impatient … I used room temp and the bread turned out fabulous! The only issue I had was that it was baking too fast so I turned the temperature down to 450 after 10 min and then down to 400 after another 10 and it was perfect!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I’ve noticed that some of my blog readers have had this issue. Different ovens bake differently and some quite a bit differently so it’s always a good idea to watch your first batch closely and make necessary adjustments if needed. You did exactly that and the baguettes turned out perfect. Enjoy!
Jane S
The bread was absolutely delicious! Great recipe. I wanted to eat all three loaves in one sitting, it was so good. Thank you!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome.
Lloyd
Thank you, your recipe worked perfectly.
M3shoes
Hi there. I absolutely love this recipe and used it over and over again. However, I am temporarily unable to have white flour and only 100% spelt flour. Would this recipe work just as well or would I have to change it as it is a different flour? No worries if you don’t know. Thank you.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
It’s a good question to which, sadly, I don’t have the answer. If you try making these baguettes with 100% spelt, do let me know how they turn out. Good luck.
Patricia
Hello Victor,
Instead of a couche, can the aluminum baguette pan be used for rising/resting time?
What would be the advantages to using couche over the metal pan?
Thank you!
~ Patricia
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Patricia, a baguette pan will work I think but I’ve never used it. You want the baguettes to hold their shape while proofing. As long as you can do that, it’s fine. Also, you don’t want them to get stuck, you want to add enough flour to prevent sticking. A couche is great for that – no sticking and you can keep the baguettes tightly together so that they don’t spread out and hold shape.
Jean milu
The best guide ever thank you
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome.
Patricia
Victor, can this KAF baguette pan be used in lieu of cloche?
https://shop.kingarthurbaking.com/items/king-arthur-baguette-pan
Btw, those baguettes look scrumptious; look forward to trying this recipe!
~ Patricia
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Patricia, looking at the picture, I am concerned that the baguettes may spread out too much while proofing. You want to keep them tight next to each other to keep their shape. I’d rather use paper towels as a cloche, which I’ve done in the past and it worked well for me. Just cover them with a damp kitchen towel if you do.
AK
I used that exact pan with this recipe and it worked out well for me. They produced a nice round shape.
Fernando
Victor, can I use this same recipe to make pain d’epi? Have you tried it?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Fernando, yes, I have made it using this recipe. A long time ago though but it turned out very well.
Ranae
Hi Victor! Thanks so much for this recipe…I really enjoyed making it! When making a new recipe, I like to follow directions exactly the first time. All went exceptionally well except I feel like I got my baguettes too dark. My oven is testing at correct temp and I followed all directions. Anyway, would you suggest lowering temp some or baking for less time? To give you a better idea…once bread is cool, the outside is really hard unless I dampen and re-warm. I’m just new to making bread so looking for a little insight. Also, I did brush off my rice/unbleached flour before baking but think I could have brushed off more. Could that have added to the extra darkening? Otherwise, taste was good and lots of airy holes inside. I wish i could post pictures! Thanks again…😄
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Ranae, you’ve probably heard this 1 million times but here it goes again – everyone’s oven bakes differently. If the crust is really hard, lower the temperature by 25F and evaluate. You can also bake a few minutes less. Or both.
One thing I’ve noticed is that if you cut baguettes while they are hot and don’t finish, they will get a very hard crust. I’ve noticed the same thing with bread. It’s best to let them cool down completely then cut. If you cut it hot, the steam comes out. My theory is that it’s that steam that softens the crust from the inside. If you lose the steam, the crust will get hard. So, if you cut that baguette hot, better finish it all;)
Ranae
Thanks so much for the great advice…I will keep experimenting! 😀
Camille
Best recipe, I actually love all of your recipes. I made this bread 4 times at a high altitude and added a little extra water and they came out perfect. I just made them at sea level and they really puffed up. I wonder if I should adjust the amount of yeast? Have you heard of that? Still amazing but they were much larger than before.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Interesting, but no idea. When you say ‘really puffed up’, I wonder what it looks like… I good oven spring to me is a very desirable thing…
Gregory Couture
This is great recipe. It takes some time to get the stretch and fold down but, as they say, practice makes perfect.
Tasting a nice warm baguette with cold butter reminds me of France, especially good in these times of travel bans.
Julie
Wonderful recipe!! Makes 3 baguettes that fit in my smaller Miele steam oven.
Jackie
I’m very new to bread baking. I’ve used Mark Bittman’s no-knead bread recipe several times for a great rustic loaf, baked in my Dutch oven. Someone told me I could use that same recipe for baguettes. Noooo! Dough was way too wet to shape the baguette. So next time, I will try your recipe. My main question: I have an Emil Henry baguette baker, which allows for 3 smaller sized baguettes–about 13″ long, I believe. I think this baker is supposed to generate steam similar to how my Dutch oven worked with the no-knead recipe. Are you at all familiar with this baguette baker? And do you think it will work with your recipe? We can’t use water in our European oven to generate steam, as it gums up the electronics.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Yes, that baker will work very well with my recipe.
Vernon LeCount
Hey Victor,
Been using your recipe for awhile now (over a year), but have been experimenting with a Pate Fermentee and Poolish, prior to the main mixing. I took a baguette class in Paris last winter, and their attention to the temperatures of flour, water and the room was intense. (they had a formula). I also found a YouTube video of Julia Child running around a Paris bakery with a thermometer. So I keep experimenting with your recipe, but found I can get a good flavor with your recipe by just doing a poolish, either the night before or earlier in the day. The poolish seems to give a flavor I like. But I think the main thing is the temperature of the room when letting the poolish ferment. Currently for the poolish I am using 70 gram water, 70 gram flour and 1/8 teaspoon of active dry yeast. I subtract the ingredients amounts from your 500 gram (flour) recipe. The length of time I let the poolish ferment is dependent on room temperature. By the way, the bakery in Paris was using your higher hydration proportion. Have you tried a Pate Fermentee or Poolish with your recipe? Have you tried to start the Poolish a day before?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Vernon, you are right, fermentation temps make a difference. Not only with bread but also with any other fermented product, e.g. sauerkraut… higher fermentation temps favor lactic acid production while lower – acetic acid. Different flavor profiles. Different fermentation times. But to be honest, I don’t obsess about temps too much. I think bread making must be simple. If it’s not, you will get tired of this very quickly. I’ve been making bread for over 10 years now and every time I do it it’s still enjoyable as well as quick and easy. I don’t want to make it too complicated.
I would imagine that a highly reputable bakery must maintain a certain standard/taste that can be achieved by a repeatable process that any employee can master. If you know what you are doing you can adjust on the fly. Results may vary. Nothing wrong with that. That’s how you discover new things. In a bakery, they want the same result every time. Hence their obsession with temps. Temperature is another ingredient as they say.
As far as using poolish, pre-ferments (Pâte fermentée), I use them too to make bread/baguettes. They do add flavor similar to cold retarding. There are many ways to make a tasty loaf of bread… I try using different techniques.
Fernando
Hello Victor,
I have been baking baguettes, using you recipe, for about three months. I bake twice a week. I tweaked almost every step in order to get what I want. I noticed that different ovens behave very differently and times vary depending on your kitchen temp and other factors. Note: Even the first time, following your recipe to the letter, the result was very good.
Question: when I increase hydration scoring becomes difficult and I can’t get “ears”. However, if I reduce hydration to 70% I get perfect ears and still get a very airy and good baguette. Is that normal?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Fernando, yes, it’s easier to get nice ears with lower hydration. There is no right or wrong here, if 70% hydration gives you optimal results – go with it. High hydration is not just about air crumb and big bubbles. It’s more about the texture, that delightful moistness to it… I just love it. 75% for me is optimal for baguettes. Bread – I go as high as 80% or even higher sometimes. I never went that high until I tried one man’s bread at a farmer’s market in Sarasota, Fl. The bread was outstanding, we had a long conversation about bread baking with him and he shared some tips with me. One was high hydration. That said, tastes differ and what I like may not be what someone else does. Experiment and stick to what works best for you and what you like the most.
George
At last! A baguette recipe that works and the results are just like proper French bread.
Shawn
Hi – My baguettes are coming out of the oven with brown spots, rather than evenly browned. I adjusted the recipe to make three 240 gram baguettes. I use a baguette pan with a pan of water in a lower rack and a foil pan covering the baguettes for the first 15 minutes at 450 degrees. Then I remove the foil pan for the final baking time. They taste great, the crumb inside is perfect. I’m not digging that uneven, spotty browning. I’m wondering:
–is the honey not getting evenly distributed into the dough
–or baked too long with the steam/cover
–or something else.
Thanks for any feedback.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Shawn,
I remember seeing that problem too but heck if I can remember why it was and how I fixed it. Perhaps try lowering the temp in the second part of baking by 25F and bake them longer. Shortening the first part and extending the second part of the bake is good idea too. Let me know if either of those work.
Joseph
I made this twice over the last week, here are my results and minor tribulations.
First effort. I used 2:3 bread flour to all-purpose. I didn’t use honey. I don’t have a baking stone (I used a baking sheet) nor a sufficiently fine knife for the cuts. The transfer to the baking sheet was a challenge, with some less-than-straight loaves. I feared much, this being my first attempt at making baguettes. I otherwise followed the directions (fridge fermentation etc) up until the second half of the baking as the loaves were looking overly dark, so I took them out after 9 minutes. The results were quite pleasing! My wife said it was the best baguette she’s had in awhile, better than she’s found at the local farmer’s markets. I agree. They were a little over-baked on the outside but all completely edible. They had a nice crust, nice structure inside, a little chewy in a good way and good flavor all around.
Second effort. I used only all-purpose flour and I used honey. I skipped the fridge fermentation (we wanted bread). I let the dough rise in a warm room and this time I made two loaves rather than three in order to have bigger slices. Still not easy to transfer the loaves neatly to the pan! After the first bake of 15 minutes they looked fairly golden brown but I didn’t want underbaked bread so I carried on. To try to avoid the over-baking issue I put the oven down to 435 on the second half of the bake. After 5 minutes they were quite browned, and greater darkness on the bottoms so I took them out. The inside of the loaves were *just slightly* underbaked. Again there is a good crust, if a bit softer this time. The inside is overly bread-doughy in flavor, attributable I suppose to the less time baking of larger loaves and perhaps the skipping of the fridge fermentation? And I think I preferred the dimension that a portion of bread flour added in my first attempt. Still, this was superior to any “baguette” at the grocery store and as good as anything at the farmer’s market.
I’m not sure if next time I should turn the over even lower or cover the loaves during the second half. But a baking stone and a proper knife are on my grocery list…
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Joseph, sorry for the delay with my response.
Yeah, different ovens bake differently so you sometimes have to make adjustments. If yours brown too fast, lower the baking temperature in the second half by 25F. Or pull them sooner like you did if they look and taste great. But 9 minutes sounds a bit fast so I would try lowering the temp and see how that works.
Now, baguettes getting fairly golden brown by the end of the first 15 minutes is not a good thing. It tells me that there was not enough moisture in the oven. You need good steam. Either your are not supplying enough steam or your steam quickly finds its way out of the oven. Mine are pale yellow by the end of the first 15 minutes and bursting/showing nice ears. If there is not enough steam, you will get a poor oven spring. Are yours getting a good oven spring? If anything, you should be covering them during the first half of baking. Back in the day, I would put a foil dome over them to get a good spring, then remove and bake for another 15 minutes. With a foil dome you don’t need to steam as there will be enough steam from the dough itself. This way is a bit awkward and limiting but it works.
