How I stopped guessing my bulk ferment time after a batch in Kalamazoo went flat
I used to poke the dough once and call it done, which is how I ended up with a 12 pound batch of sandwich