The transfer has been an issue for me too. I now often bake on parchment paper. Turn them over from the couche onto parchment, score, pick up with a large enough pizza shovel and slide onto the stone in the oven. Simple as that.
Sabera
I tried this recipe for the first and my baguette turned out perfect! Its definitely a keeper as my grandsons keep asking for more! Thank you so much for sharing this simple yet professional recipe!
Brianna Hodges
Best baguette I’ve ever eaten- crusty, chewy flavorful. This is my recipe from now on. Tastes delicious and I love the idea of honey, its the subtlest hint of sweetness with the perfect amount of salt to balance it out. Just a classic baguette. Made it for the first time and it came out perfect. Im an avid bread baker so I think that helped but anyone can do this and it comes out impeccable. Look no further for a baguette recipe people- this is it.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Happy to hear that, Brianna. Thank you for the feedback.
Jacquelyn
Thank you very much for sharing this easy and delicious recipe. Made some with Yeastie Boy, my starter (50% wholegrain flour and 50% water, used a total of 150g and subtracted the flour and water from the original recipe accordingly, which is 75g each). I halved the recipe and made one big baguette, free formed as I didn’t have a cloth that I would put the dough on. So it bulked sideways lol. Baked at the same temperature and timing per recipe. I must have been heavy handed while stretching the dough, because mine had small air bubbles. Also didn’t have a baking stone, just made do with a regular baking tray. Still, the taste is really good and the crust is superb. My family members say they won’t be buying baguettes anymore 🤪 my uncle wants to eat this with a pat of good butter. This bread is the epitome of simple pleasures. I hope those who are experimenting with their starters will give this a shot. If you’re not sure about the strength of your starter, or are using unfed/discard, add the yeast the recipe called for.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Fantastic! Glad to hear about your success. I normally make my sourdough baguettes 50/50 starter/poolish for a more airy crumb but 100% sourdough are quite amazing too. They are all different, not better or worse than the other.
Loan Ngo
Best baguette recipe online! Thank you! They came out crusty, soft and chewy.
Michelle
Hello from England!! My google app highlighted your No-knead bread recipe to me this morning, I’ve been browsing your wonderful site for the last couple of hours and I’ve come to rest on this one.
Before I ask the questions that have come to mind, I’d just like to say thank you soooooo much for actually providing proper recipes with accurately measured (weighed) ingredients!! I can’t tell you how many enticing sounding recipes I’ve come across, only to find that at best they’re nothing more than a list of “cup” based guidelines. How anyone can think something as arbitrary as a “cup” still has a place in modern baking, I do not know. Anyone would think kitchen scales cost a lot of money!! There’s a reason why every pastry school in the world teaches weight not volume, when it comes to baking, it just doesn’t work…
As is quite common here, my built-in oven is a standard 600mm appliance (not sure of actual oven size), so unfortunately I can’t physically bake anything the size of a full baguette. Obviously I can tweak the amount later, but could you possibly give me a starting point with regards to the dough weight I should portion into in order to make good sized batons out of your recipe?
In England we seem to have a much wider variety of flours than is available in the US, but we simply don’t have APF, in any brand. But Italian Type 00 and French T55 are really easy to come by, and I have a sack of French baguette flour I purchased recently which I’m thinking should be perfect to try in your recipe. Do you think I’ll need to make any adjustments, I believe its protein content is 9.5%?
And the last thing I wanted to ask about is the overnight cold retardation, because this topic continues to confuse me completely…! Everything I read states that yeast is inactivated below 4degC. So does that mean the 12-14 hours in the refrigerator should be at a temperature warmer than 4degC? I ask because I keep my refrigerator set at 1degC, and when I tried doing an overnight proof for 12 hours, when I took the dough out it didn’t look any different to when it went in, it hadn’t increased in size at all. Which I guess makes sense if the yeast gets put to sleep?
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this, and again, thank you for such a wonderful blog. I’m really looking forward to exploring it ❤️
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Michelle,
you are very welcome and I am glad to hear that you are finding useful information here on my blog.
My stone is about 21 inches (~52 cm) so I try to get my baguettes about that length. It’s about 6 inches or 13 cm shorter than the standard 65 cm. A standard baguette is made of 350 g of dough IIRC. So, if your oven is 56 cm wide inside, you can go for 50 cm baguettes (leaving some space around the stone/baking sheet for air circulation). If you are baking half-length baguettes, shoot for 150 – 175 grams of dough per baguette. You get the idea.
Here in the US and Canada we also have quite a big selection of flours but you definitely need to know where to look. French T55 is what they use to make baguettes, you can’t go wrong with it. I sometiems bake with organic La Milanaise T55 from Quebec, its very good. No adjustments needed generally. I find T55 a touch coarser than KA AP. The coarser the grind the higher on hydration you normally go so you may want to bump it up a little. It really depends on personal taste though.
Cold retarding is often misunderstood and sometimes surrounded by misinformation. Retarding is normally done between 35F to 40F (1.7C – 4.4C). Humidity should be around 85F (hence always cover your dough with plastic or a damp towel). Such conditions are not intended to freeze the dough or kill fermentation completely, but slow down its fermentation rate so the dough can remain stable for a few hours and develop complex flavors. 1C is too low, you need to bump it up. Retarding can be very tricky and the temperature plays a big role. Where the dough is in fermentation process is very important too. You want the dough to be partially but well into fermentation before going in the fridge in this recipe. All morning steps are critical too. The steps in this recipe are very specific to, well, this recipe. There are many variations and other ways to incorporate cold retarding though.
Happy baking!
Sarah
Do you have any tips for baking these at high altitude? Thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Sarah, don’t have any experience with high altitude baking but I can suggest this: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/learn/resources/high-altitude-baking. Hope someone else can chime in and speak from experience.
Jean RB
Wonderful! I didn’t have some of the special equipment, but used my pizza stone and a heavy kitchen towel and a sharp knife. Cuts were wanting…but bread is very good. Thank you for making this easy to follow and understand. Much appreciated by this rookie bread maker and her bread hound husband!
Peggy
What brand of parchment do you use? My Reynolds brand is only good up to 425 F. Also, I don’t have a stone, but I do have a baguette pan. Hoping that will work until I can find a good stone.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I use PaperChef, it’s also rated for up to 425F but it works fine for me in an electric oven. In a gas oven, it’s a slightly different story.
Kana
Used my scale, couche, everything on the recipe except the yeast so I let it proof longer. In a fridge for 15 hours. Baked in a baguette pan with a pan with water for steam. Nah. I see a couple air pockets but that’s all. Not impressed.
meen
Hello, can i skip honey?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Won’t taste as good if you ask me, but sure, no problem with that.
Kana
I say skip it. I don’t taste any sweetness at all.
Simon
Kana as an avid and experienced baker, I will say that following this recipe has resulted in spectacular baguettes – I use it almost daily. I put these up against 3 French bakeries in Chicago and they were extremely close if not better – try it again.
Lilith
I tried like 3 recipes befor this and every time smth was wrong with my baguettes, but this recipe is bomb!!! I love it, my whole family liked it so much, now iam gonna bake baguettes everyday😘Thank you so much
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome! Happy baking!
Ram
Hi Victor
Thanks for this recipe. My third attempt and it came out well with that hydration. One thing i am struggling with is, when its hot or warm, there is crunch but after it reaches room Temperature, the crust becomes soft. What should i do in this case please.
Thanks once again
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Every bread loses crunch over time because of moisture in the ambient environment. You can slow that process down by letting the bread could down completely then sealing it in a plastic bag, expelling as much air as possible. I’ve also noticed that baking at higher temperature creates a thicker crust that lasts longer, so that could another thing to try.
Ram
Thanks will try higher temps. But, am talking about take it out of oven, good crunch. Bow leave it to cool down and it looses crunch. Am talking about few mins after bread is out of oven
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Well, all bread loses crunch like that as far as I can tell, that’s why many of us like eating bread fresh out of the oven when it’s at its freshest and crunchiest. I guess the best way to deal with that is to bake more often;)
Laura
This recipe was amazing. Very well instructed. I had to make adjustments for high altitude but this recipe allowed me to bake my first successful baguette. Thanks so much!
Sylvi
Thanks for the recipe!!! My baguettes came out great, I forgot to reduce the heat to 450 when turning them so they were a little dark but delicious anyways. 😋
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome!
Poonam Bhalla
Awesome Recipe , the baguettes come out perfect . Have made it for others too
Peter
This is by far the best baguette recipe I’ve tried. The flavor was perfect. (I did omit the honey, sorry. I’m a purist. I also used Kind Arthur bread flour rather than all purpose. I think the extra gluten really makes a difference).
The only part I had trouble with was the shaping. Apparently I didn’t seal it sufficiently after folding because in the oven, it burst out at the score points but burst out even more at the seams. Delicious still, but visually, well a Frenchman would have been appalled. More practice is needed I guess!
Also note I used Active Dry Yeast because I have a huge tub of it in the fridge, but did NOT “activate” it first. Rather I mixed it in with the dry ingredients just as though it was instant / rapid rise, and then made sure the water temp was 120-130 degrees. I also used about 1.5tsp. It rose perfectly and was airy with different sized holes just like I hoped for. Per several sources you do NOT need to “activate” Active Dry Yeast anymore.
Honestly not sure what the difference is from instant if any but it worked just fine and was far superior to dissolving the yeast first – which in my prior attempts resulted in homogeneous texture characteristic of American white bread rather than European artisan bread exactly like you said in earlier comments.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Happy to hear about your results, Peter. Ain’t nothing like a freshly baked French baguette on a Saturday morning with a cup of coffee. Never gets old for me. I could eat these baguettes every day;)
Elisa
Thank you for a fantastic recipe! And I need to add, I am European and very very demanding with my bread. This is truly a French baguette. The recipe is easy to follow (I baked several batches so far and all of them successful) and the bread is incredibly tasty.
I follow the recipe to the letter. I love that I can get the first step ready in the evening, and then I can choose when to start baking; I can time it to have it ready for lunch or for dinner. After trying several recipes, this won by ease and taste.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Elisa,
thank you for the kind words and I am happy that my recipe worked for you. I spent a long time and it took many batches before I could make a consistent baguette that tasted as good or even better than what I tasted in Paris. This recipe works perfectly for me and I am happy that others enjoy it as much as I do. Happy baking!
judy colannino
Does the Baguette bake with the parchment paper on the stone?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Yes, I bake mine on parchment paper on a stone.
Heather
Certainly the most delicious recipe I’ve found and one of the easiest. Requires waiting and patience but it’s so worth it.
Question for you: I’m not much of a baker and didn’t realize there’s a difference between active and instant yeast. I used active yeast and the recipe turned out great, but is there any issue with doing it this way?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Heather, no, not really. If it works, use it. My results weren’t very consistent with active dry yeast hence I prefer instant.
Macy
Hello question about the stone, can I use a regular baking sheet instead? Thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Macy,
yes, you can but it’s best to stack a few sheets on top each other to get more thermal mass for a great oven spring. This worked for a number of people, search through the comments below. Also, check my comment from April 2nd 2020.
Dars
Best baguette recipe I’ve found so far! I’d love to try it with a poolish. In one of the comments you mention doing so with 50/50 poolish starter. Could you please explain? Are you refering to equal amounts of flour in each? Thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Thank you Dars. I make my poolish of equal amounts to water and flour with some yeast added. I normally do 150g water, 150g flour and 3g yeast. The starter is my usual sourdough starter.
Jim
Here’s what I’ve learned:
1) this bread is amazing in every way.
2) I’m terrible at shaping loaves.
Gert
Hi Victor
Thank you very much for sharing this recipe. I have been making it for months now, and every time it gets a bit better. One challenge I have is that I am doing this in a pizza-oven which has it’s own challenges, but still great fun. The first time I destroyed half of the dough.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Gert, happy to hear about your progress and improving results. You are doing much better than I did when I was starting out with baguettes. Happy baking!
Stephanie
Made these today. My daughter who loves french baguettes took a bite and said with joy “these actually DO taste like an actual baguette!” Great recipe and thorough instructions. Mine were done after 15 mins and got pretty dark. Will lower temp and maybe cover with tin foil next time.
Adelina
This is a great recipe! I made my first batch and love the crumb and crispness of the crust!
Hoping you can help with one thing that I’ve been trying to accomplish. My baguettes always come out with “glued down” ears, instead of the beautiful opened ears. I’ve watched numerous clips on scoring, and believe I’ve followed everything correctly. I don’t think I’m under or over proof the loaves as they do come out with nice crumbs, textures. One thing I notice is whenever I score the loaves, they tend to go flat slightly, but they do spring back in the oven.
Thank you!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
‘Glued down’ ears points to higher hydration, over-proofing/less of an oven spring or sometimes even too much steam in the oven. Some flours may be too fresh and have more moisture in them so I would start with dropping hydration until you get good perky ears, then work your way back up carefully observing the behaviour of your baguettes.
Bonnie
Wow wow wow!!! This recipe and method was perfect!!! First time making artisan French baguettes and I knocked it out of the park!!! We ate it all before dinner!!! Can’t wait to make it again!!!
Mina
I have made these twice and they were excellent both times. I am curious about the portion where you let the dough rest 15 minutes and then over the next 1 1/2 hours do 3 sets of stretches. I have been letting it rest for the 15 and then doing my first stretch after another 30 minutes. Then a second stretch after another 30 minutes and the final stretch 30 minutes later. Am I doing this correctly? Thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Yes, that’s correct. Happy baking!
Ernesto
It was excellent! I replace half of the honey with malt syrup.
Three question ref stretch and fold:
1. How long do you stretch and fold each time? 5 minutes? only once? more?
2. Do you do it in the bowl or on the table?
3. What would happen if I do it four times instead of three? Would it hurt the dough?
(I’m just trying to see how to get more tension: the scoring was good, but should have been better.
Shelby
Can I use a starter in place of yeast? I only have active dry yeast and a starter.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Baguettes using just a starter require a different approach and will be noticeably different. I will make a post on that sometime in the future. Most of the time you will see bakers use a combination of commercial yeast and a starter, this gives baguettes better flavor and the same volume and crumb textures that you get with commercial yeast. If you want to use both, make poolish with the active dry yeast, then use 50/50 poolish and starter. Or just use active dry yeast, making sure to activate it or making poolish with it first.
Hanh
Felicitations, Victor! I am not a baker, and the bread still turns out excellent the first try, thanks to your instructions! If you have updates to short-cut the stretch and fold, first rise, second rise, etc., pray post! For those of us who are more on the spontaneous side, being able to prep and bake on the same morning would be ideal! That said, I will now prep a second batch for tomorrow. Thank you!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome, Hanh. Happy baking!
Lisa Koblentz
Hi Victor,
Thank you for your recipe and the information. I am going to be making your baguette tomorrow. I have one question for you- Someone recommended placing ice cubes in the cast iron pan in the oven where you use the towel. Have you tried using ice cubes to create steam rather than a kitchen towel? For some reason, the idea of putting a towel in the oven scares me a bit.
I look forward to wonderful results (I hope!)
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Lisa, a kitchen towel is fine, I’ve used it well over 100 times in my oven. If you are not comfortable, don’t use it. Its purpose is to regulate steam release – slow and even. I’ve use water pans without a towel as well and, frankly, the results were kind of identical. In any case, what you want is good, even steam in the oven during the first part of the baking. When my baguettes are going in, the water in the pan gently simmers along the sides of the pan, releasing steam that is barely visible. This works for me.
Ice cubes (or water) on a cast iron pan create a plume of steam, then nothing for a while, until the water heats up and starts steaming again, creating uneven steam. I didn’t experiment much with ice but I used to pour water on a hot cast iron pan, empty or filled with lava rocks. I have a huge issue with this method, which I used initially many years ago upon someone’s recommendation on some internet forum. First, it creates a LOT of steam, where a lot of it gets out of the oven before you shut the door. You have to be very careful and keep your face/hands away. It may also kill your oven. It did make my electric oven stop working after a few months of steaming this way.
Lisa
Thank you so much Victor for your response! I did end up using a towel and the results were fantastic! I really love your recipe and am excited to make it many more times in the future. I would like to see a bit more open crumb with slightly larger holes and will increase the hydration a bit as you recommended to see if that works. Thank you again!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome, Lisa. Happy to hear about your success.
Bonnie
This is the BEST baguette recipe! My husband is French, and he said it is even better than French bread since it is still delicious the second day. IF there is any left, that is! And Victor is so nice!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Glad to hear that, Bonnie. Happy baking and thank you for the kind words.
Neda
Love this recipe. The baguettes turned out delicious. I did buy the baguette pan for oven and love it.
Danesh
I follow your recipe and the baguette came out just fine, although not as pretty as yours, but very decent. Also taste great. Thanks again, for this great recipe.
Yunxia Lu
Thank you for the detailed recipe.
Sheryl
Will I get comparable results with Robin Hood AP flour? My grocery store has never had King Arthur brand flour.
Great blog and great discussions of recipes. Thank you
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Sheryl, it’s been a long while since I used Robin Hood flour so I can’t recall how I liked the results but you should be able to get a comparable outcome. I just came to prefer KA flour seeing slightly better results for my taste. I buy my flour from a wholesaler so it’s always super fresh and is quite a bit cheaper per pound too. I’ve also used many organic flours, including La Milanaise T60 flour from Quebec, which was outstanding, though a little grittier than KA. Baguettes made with it were fantastic, but the flour is quite a bit more expensive. I encourage you to experiment and pick the flour that is readily available to you and which gives you the best results. If the flour is a pain in the back to find, you won’t enjoy baking and/or won’t do it frequently… where is enjoyment in that?
Mari
Hi thank you for this recipe. Tried them today and they were great. Wanted to ask how could I get better crumb? I didn’t have as many holes/bubbles as your picture. A few factors I think might be the cause: 1) I used a steam oven and the max temp was 435F – I did have the ability to inject steam and did that for the first 20mins. The loaves all had very nice spring. Crust was thin and crunchy. The only thing was that when cut in half, I didn’t have the holes. 2) I only left the dough in the fridge for about 8 hrs. Should it stay longer? All other rest and proofing times were the same as your recipe 3) I used a baguette pan not a baker stone. 4) used active yeast nor instant yeast. Would appreciate clues on what else I could try. Thank you.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Mari,
seems to me like you have covered all the bases. One thing that comes to mind is the yeast. If you think about it, active dry which is first dissolved in water, will result in very even distribution of yeast cells and leavening of the dough, resulting in smaller very even holes. Instant, on the other hand, will have yeast granules distributed less evenly and more spaced out, resulting in pockets of intense yeast activity. I think that may be the cause. I’ve seen the same when making sourdough bread – dissolving leaven in water results in smaller, even holes as opposed to mixing the leaven into the dough.
Mari
Thank you very much – I’ll try that out. My kids have declared that I should make a fresh batch of baguettes every other day (instead of daily to give me a break 🙂 ) They love these – thanks for the recipe, detailed instructions, tips and advice.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome! Happy baking!
Sheryl
I have Robin Hood AP Flour. I have never seen King Arthur flour at my grocery store. Can I use Robin Hood AP and get comparable results, do you think?
I have SAF instant yeast.
Thank you and I am looking fwd to trying this recipe very soon. Beautifully written blog and replies to comments.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Sorry, missed this comment but responded to your other question. Yes, that should work. SAF yeast is very good, I use it all the time now. And thank you for the kind words. Happy baking. Let me know how your baguettes turn out. Take some pictures, I’d love to see them.
bonnie
Should this “3 g instant yeast about 1 tsp; also known as Quick Rise or Rapid Rise yeast” be 1 Tbsp = Tablespoon, not tsp?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
No, it’s a tsp. A Tbsp is about 9 grams.
Bonnie
The bread was very good. I wonder if it could have had a bit more flavor. It did rise quite a bit!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You can get more flavor by extending/retarding fermentation or proofing. You can do it by using less yeast or fermenting/proofing in a cooler room, or in a fridge. I also like substituting in about 5% of rye flour, it adds a lot of flavor. Another way to add flavor is to use 50% less yeast and adding about 1/2 a cup of sourdough starter.
Bonnie
You had warned me that the bread might have a less robust taste since I used 3 times the yeast! I like the idea of using some rye flour. Do you have a recipe for a hearty rye bread with caraway seeds?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I have a few, let me see what I have and I will email you.
bonnie
Of course, you are correct. For some reason, I got confused by the envelope information = 1 packet (1/4 oz) = approx 2.25 tsp. = 7 g. So, 1 tsp = 3.5 g. I used a whole envelope! The bread did a nice rise! Hope it’s good! I’ll know why if not!!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Bonnie, it shouldn’t be a problem as long as you keep an eye on it. It will be a little more active and ferment/proof a bit faster, that’s all. The faster it rises the less flavor you get, that’s one shortcoming really.
Peter whiteley
How was the bread? and how long did you leave the dough to rise for once you used too much yeast ? Reason i ask is becuasr i have just done the same think and the dough has been in the fridge for around 5hrs so far
Nick
“This bread is so good it tastes like heaven.” John, 7 years old
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I am very flattered and thank you for your feedback. Kind words like these is what motivates me to write for this blog.
Simon
I have made this recipe 5 times a week for 14 weeks – it’s a major success. Question: have you ever tried a 36 hour rise – I have someone visiting tomorrow who wants to take the dough home and bake themselves. Does the yeast eventually run out of food leaving you with a giant ball of discard?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Simon, all I can say is WOW! I am impressed. To your question, I’ve gone as long as 48 hours. The dough gets more flavorful but also a bit more sour. Not bad sour but you can taste it. It’s different but still good. I have a feeling that you will like it.
Joy
Looks like I will love this recipe
Jason
My baguettes have been splitting on the side when I bake them. Any clues on why that is?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Most likely the scoring on the top is no sufficient. Make longer, deeper, firmer scores, it should help.
Dennis
I have been trying baguettes recently (not this recipe yet) and while they taste delicious, they are a bit dense and never truly brown. I cook with steam pan, on a stone and at 475 degrees. I did wonder if there might be some adjustments I need to make for cooking at altitude (5280 ft)? My first plan this weekend is to buy new yeast and flour, but thought I would ask about altitude. I want these baguettes with those air pockets!!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Dennis, I don’t have experience baking at high altitudes but I believe you need to increase the baking temperature by 25F. No browning may or may not do with the high altitude. The more moisture is in your oven the worse the browning will be. I bake many of my breads with the door slightly cracked-open during the second part of the bake (no steam). This allows for a much better browning and a formation of a thin, crispy crust. If you have convection, you may try baking on convection during the last 10 minutes or so, it helps with browning too. Air pockets – less yeast, longer/proper fermentation, gentle handling, proper proofing, higher hydration… all those contribute. Happy baking!
Diana
Brilliant recipe! Got beautiful baguettes. Thanks!
Ari
That recipe was foolproof! Nailed it first try and made 3 amazing baguettes! Will definitely use and share this recipe! Thank you so much-I don’t think I will ever buy bread ever again.
DJL
Nice recipe!
I had been baking them by the King Flour Recipe and I couldn’t get air pockets.
I did it your way and made the best tasting baguettes to date with nice size air holes. First batch didn’t look as good as pictured, but tasted perfect.
Thanks. I will be using your method from now on!
Robert
Thank you for sharing your recipe.
I’ve been making 80% Hydration baguettes for some time, making a poolish the night before with 1/2 the recipe-in the fridge for 17 hours. The next day the rest of the flour, yest and salt is added and a series of stretch and folds every 45 minutes. I bake it for 25 minutes at 465, throwing about 1/2 cup of water in the oven at the beginning. I use French yeast and usually hard red winter wheat bread flour.
How will the baguettes made with your recipe differ from mine in taste and texture. They look about the same.
Robert
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You can answer that question by making both and comparing for yourself. There are dozens if not hundreds of subtly and not so subtly different ways to make a baguette. Neither is necessarily better than the other if made well, just different. Though, Paris’ Best Baguette Competition tries to pick the best one each year out of dozens of submissions.
Sreeram
I tried once more 🙂 The hydration is high for me to handle. I transferred from the couche to the baguette peel but it got stuck on the peel (even after I threw in some flour) when I tried to transfer it to the pizza stone in the oven. Do you recommend lower percentages of hydration like 62%?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Absolutely. I always recommend starting where you are comfortable and work your way up. Also, it could be that you need to change your technique. When transferring, roll the baguettes off as opposed to sliding. And use enough flour. Rice flour helps a lot.
Ariana
Hi, great recipe! What do you mean about rolling vs sliding? I have a hard time getting the bread from the transfer board to the stone. I think I have to slide or the scoring will end up on the bottom.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Ariana, I roll the baguettes off the couche onto a piece of parchment paper, turning them upside down, then score, scoop up with a large pizza shovel, together with the parchment paper, and slide off onto a hot baking stone. Does this make sense? But there are many ways to transfer baguettes to the oven. Another way that I used before is to place proofed baguettes on a large thin wooden board, heavily dusted with flour, score then slide them off onto the stone.
Brian
Really great post. This answered the majority of my questions and my baguettes are better than ever.
Jen
I might add some vital wheat gluten next time. What do you think? I used a baguette pan to bake them in as opposed to the baking stone. Do you think this is ok? Lastly I found the shaping part to be a little tricky due to stickiness. It didn’t roll out thin like those in visits I watched. Any suggestions? Sorry, I know, so many questions. Total amateur here.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Jen, vital gluten is a great addition, I like using it when baking whole wheat and rye breads. Don’t overdo it though or your baguettes will turn out too chewy. Baguette pans are fine but I like the stone as gives a better oven spring. The more stored heat the better. Stickiness is a problem but don’t be afraid to use some flour when shaping, it helps a lot. Put some flour on your hands too before rolling and stretching.
Jeremy
So does that mean I shouldn’t use bread flour? I’ve tried another baguette recipe in the past and it called for bread flour. I’ll be using yours very soon, though. Thanks.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You can use any flour you want with the expectation that the results will be different.
Jen
This was by far the best French bread recipe I have ever tried. The depth of flavor is amazing. It tastes just like bread you find at high end restaurants. I used Miller Milling Co H&R flour. Could this be why I didn’t get as many air pockets as you show in your picture? Like others my bread would have burned if I cooked it at the recommended temp, so I had to modify. I am new to baking and have been frustrated with my results with French bread until now. Thank you so much for this fantastic recipe. I hope to keep improving my results.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Jen, it could be the oven. Different ovens bake differently. Steam is also a big factor. Not enough steam and you will get a lot of browning right away. Holes? Gluten, dough strength, handling, proofing and fermentation, sufficient steam, hydration – all play a role. A little of experimenting should give you an indication of what works.
Bunny_tech_support
It came out amazing! Thank you so much! The best baguette recipe ever I used. I definitely make again.
Emma
Hello!
I’ve been using this recipe for a long time now and it’s beyond the best! I’ve made slight alterations to suit my oven but other than that it’s perfect.
My mom recently found out she is gluten intolerant and I was wondering if you would suggest a type of flour I could use to sub in this recipe. Any other gluten free recipe I see seems….well not great. They all seem to be more of a white bread version and not the crusty French style.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Sorry Emma, I haven’t experimented with gluten-free baking much so can’t make any suggestions here… perhaps some else can.
Perry
This recipe and instructions along with the tips is fantastic. This is my 3rd time baking baguettes and they have turned out perfect. Great recipe.
Alice
Fabulous recipe – a few hitches in my first attempt (mainly at myself not reading instructions thoroughly/forgetting the time :/) but they are still glorious.
What is the best way to store them? and how long do they keep? (theoretically of course, the reality is they wont last until the end of the day)
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are right, they don’t last long. At my home, they are done if not by the end of the day then by the next morning. If you want them to stay fresh and last a few days, cool them to room temperature and store in an airtight container or a Ziploc bag. If possible, refrigerate, they will last even longer.
Kris
I freeze them, and then lightly toast after thawing. Not exactly like fresh out of the oven, but still tasty. One could put the entire baguette in the oven to warm, but I normally cut a chunk off, split it, then drop it in the toaster. Makes great sandwiches.
Fernando
After many unsuccessful tries with other recipes my wife found this one. Almost perfect the first time. It was delicious but proper scoring was an issue. I’ll try again. Thanks Victor!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome, Fernando. Happy baking!
Cherylann
This baguette recipe and the included instructions are excellent. I’m a novice bread baker and they turned out amazing. Thank you so much for sharing!!!!
Marian
Hi, Victor! Thanks for sharing this recipe. Similar to Mayu, my baguettes seemed to be pretty well baked by the end of the first fifteen minutes. In my case, however, my bread was not near the top of my oven, but rather in the middle/bottom area. My personal concern is that by the end of the entire baking time the baguettes began to burn a bit, actually. Luckily, the burnt taste wasn’t overwhelming and it was mostly near the ends (I made sure that the ends weren’t too thin when I made the point- in fact they were pretty close to the size of the middle portion of the baguette.) I’m trying to think of how to adjust the bake time and/or temperature for next time. So, I’m wondering what your input is! I’d absolutely love to hear it and I’m also open to trying anything new! Thank you, again, for sharing this recipe. It was 100% fun to make and my family loved it! Especially my older brother who is picky about baguettes haha.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Marian,
I can think of three things that could lead to what you described. Obviously, if your baguettes somehow are quite thinner (but longer) than mine, they will bake faster. I know, this is likely not that case but still. Another possibility is that your oven is more efficient and bakes better. I’ve seen this many times. Or the thermostat in your oven is off, underreporting the temperature. This is also a very distinct possibility. I would get an accurate BBQ thermometer with a probe and test it. Finally, there isn’t enough steam in the oven. By the end of the baking with steam, my baguettes are pale, dough-like color. It’s only once I remove the steam they begin to brown. I’d suggest first to make sure that there is enough steam that doesn’t escape through a vent (I block mine with a kitchen towel), then look at adjusting the temperature. I would drop the temperature by 15 degrees and/or shorten the baking with steam and without one to 12 minutes. Once you start making those adjustments you will most likely see an improvement and jus work in that direction to perfect the results.
Mayu
Mine came well cooked (nearly over baked) in the first 15mins so I had to cut out the second half completely. My oven had different setting. One with heat at the top, bottom and from both. Is there a specific setting you’d recommend?
Should I still look underdone after first 15?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I can’t make an informed recommendation as I don’t know what your oven is and what settings it has, or how it bakes. Based on your description though, you should not use top heat. I can see how your baguettes got cooked in 15 minutes with top heat/broiler on. After 15 minutes of baking with steam baguettes should have increased in size, opened up (have oven spring), be pale, have a very thin and soft crust, and not be fully baked. The second half of baking thickness the crust, gives the baguettes the color and finishes off baking.
Mayu
Hi
I love this recipe and I’ve already made this baguette 4-5 times.
Results were pretty amazing, love this taste but I have a problem with scoring.
The dough was too sticky to cut. I’ve bought a scoring knife but dough stuck to knife.
And even if I could manage to cut, score wouldn’t open like yours.
Could you please give me any advice?
Maybe final proof ware too long or l need more flour…
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Mayu, it could be that your dough’s hydration is higher than you think, it could be due to more hydrated flour, or because of using cups. You cold drop hydration by 1-2% and see how that works out… as you become more comfortable build your way back up. Proofing for too long can definitely be an issue. All that said, most of my breads have even higher hydration, around 80-82%, but I don’t find it particularly hard to score them. What I think helps is to use a firm but very swift motion. When scoring, I also tend to hold my baguettes with the wingers of the other hand so they don’t move. Personally, I tend to score with plain blades or a serrated bread knife. Hope this helps.
Bob Taheri
Hi there,
I am currently trying to make all the bread in the world! I own a food business and have access to commercial equipment. Currently trying to find the right recipe to make in large batches.
I have made this now twice with great results. I was wondering if you have any advice on making this recipe in large scale? are there any tweaks I should be aware of? I will try a triple batch and see for myself but I would like your opinion on the matter if possible. Thanks for your time!!
Bob
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Bob, no experience here with large scale production so I can hardly be of help. That said, once you run your triple batch trial and see a problem, let me know, perhaps I can help.
Magdalena
Absolutely wonderful recipe everyone loved it👍👍😊
Tim
Exceptional. I gave up on baking bread about five years ago after years of trouble. Each loaf I would make came out dense and had an unpleasant strong yeast taste. With so many people baking bread during the pandemic, I thought I would give it another shot. I watched a number of videos, and read a number of articles, and this recipe seemed to encompass all the tips and suggestions I found. I started the dough at 8 pm last night, put it in the fridge overnight, took it out at 2 pm, and had amazing bread ready by 4:30 pm. Only thing I have to experiment further with is the baking time. My loafs started burning after the initial 15 minutes in the oven. Thanks for such a great recipe and renewing my confidence in making bread.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome, Tim. Glad I could help. Enjoy your delicious bread and happy baking!
Wendy
You may want to get yourself an oven thermometer. They are only around $5 and will ensure your oven temperature is accurate. I just started using one and found that my oven was around 25 degrees cooler than what it was set too, maybe your problem is caused by it being higher.
mary b wright
Love this recipe and I’ve enjoyed great results, thank you! I am going to try reducing the honey to 15-20 grams next time…probably in my head, but I think the bread tastes a little sweet (?). It hasn’t stopped me from eating it however!
I used 150g of a “European style” flour from a local bakery (it had a picture of a baguette on it) and 350g KA AP for latest batch….wasn’t sure of the best ratio so guessed at about 1/3 of the non AP.
I had an oven shelf mishap that resulted in the oven not preheating as I thought and thus my dough proofed for 1.5 hours, seemed to go ok (but I was grumpy at myself for a while).
Thanks so much!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome! Thanks very much for your feedback and happy baking!
George
For the fold section, is it 3 folds every half hour or one fold ever half hour amounting to 3 when don’t with the hour and a half
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
One fold every half an hour…
Patrick
Hi Victor,
I have made this recipe a couple times and it is always great with crunchy crust, big bubbles, and chewy inside. My problem is they seem to end up thin which results a larger crust ratio. The dough appears the same size during proofing but yours appears to spread out much more than mine when transferred for scoring. Any ideas on how to make sure mine do not keep ending up thin?
Thank you,
Patrick
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hm… that’s an interesting question. I think I’ve seen this when my dough was a bit underfermented/underproofed or when I didn’t give it enough of a bench rest. It tightens when you handle it so if you try to roll it up like that it will be thin. You would also bump up the hydration, it will help. Or try different flour… Or make them shorter – and if that works, increase the amount of dough to get the right length/thickness. Sometimes you have to experiment a little to get perfect results.
Maky
Hi Victor
I made the recipe a second time, and I love the texture but I seem to have the same issue as Patrick. I don’t get the rise I want; the cross section of my baguette is rather oval than round. Any suggestions? I’m always afraid of over proofing the dough but I did let it proof for almost an hour( I know the temperature is also a factor) at room temperature. Do you think other than something being wrong with what I’m doing, a baguette tray would help?
Thank you in advance Victor
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Maky,
there are a few things that cause that. You’ve been having problems with the dough being too sticky before, have you resolved it? It could be the hydration level. Drop it further and the issue will go away. Some flours are more hydrated so you need to account for that. As well, I heard of people having this issue when baking on humid days… never experienced that but interesting. Overproofing will cause flat baguettes too. Not enough gluten development can also be a factor… hard to say without seeing the whole process. It would help if you took good, well-lit pictures along the way, all the way to the baked product with the cross-section visible, I can take a look. Email the pictures to me.
Donna
Thank you so much for this recipe! My husband is French and we moved from France to Canada a few years ago. We have been dearly missing fresh baked baguettes from the boulangerie. This was my first attempt at baking a baguette. I’ve tackled croissants, but I’ve been hesitant to try my hand at baguettes. They turned out wonderful, with a crisp but not too thick crust. My husband and son were in heaven, and the bread did not last long! My husband was soon making plans for having them again the very next week.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome, Donna. Glad to hear about your success. Happy baking!
Maky
Hello,
I made this recipe today and the outcome was good but the dough was super sticky and out of control and each time i transferred it to a new surface it stretched and got longer and out of shape. Do you have any tips in this regard? What do think about using 30% bread flour?
Your reply is greatly appreciated.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Maky, I would recommend for you to decrease hydration (add more flour) until you get comfortable and get perfect results. It could also be the flour that you are using. Using 30% or even 50% bread flour will definitely improve the structure of the dough. Yes, I would experiment with that as well.
Jeremy
Can I use bread flour instead of all-purpose?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Yes, you can.
Celestia
By rotate do you mean flip them?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
No, no flipping. Just rotate them 180 degrees so that they brown evenly.
John Calcote
This is a true French baguette at the required 76% plus hydration. It’s also very similar to that shown by John Kirkwood on YouTube, except that his has no sweetener and no overnight retardation period. The hydration is about the same as his if you consider the honey a liquid (which you should).
I can’t tell you the number of French bread recipes promoted as baguette – the two are not the same. French bread has a fine texture and soft crumb, whereas baguette has this course open texture with a chewy almost translucent crumb. The higher hydration in baguette dough is the difference.
Traditionally speaking, French baguettes don’t have any sugar, but hey – if this was a winning recipe in a French contest, then – who knows? Maybe the French are becoming more open to new ideas! 🙂 Thanks for the recipe.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome, John. Thanks for your feedback.
Ram
Hi
I tried this recipe and cant say how good the bread is. Have few questions though
1) Does the high hydration (72%) have any effect on the spring or how crunchy bread turns out?
2) Why cant we use 62% hydration where the dough is easy to handle? Reason is, my first and second batch both had issues with handling right from S&F all the way to transferring it to the pizza stone.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Ram, higher hydration results in a more open, softer crumb and larger holes. 72% is a relative value. I consider it low as most of my breads are around 80%. For someone new to baking it may seem high as you need to build confidence and the technique to handle higher hydration doughs. If your dough seems too wet for you to handle comfortably, by all means, drop the hydration until you get good results. Then work your way up if desired. Loading is always a challenge, high hydration or low. Try baking them on parchment paper. So, you would put them on your pizza shovel (make a big DIY one with sheet metal) lined with parchment paper, then score and slide them onto the baking stone with the paper.
Cindy
I am currently making your bread. I am in the stretching and folding stage. I find that the dough is very sticky. Am I able to use more flour to prevent it sticking to to my hands Or will that make my bread dry and hard?
Thank you, Cindy
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Cindy, initially, the dough will feel wet and sticky by as gluten develops as a result of S&Fs, the dough will firm up and become much less sticky. That said, you can definitely incorporate more flour. Star with a little, a tablespoon, then evaluate. You want to be comfortable handling the dough. As your comfort grows, you can increase hydrations. Did you weigh the ingredients or used cups and spoons? If you didn’t weigh them, it’s possible that you ended up with higher hydration.
Victoria
This turned out fantastic, I’ve never tried a recipe with truer results to the Parisian baguette I so love.
Oven couldn’t get hot enough and used a baking sheet but still, top class baguette achieved. Thanks
Jimmy
Re: French Baguettes recipe
Greetings from Queens, NY. At the heart of the quarantine currently, my GF and I have been hard pressed to find good quality breads at the store so I suggested baking our own (we’re having a “bake-off” lol). For my first ever attempt at bread baking I found your tasteofartisan recipe and currently I am about an hour from cold retarding.
As I look ahead to what my steps are tomorrow, I was wondering if anybody ever asked you this question, because I didn’t see it in the comments:
Have you or anyone ever experimented with different herbs/spices in the steam water pan instead of just plain water? I don’t plan on it this go around, I want to follow as instructed. But just curious for your feedback.
Can’t wait until tomorrow night to pull my project out of the oven! Thanks for what I’m sure will be a delicious recipe!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hey Jimmy, welcome to my blog. I hope your baguettes turn out great. Even if they don’t get an awesome oven spring, they will still taste great I guarantee you.
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To your question, I don’t think flavoring water/steam will add much flavor to the bread itself, there just isn’t enough time. But mixing in different herbs into the dough, or sprinkling them on top is a great way to add interesting flavors.
Jimmy
As expected it was delicious!
And by stacking my baking sheet on another upside down one, on top of an bottom-up glass Pyrex dish, I actually got a really good oven spring! I think I won the bake-off lol. Thanks again.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hey Jimmy, you are welcome… glad to hear about your success. There is nothing like freshly-baked baguettes, especially if they turn out great.
Joe
I followed this recipe to a ‘T’ and in general it turned out excellent. I should note that I baked in a gas oven and baked on a cast iron griddle (one side has raised ribs to allow grease/fat to drain, but I used the other, totally flat side). I set the oven as directed, to a pre-heat of 500F and then immediately down to 475F after putting the dough in.
As another commenter noted, the bake time was indeed 15 minutes for me as well, with an interior temp of 205F. While the bread was definitely done, it lacked the thick, crispy crust that sends crumbs flying three feet in all directions when you cut it.
I need to experiment with baking times and pans. I can perhaps still pre-heat the cast-iron skillet but then put the dough on a regular baking sheet and then put that on top of the cast-iron skillet, to get that initial spring that’s needed. I also have a pizza stone with which I can try the same two combos (baked directly on, or used underneath a baking sheet). Options to try for sure.
But overall the crumb, texture, and taste are terrific.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Thanks for the detailed feedback, Joe. Glad to hear that you achieved good results. Happy baking!
Alex
Victor, are you using a gas or electric oven? I also find that I can’t seem to get a shiny, crispy crust using two loaf pans with towels. I wonder if the venting on a gas oven is simply too much for any open steaming method.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Alex, I am using an electric oven. I have the same problem with the vent though and I plug it with a kitchen towel during the steaming phase.
Mike
Sceptical at first but followed recipe as written. Results were well beyond expectations and the resultant baguette was crusty with the ‘mie’ soft chewy With incredible taste. Chapeau to Victor!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Awesome! Happy baking! Why skeptical at first, I wonder?
Joseph
Awesome writeup of the recipe and tools needed.
Jessica
Can I use regular active dry yeast? I don’t have any instant.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Please see my comment below on March 26, 2020.
Richard
Hi Victor- I loved the recipe, my baguettes had a great lite crispy exterior and a great puff when put into the oven. They tasted great- but did not have the chewy texture- more bread like without all of the holes. Any suggestions? Does bread flour vs King Arthur all purpose make a difference?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are welcome, Richard. Big holes and chewy texture need sufficient gluten development. Yes, bread flour will help, it will make bread chewier. Perhaps too chewy for some. Insufficient stretching and folding results in poor texture. Overworking dough, on the other hand, leads to gluten breakdown and you will end up with small holes and crumbly texture. I am going to email you, send me a picture of the crumb, perhaps that will give me a better idea.
Josh
Great recipe, really delicious bread and I’ve never made bread before and I’m enjoying learning. A couple questions: 1) Does the temperature of the water matter and do you dilute the honey into the water before mixing into the dough? 2) I struggle with the “stretch and fold” part the most. Is it one stretch and fold every thirty minutes from one side of the dough only, or do you rotate the bowl around and stretch and fold multiple sides every 30 minutes? Also, the dough is so sticky, I’m challenged to be able to lift the entire ball of dough up to flip it over after each 30 minute iteration even with the help of a spatula. Maybe it’s over mixed or I need to flour my hands more, although it didn’t seem to help that much. BTW, I use a stand mixer and dough hook gently bringing it together just until the flour is fully integrated. Thank you!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Josh, glad to hear about you learning to bake bread. It is immensely rewarding.
>
The temperature of the water matters. Warmer water will kick off fermentation much faster and the fermentation will go much faster. In this recipe, use room temperature water.
>
As far as honey goes, either dilute or just mix in well, squeezing the dough between fingers.
>
S&F – every 30 minutes, pull one corner and fold onto the dough, rotate, pull and fold… do all 4 corners. I illustrated this process in my artisan sourdough bread recipe, check it out, it should help.
>
The dough should be very sticky initially, but over time and as you do more S&Fs, gluten will develop and it will become just tacky to touch, not sticky. That said, different flours behave differently, some (especially fresh) flours are more hydrated so need water adjusted down. You may also be using cups to measure flour and water – expect big variance there that will affect hydration. If you weigh your ingredients and still have the dough that is too wet, or too wet for your comfort level, drop hydration by 2-3%. Once you get comfortable with that dough, start going back up. There is something very special about how higher hydration bread tastes.
Josh
Thank you for the detailed reply, Victor!
A
What if my dough didn’t rise in the fridge? What did I do wrong and where can I go from here?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
It looks like either fermentation activity did not properly start or the temperature in the fridge is too low. Before putting in the fridge, make sure that the dough is actively rising, has a nice lactic-acid smell. If not, it needs to stay out for longer. Do you bulk fermentation in a warm room. Or keep the dough in a warm place during rising, such as the cold oven with the light on. The yeast may also be the culprit. I’ve had much better and consistent results with rapid rise yeast compared to active dry. If the yeast is very old or hasn’t been stored optimally, that could impact the performance as well. Regardless, what you can do is you need to jumpstart fermentation. Place the dough in warm place, let it rise until it doubles (measuring from the original volume when the dough was mixed), then follow the rest of the steps as in the recipe.
C
Can I use regular Dry Active yeast in this recipe?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Please see my comment below on March 26, 2020.
Paul
I only have fresh yeast. What would be your recommendation. I know most recipes call for fresh vs dry @ 2:1. Would I measure 2 tsp of fresh yeast before activation?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Paul, I convert fresh to dry at 3:1 ratio by weight. Not sure about teaspoons but it seems like 2:1 should give the same amount as 3:1 by weight. Yes, you measure before activation.
Cecilia
I really want to try this – it is a very well explained recipe. I was wondering if I could bake the baguettes in my (combi) steam oven?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I don’t see why not.
Juan
I have not tried this receipt yet but it is so well explained and with high details that my mouth is watering. Why not? Because I understand it will take some more time than usual, but it deserves the try. I have tried the shortest receipts with very low success… :(. Preparation, timing and patience is key for this receipt so inpatient ones rest aside but you can try
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Juan, I agree, it takes time to make great bread. Though, the more you bake bread, the easier it becomes. You can slip in mixing of the dough, stretching, etc. in between other things you normally do, so it will become quick and effortless.
Marijane
I have been struggling with bread-making. It is such an exact art as opposed to cooking, which I love to do. I tried many recipes to no avail but this one came out great. The crust was a bit too crusty and I did worry about the bread browning too much, but put some foil over it in the last 10 minutes so no worries. The inside is divine. Actually going to give away a loaf since it came out so tasty!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Marijane, glad to hear it. A couple notes about the crust. I noticed that if you let the baguettes rest for an hour or so, the crust becomes softer. If you cut in right away, it will be harder. Why? My theory is that it’s because of the steam inside the hot bread. Cut the bread immediately, and you will notice a lot of steam come out. That steam is what softens the crust over time. Another thing to try is baking at a lower temperature, e.g. preheat to 485F and drop to 450F in the first half of baking. You can also try shortening the first baking step to 12 minutes.
Marijane
I will try that! I do love how they came out and they did soften. I also need to get a baking stone – I think that will improve the baking accuracy. I will definitely do this recipe again. It was easy and makes me feel I can actually make bread! Thank you!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are welcome. Making bread is easier than most people think. But you do need to develop a feel for the process and be able to judge how the dough behaves at any stage of the process. Once you bake one or two great loaves you get a good sense of that. It kind was like that for me when I was starting out.
Frances
Perfection!!
Nothing to do (COVID crafts) but work on the fickle nature of dough and all the little details. Can you double or triple this recipe and freeze them? As one of your fans pointed out they are eaten within 10 minutes of removal after 24 hours of preparation;)
What are your instructions on freezing the dough?
Specifically do you double the Yeast too?
Or is it best to use less yeast?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Frances, to be honest, I never freeze bread or baguette dough as I find it a LOT easier for me to just make a new batch. I bake some sort of bread every other day. That said, I experimented with freezing baguette dough a few years ago but was never quite satisfied with the results and it was quite a chore to get it to work right… If you still want to pursue this, check out King Arthur’s articles, like this Freezing No-Knead Dough, hope you find it helpful.
Elisha
Just baked my first French baguettes. This is a great recipe.
I have a combo oven, what would you recommend for a setting?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Elisha, I don’t have a combo oven so it’s hard for me to advise you. That said, you’d want to bake 15 minutes with steam, 15 minutes without.
Mike
I’m a novice baker and I was able to make this with great results. I don’t have a baking stone, so I tried using my cast iron griddle. It worked great, but the cooking time was cut in half – 15 min! (I determined it was done when the internal temp reached about 95 C/205 F).
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Congratulations, Mike! Excellent point on the target internal temperature, 205F – 210F is the target range. Happy baking!
Rhianna
I love seeing so many people try their hand at baking during the Covid quarantine. Has anyone experienced a dryer dough that the one pictured? I find mine to be quite stiff and difficult to stretch and fold. Any help is appreciated. Thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Different flours may have different hydration. Hydration can be affected by storage conditions. If your dough feels too stiff, increase hydration by 2 percentage points, then evaluate. You may need to adjust more. Sometimes adjustments like that are necessary. Also, are you weighing your ingredients? If not, that could very well be the cause.
Paige Dietrich
I love this recipe, thank you! I have been trying to duplicate the French Baguette and have tried numerous methods, including watching Julia Child videos. This is the best! It was hard to find a rectangle baking stone, even at cooking stores, but I found one online at Home Depot! Take the time to follow the steps–you will be rewarded! My husband would like me to make these every day!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Paige, happy to hear about your success. A thick, rectangular baking stone can also be found at your local pottery supply store, of all the places. It’s called kiln shelf. I got a 3/4″ thick one, slightly larger than needed and had them cut to the desired size of 16″ by 21″ that fits my oven perfectly, leaving some space around for air circulation. Makes it convenient to bake three quite long baguettes at a time.
halie
Hi! I currently have the dough in the fridge. However, I don’t have a stone or a pizza stone. (And can’t get one bc of covid). Would a cookie sheet work? Or is there something else you could use?
Thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
To get a nice oven spring you need something that will store a lot of heat that will be transferred to the dough. A stone, especially a thick stone is a great example. But it doesn’t have to be stone. I know some people use thick steel for baking bread and it works. Cast iron works too. If you have a cast iron griddle it may be a good substitute. If you don’t, stack a few baking trays or sheets and bake on them. The more stored heat you can provide the better. One thin baking sheet will cool down quickly once the dough hits it. If all those options aren’t available, bake on a single baking sheet. It will still be a tasty baguette, just won’t have the same open crumb and beautiful big ears.
Mike
I use left-over 12×12 flooring tile (3/8-1/2″ thick to line an oven rack
Halie
I ended up finding an old pizza stone but it was too small to fit the baguettes, so I placed a large pan on top of that. It worked amazingly and my family devoured them! Thank you so much for your help and for posting this recipe.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
That’s a cool solution, Halie. Glad to hear about your success. Happy baking!
Mandy
Thank you very much for publishing this recipe. I made baguettes for the first time today, they turned out really well and they were a huge hit with my family.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Mandy, happy to hear that. Glad my post helped you. Happy baking!
Aime
This was my first attempt at a baguette recipe and I was very pleased with the results. I followed the instructions exactly until the end where I made a few minor equipment tweaks; I don’t have any special scoring tools so I used a knife, I don’t have a couche so I modified parchment paper to act like one and I don’t have an oven stone so I used a pizza stone. This caused my bread to be a little squished looking but it was still the flavor and texture I was dreaming of. You know that “eye rolling good” look? That was my family’s response to this bread. Clear simple directions, easy to follow= a “master” recipe!
Oh I also used the flour I had on hand “central valley milling company” organic white all purpose flour (from Costco)
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Aime, I am very happy to hear about your success… yeah, I know that feeling. Keep practicing and soon you will have an amazing looking baguette. I totally understand what you are saying about the flavor and the texture. Even my least successful baguettes, flat, overproofed, tasted so good that not a single bit went to waste. Hard to imagine a better breakfast on a Saturday or Sunday morning than a piece a freshly baked baguette with a thin slice of butter on top and a cup of coffee.
Aime
Right! The biggest complaint I had about these Is they were devoured strait out of the oven and now I don’t have any left for tomorrow.
Jason
Absolutely fabulous, beat tasting recipe and method I have made. This will be my new regular ! Thank you.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome! Happy baking!
Brit
Hi, would gold metal all purpose flour which only has 10% protein work? I dont have king arthur’s flour and Due to coronavirus lockdown, I dont want to venture out. Thanks for your help!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Brit, higher protein in KA AP flour definitely helps with getting a better structure but gold medal will work too. If the baguettes don’t hold their shape well, you can always drop the hydration by a percentage or two to help with that.
Brit
Great! Will try that, thank you for responding and for your advice!!
Agnes
This is my go-to recipe ! So flavourful ….just perfect and so easy !! Thank you !!
Hannah
Hey there – is 12 hour proving in the refrigerator essential or can we let it prove at room temperature for less time? If so, how long would you recommend?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hanna, in this recipe, I retard fermentation in the fridge to achieve improved flavor. You can, of course, let bulk fermentation occur at a normal speed and obtain acceptable results. You can even expedite it if you want. Simply place the dough in the cold oven and turn the light on. The timing will depend on the ambient temperature and the temperature of the water. You can also increase the amount of yeast to speed up fermentation. Take a look at my no-knead bread recipe. In it, I explained in detail how I do exactly that, make a very good tasting loaf of bread in about 5-6 hours from start to finish. You can employ the same approach to make baguettes in about the same amount of time.
Karlie
SUCH a good recipe!! This is exactly what I was looking for in a baguette! Perfect crust, light inside, seriously the best! I omitted the honey (on accident), and it still turned out absolutely perfect.
Marilu
Excellent recipe.
I have tried 5 times to make french bagettes. This was the only recipe that called for honey and it made me curious.
I can now say that this recipe is definitely the best of the five and it will be the only one I use from now on.
Thank you so much.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
I am thrilled to hear that, Marilu. Glad my post helped you.
Joanna
Thank you for this wonderful recipe! My 3rd attempt in Baguette baking and I am very happy with the result!! I messed up scoring so they look sort of ugly but taste amazing and are so crisp!! After all my research reading and you tubing….your recipe pulled it all together for me!! Thank you so much.
Joanna
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome, Joanna. Glad I could help out. Everyone should be able to enjoy this wonderful bread without going to Paris;)
Valerie
I only have Fleischmann’s ActiveDry Yeast. How would it substitute for the instant yeast in your recipe?
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Valerie, AcriveDry behaves differently, you need to activate it in some warm water (about 95F) before mixing in. I would also increase the amount of yeast by about a third, and increase fermentation time by about an hour or two before sending the dough to the fridge. You want to see some good activity and volume increase by at least 30% before retarding. It may take some experimenting. Instant is more predictable in that respect.
Tari Swenson
BEST BREAD I’VE EVER MADE!
Ainny
Hello!
Beautiful pictures and given all the fantastic responses, I can’t wait to try this!
If I want to add herbs, seeds and or malt flour/flakes, what would the process be? I like malt bread so if I want to mix and match different flours, how would I go about doing this? Also, in England for bread making we have something called strong white bread flour, if I use that, would that be okay?
Kindest regards,
Ainny
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi, I usually add mixins, if using them, during the second S&F. Can’t advise on you mixing and matching different flours/malt as I never tried this with baguettes. Strong white bread flour is a high gluten flour, about 3-4% higher gluten than in AP flour. It makes a very chewy baguette. You can certainly use it but I prefer the French T55 flour or similar, like the King Arthur AP.
Rose
I am trying this recipe but it’s 9.00 in the morning, did not relize it was an overbite in the fridge, will it be ok if it goes in the fridge for 24 hours
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You can cold retard for up to 48 hours, but 12-24 hours are more common. You can also skip this step entirely. Just bulk ferment, cut, bench-rest, shape, proof and bake. Flavors will develop to a lesser degree but you can still get a decent baguette.
Jack Kerley
Following a trip to France last fall, I became rather obsessive about approximating the marvelous bread found in local boulangeries, though my only baking experience had been cookies when about seven years old. I did one batch most weekends, starting with the King Arthur baguette recipe. The results were good, but my crumb was too closed. Continuing to research, I both purchased King Arthur Sir Galahad flour, (supposedly closer to flour used in France), and found your website. The photos stopped me: THAT was what I wanted, crusty, tri-colored, with an airy crumb. After just one batch, it’s now my go-to recipe (slight experiments with raising times, etc.). Judging by reactions ranging from wide-eyed amazement to satisfied moans, I’ve nailed it . . . Le gout de la France! Merci beaucoup, chef.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Jack, I am very happy to hear about your success in making French baguettes. I am glad you found some helpful information here. Happy baking!
Ruth
Hi Victor,
I got your find your recipe about French baguette, but I do not know what 500 grams of flour it means and the 360 grams of water. I google up and it says ” about 4 cups and other sites it says 2 cups. Also how about the water measure it? It says 1.52 cup. Could you specify in cups please. I live in Colllingwood Ontario and I can not find Arthur King flour. I am planning to use unbleached organic flour.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Ruth, I highly recommend getting an inexpensive kitchen scale ($10) and measure out the ingredients. I scooped a cup of flour 4 times and got 4 different results, from 138 grams to 146 grams. Fresh and properly stored flour is more hydrated and weighs more (per cup). If it lost some water, it will weigh less, again, per cup. If you use cups, your results may be very different from mine. I updated the recipe with the U.S. customary units but I DO NOT RECOMMEND USING THEM.
< Unbleached organic flour sounds good.
Jay
I did it! Wonderful outcome, authentic etc. Thank you.
My only question: 500F put bread in and turn down to 450 or 475 for 15 min?
Last 15 min 450.
The pic recipe differs on oven temp from the “print” recipe. 475 or 450.
Vancouver Island, Canada.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Jay, thanks for pointing that out. I’ve been baking baguettes at both of those temps so no wonder I made that typo. Both work great. I like the 475F a little better as it gives, IMHO, a slightly thicker, crispier crust. Starting at 450F produces a slightly thinner crust. The color and crumb are practically the same.
elyn tromey
I am so thrilled to have found this recipe. I used a King Arthur baguette recipe for years, using a metal baguette tray. They were okay, but I thought they could be better. So, I got a couche and a stone and did the KAF recipe as well as this one here. This one makes waaaay better baguettes by far. I’m so thrilled, thank you for sharing it!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
So happy for you, Elyn. I know that feeling when you bake or cook something that tastes and looks perfect. I had that feeling just a few days ago when I finally got my challah bread just like the one from my childhood, like the one that my grandpa would get at the farmer’s market. It’s not rich, has barely any egg in it, intensely colored and somewhat crusty, and absolutely delicious. My family is crazy about it too, they keep asking me to bake more.
le Chef Ian
Five stars…
Karin Roberts
This is the perfect ratio of ingredients! I don’t know if it was this recipe or the use of a cloche, but this is the first successful baguette I’ve ever made! I intend to split the dough in 2 parts and try to make a slightly larger loaf but if you follow the recipe and make 3, you will not be disappointed. A cast iron with water in the oven does create a good amount of steam.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Karin, happy to hear that I was able to help you make a better baguette. Thanks for your feedback and happy baking!
Diane
How high do you want the water in the pan or is there a certain amount of wetness/moisture the towel needs to be for steaming purposes? I haven’t tried using a towel before and want to make sure I have the right proportions. Thanks!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
The level of water is quite arbitrary, you want the water to remain there for the duration of the initial baking (with steam). If I add the pan closer to baking time, in a hot oven, I would fill it half-way. I would fill the pan almost full, with the towel in, if it goes in a cold oven. This is because a good half of the water will evaporate during preheating. There is no hard rule here. The towel helps with slow, even steam release. Either way, after adding, you need to wait for it to start boiling. You can add boiling water to the pan, or cold, your choice, but that will determine how long it needs to be in the oven before boiling.
Boon
Dear Victor,
I’m quite new in baking, just tried my first “no knead Artisan Bread” under other recipe before I found yours!
Seeking your advise:
If I do not have the baking stone, is that okay to have only the steam pan under the tray ?
Also, without pizza stone, possible to place the bough on parchment paper and place on the tray?
Many thanks in advance for your advise.
Best regards,
Boon
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Boon, welcome to my blog. Baguettes generally don’t do well on a baking sheet. They need the stored heat of the stone to create an oven spring, to open up. That said, you can still get acceptable results. Parchment paper is fine. I use it a lot, it makes it easy to slide the breads and baguettes in the oven. As far as the steam pan goes, don’t put it under, you don’t want the water steam to cool down your baking sheet. Instead, put it to the side of the sheet if possible.
Boon
Thank you Victor for your great advise!! I will try to make it 🙂
Thank you very very much!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome!
Vernon
I have been using the baguette recipes from Julia Child, Rose Beranbaum (the Bread Bible) and Jacques Pepin, besides watching the episodes of the French Chef where Julia is running around with a thermometer in the French baking school in Paris. (and YouTube videos) I sometimes use a biga or old yeasted dough from the freezer for the first mixing.
Having prefaced this, I think this recipe is the best; having accurate quantity amounts, rise temperatures, times, etc. I could not get the large holes you show in the photograph, but with this recipe I got larger holes than I normally get. Some recipes suggest holes can be increased by a longer original mix of the flour and water, but I think the larger bubbles (holes) in your bread might have to do with a more gentle folding and pinching of the baguette dough? Maybe the room temperature & timing of the final rise? Nice job Victor!
I spend my winters in France and am always sampling baguettes.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Vernon, your comment truly made my day. I’ve been working on my technique, and the recipe to a lesser degree, for years, and I am happy when someone recognizes that.
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You are correct in your assessment. Bigger holes, no doubt, have to do with higher hydration, gentle handling, no punching down, proper fermentation, proper bench rest, longer proofing, better oven spring (a function of good steam, good scoring), better gluten development. Frankly, after having baked hundreds of baguettes over years, I don’t focus on my technique any more, it sort of became a second nature. I do recall though, that when my yeast during bulk fermentation is not as active as I want, I get smaller holes and less of an oven spring. It most likely has to do with the ambient temperature, or temperature of the water I use. I’ve learned to let the dough ferment a bit longer, until I see some healthy rise, good sour milk smell and blisters on the surface.
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The fridge temperature can impact the openness of the crumb too. A fridge is a fridge, right? I though so for some time, and used my basement fridge which is no frost-free and runs cooler than my kitchen fridge. I’d get an OK rise in it. A rise is a rise, I thought, but once I tried my upstairs fridge and saw a big difference in how the dough rose more, was more airy, I moved my operation. I like to see the volume double, if not, I’d let it sit outside until it does, then move on to the next step.
Vernon
Victor,
I am over in Paris now, and I found a couple bakers that mix their water, flour and a small amount of yeast and put it directly in refrigeration, then the following morning mix in the salt and then let in rise for baking. I have done something similar, that is I mix the water, flour and yeast then let it sit a couple hours before mixing in salt. Then let it rise over night in a cool place. Another baker told me the large holes in his baguettes come from the excessive amount of water in the recipe.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Vernon, you lucky dog… I wish I were in Paris right now 😉 I’ve heard about that technique, Essentially, it’s equally as effective to retard bulk fermentation as it is the proofing stage. I’ve tried that in the past but I just find it easier for my schedule to retard the proofing stage.
>
About the salt, it inhibits yeast activity so some bakers add it later, after autolysing or, as you mentioned, even after bulk fermentation. I am not sure if it’s as effective when using commercial yeast, and most bakers in France use commercial yeast or a combination of commercial/natural leaven at the very least. The challenge with adding the salt way later is that it may not dissolve properly and you may find grains of salt in your baguette. I remember Chad Robertson mentioning that as well in his Tartine bread book. A customer returned a loaf after finding big grains of salt in it.
>
That said, if it works, it works. There are so many great ways to make a great tasting baguette, in many ways it boils down to someone’s personal style/preference. And yeah, I totally agree, higher hydration makes bigger bubbles. The challenge is to balance higher hydration/bigger bubbles with aesthetic appearance. You won’t care if your baguette has big bubbles if it looks like a long flat ciabatta.
Lori
I have a Miele combination convection and steam oven. Do you have a suggestion for what percentage steam I should try instead of the towel method. Thank you so much.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Lori, I have never used or even seen that oven, so I can’t make any suggestions. I would recommend searching YouTube and Google for ‘bread steam combo oven’ and try to find that information. I checked a few videos on Youtube, I don’t see anyone setting a percentage for steam, rather they set darkness, and the type of bread. Their model are likely different. That said, I don’t steam my oven too much. It’s more of a gentle, slowly released steam. When I open my pre-steamed oven, I don’t get plumes of steam, I feel it but don’t really see the steam. Hope this helps.
Kiyo
Aloha Victor! You mention an oven temperature of 750 degrees however I would like to confirm you mean 450 degrees. The baguettes look amazing! We enjoy making bread at home.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Aloha, Kiyo! Yes, it should be 450F. 750 was just a typo in the body of the post. The recipe is correct.
Guy
Perfection yo. Simple, classic, and easy to make. The only issue was that I did not know stretching and folding involved pulling each corner over with each iteration and was only doing one single stretch and one single fold per iteration. The texture definitely improved once I actually started doing it the way you’re supposed to! they actually do quite well being frozen, then thawed in the fridge overnight and thrown in the oven in the morning before bringing somewhere.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Absolutely, the improvement in texture is very apparent after even two sets of stretch and folds. I applied this technique to my no knead bread and it came out practically a different bread. By the way, at what point do you freeze your baguettes, after they are fully proofed?
Amy Korobow
Thank you!
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
You are very welcome!
Elliott
Hello
Great recipe! I have taken my own journey with baguettes and followed a similar path. In the end, it remains pretty simple.
I noticed a couple of typos: On the printable recipe, step 8, I think you meant seam side ‘down’ for this scoring step. And on the online recipe, the temperature should be turned down to 450, not 750.
I also had a couple of questions:
You reduced the water recently by 25 g, why?
You are resting the dough in rectangles for up to an hour now, instead of 15′. Why?
And, you made a point of removing the water for the last 15. I tried misting at the beginning and then tried it at the end with a fine water bottle and I get a nice crust when I mist at the end. I will try removing the water as you suggested to see what that does to the crust.
Victor @ Taste of Artisan
Hi Elliott,
I appreciate your comments and questions. Indeed, they should be seam side down, corrected. The thing with 750 is strange as I see 450. Must have typed 750 then corrected but it stayed in cache. I cleared the cache so that should be fixed too.
I reduced the water as several people emailed me about challenges they were having working with higher hydration dough and baguettes ‘not looking as pretty’. This level of hydration still produces excellent crumb and the buguettes hold their shape better. That said, feel free to increase hydration. I go as high as 80% sometimes.
I increased the rest time as I like how much more relaxed the dough becomes and it makes it easier to shape and roll out. If my dough rises too much (sometimes I keep it in a cool veranda instead of fridge) I let it rest 15-20 minutes only.
As far as steaming goes, I suggest go with what works for you. Different ovens bake differently too so one needs to account for that too. But typically bakers steam initially (10-15 min) to get a nice oven spring then dry bake to get the color and crispiness.
Glenn
I’m getting great results with this method, I have been playing with the rising time since I want a fresh baguette with dinner. I do the stretch and folds in the morning and keep it in the microwave with the light on until I see some rising. I then move it to the fridge taking it out around 4pm, let it warm up and proceed from there. Today I added the honey for the first time, I’m anxious to see how that changes the flavour. I have also found that 80% hydration seems fine. I am using a baguette tray for baking them. I’m curious if they would work out well if I made them in the evening and left them in the fridge for 20 hrs? Also, any idea how mixing them in a mixer would change the outcome?
victor
Glad to hear about your success with baguettes, Glenn. Honey adds a tiny bit of sweetness, I love it. My family loves it too. I also sometimes add 5% rye flour, what a flavor boost.
You can retard baguettes in the fridge for 24 hours and even longer (I’ve gone as long as 48 hours). The trick is to make sure they don’t over-proof, so you need to tweak the amount of yeast/fridge temperature variables. I would normally do a few stretch and folds, let the dough start rising, maybe get it increase 40-50% in volume, then in the fridge. After the fridge, take it out, pre-shape, 20 min bench rest, shape, proof for 30-60 minutes, then bake.
Mixing in a mixer actually works quite well. When I am busy I simply throw all of the ingredients in the mixing bowl and mix with a paddle attachment (not a dough hook) for 10 minutes on speed 4. This is for 80% hydration, otherwise the paddle attachment won’t work. Then shape into a nice ball, throw in a bowl seam side down and refrigerate overnight. Then it’s the same routine – pre-shape, rest, shape, proof, bake.
Yasmin
Thanks for this fabulous recipe.
I am a total amateur from Durban South Africa. I have managed perfect baguettes AT home since I found your recipe..I don’t add the honey but they taste lovely nonetheless and usually eaten with 30 mins.
We don’t Get good bread easily here..it’s all factory produced…so really glad to be able to make these..
Siyabonga ..thank you
victor
Happy to hear that my blog post on baguettes helped. I love baking bread and do it almost every 2-3 days as here in Canada we also aren’t spoiled by good bread. There are some micro bakeries that sell good bread but it’s very expensive and a good drive away from me. Also, while their baguettes are good, I don’t think they are as good my own in mu humble opinion. I’ve started a new blog, Taste of Artisan, where I will be posting my favorite bread recipe and more… you are welcome to come and visit.
Veronika
Hello, great recipe! The only thing is I can’t get such massive bubles as you’ve got on the pictures. Could you perhaps give me some pointers how to make a bugette so emmental-like? 🙂
Thank you.
Veronika
victor
Emmental-like, ha? I like that analogy. You want to make sure your dough double or even triples during the first rise (bulk fermentation), then you shape and let the baguettes proof. For big holes, try to handle the dough very carefully when you shape it. Also make sure you proof enough. You should have good results. I am planning on re-writing this post as my technique improved quite a bit since. I started a new blog, Taste of Artisan, dedicated to all DIY artisanal foods and will be moving this post there. For now, I’d like to suggest reading this post here, it’s about bread but the technique is very similar. I think you should find it helpful. If you have more questions, let me know. https://tasteofartisan.com/artisan-sourdough-bread-recipe/
jasmine
This was excellent. I am a trained chef and have spent the past few years trying to perfect bread. I make a new recipe every weekend. This was one of the best I have tried-especially without a starter. It has the flavor and consistency of a starter bread without the hassle. I proofed in fridge about 17 hours.
victor
Thanks for the compliment, Jasmine. This means a lot. Back in the day, I spent months perfecting this recipe and reading every interview with the best French baguette bakers and collecting every tip they shared. I need to retake the pictures, the ones on the post don’t do them justice. When I bring these baguettes to work, people fight over them.
Chuck
Victor,
Thanks for your recipe and techique notes. I tried this earlier this month and had modest success. The bread tasted good but i expected more rise and other signs of fermentation (the dough didn’t smell particularly yeasty, there were no surface blisters and the dough balls were not as smooth as your pictures). My kitchen is pretty cool here on the northern California coast- high fifties F to mid sixties F this time of year unless we have the windows closed and the oven is raging, I also had some trouble with the transfer onto the stone, mostly due to too small of a stone (remedied with a new, larger kiln shelf) but also due to inexperience. I often use parchment paper and slide it right on the stone with the loaves. I should have done that, knowing that the size of the landing pad is not very forgiving. As fall progresses, I’ll have more time to work on this.
I’m curious where your sausage and salumi pages went? Will we see them ever again?
victor
Hi Chuck, thank you for sharing your experiences. It took me some practice initially, but once it clicked with me it became quite easy with consistently great results. To help with your dough, try using warm water, about 85F. That should aid with yeast activation. Or use a pre-ferment. The night before, mix 100g each water and flour with 3 grams of quick rise yeast and put in a fridge. This will ensure proper yeast activity even at colder temps. You will have to subtract these amounts from the final dough recipe.
There is nothing wrong with baking on a piece of parchment paper, I now do it most of the time as I find it much easier to transfer dough with it. Breads, pizza, calzones…
For the stone, do yourself a favor and go to your local pottery supply store and get 3/4″ – 1″ kiln shelf. They can cut to size. I had mine cut to 16×21 inches. It’s heave and resides in my oven permanently. Super durable and handles spills without a problem. I’ve had it for almost 3 years now. I can bake 3 20″ baguettes on it without a problem, or two large bread loaves.
As for the sausages, they are still here, just not liked. I’ve started a new blog, Taste of Artisan, dedicated to bread baking, sausage making, chocolate making and more. Everything for DIYers who love homemade, artisanal food. All relevant content will be migrated there over the next couple of months.
Here is the link to my favorite bread recipe that I make every 2-3 days now. Lot’s of details and pictures to help see the process.
https://tasteofartisan.com/bread-recipes/sourdough/artisan-sourdough-bread-recipe/
Cristina Rosu
Thank you so much for providing this recipe. Today was my second time using it. The first time, I followed the directions but deviated by fermenting countertop for 48 hours, which produced a really amazing flavour but the dough had a bit too much moisture and it didn’t hold shape very well. The second time around (today) I felt I had a bit more control because of my previous experience. I added a pinch more flour and rolled out half the dough on a generously floured surface after the 3 – 20 minute intervals. I decided I would just bake it to see what happened. A gorgeous baguette happened. Of course, it didn’t have the flavour imparted by a fermentation period but it rose perfectly and got a really nice crust too. Currently devouring it still warm with rilette de canard and feta. I’ve tried other recipes in the past with little success (a loaf that felt more like a small boulder). This was a revelation. Thank you again so much – you’ve provided a solid foundation for others.
victor
Thank you for the compliment. Glad you liked my recipe. I noticed the same thing – no matter what the baguettes come out very tasty. I, on occasion, forget about the dough in the fridge for days, it would rise too much and deflate, and the baguettes would look quite poor coming out of the oven, but they would taste fantastic nevertheless. I like it when that happens, it gives me a chance to experience something new and get inspired.
Doris Wright
Can’t wait to try this recipe!
Povareshka
Thank you for your wonderful recipe. This was my second time making baguettes and with your recipe and techniques, it turned out wonderful!!
I bake lot,more pastries than anything else,never though I’d be making bread at home!!
victor
You are very welcome. Glad to hear you had success with my recipe. Baguette recipes are very simple, but it’s the process that makes a huge difference. Get the process right and you will see amazing results.
I’ve been experimenting with higher hydration dough for my baguettes with very good results. I like how the crumb is softer and more open. Try increasing water little by little (1-2%) with each bake and see how you like it. The dough will be a bit trickier to work with, but I find that with experience and practice it’s not that big a deal.
Albany Jane
This is a great baguette recipe! It’s been my most successful and delicious baguette to date. The crumb is lovely, and the crust browns up so nicely. Thanks so much for such a straightforward recipe!
victor
Glad to hear that Jane. I tried many techniques and this one is my favorite by far. Anis Bouabsa really knows his baguettes.
Filomena Meffe
Today I am trying your baguette recipe for the first time. Unfortunately the pizza stone has not yet arrived from Amazon so I am going to have to compromise by using a baking sheet. I was wondering if I could challenge you with a Sicilian Brioche recipe. I went to Sicily in July for my niece’s wedding and one very hot evening, my cousin brought me and my family to a wonderful gelateria that served huge slabs of their famous Italian gelato in as many flavours as you wanted on a deliciously soft and flavourful Sicilian Brioche cut down the middle, much like an ice cream sandwich. My cousin pointed out that there was a method to eating this dessert. You start by eating the gelato first with a spoon and then gradually squeeze the sides of the brioche together until a thin layer of gelato remains. You then give up on the spoon and eat the rest like an ice cream sandwich. It was so refreshing and filling that I simply skipped dinner. I have hunted down a few recipes for this brioche and I think I may have found a few that sound authentic. I was wondering if you’d like to try this one which may be the “one”:
Sicilian Brioche:
500 gm white flour with high “w” (Manitoba flour)
15 gm brewers yeast
80 gm granulated sugar
80 gm whole milk
180 gm whole eggs (3.5 eggs)
180 gm softened butter
15 gm honey
7.5 gm Marsala
(mix the honey and Marsala and set aside)
8 gm salt
yolk and milk for brushing
Using Mixer:
mix flour, yeast and sugar and start at low speed
Add milk, then eggs and increase speed to average
work it all in until dough is smooth and homogeneous
add softened butter little by little
add the Marsala and honey mixture
As soon as liquid is absorbed, add salt
Keep mixer going a few minutes more
Put dough on a worktop with flour and form a ball
Bring dough from the edges toward its lower part
Put dough in fridge for 1 hour
Then remove dough from fridge
Take 60 gm pieces and from balls
Put on a tray for baking
Tear off 15 gm balls of dough to make little balls which will go on top of the bigger balls
(these are called the “tuppo” in Sicilian)
Make a small dent in the bigger balls in the centre and place the smaller balls on top of the dented area
Cover the balls with plastic wrap and let rise for 2 hours in a tepid place
The volume should double
Then brush surface with mixture of milk and yolk
Bake at 200 degrees celsius for 10-15 minutes
the recipe does not say how many it would make
Where do you get brewer’s yeast and Manitoba flour in Toronto?
Anyway, hope you take up the challenge and let me know how it goes!
victor
This is quite a challenge, but sounds like something I would love to take on.
Manitoba flour, from what I know, is a flour with high gluten content, made with hard winter and hard spring wheat. No idea where to buy it in Toronto, but since this type of flour is widely used for baking in Italy, I would start with Lady York on Dufferin street. I know they carry some specialty flours from Italy. Brewer’s yeast is easy, torontobrewing.ca carries many different kinds. I know many have successfully used Nottingham for baking.
Memoria
Your baguettes look perfect, but the steps seem so long haha. I’ve been successful with baguettes only once. I think I followed the Cordon Bleu cookbook. Good job on these and great process photos!
Victor
A good, flavorful baguette requires some patience and time, but the steps are easy. After a few tries you will naturally feel how the dough behaves and will be able to make a great baguette on a consistent basis. I taught my friend and my father-in-law to make baguettes. Showed them once, gave them a detailed recipe, and after 2-3 tries both of them were able to make excellent baguettes. Nothing hard about it. My father-in-law makes them weekly now and sends me pictures, he loves his baguettes.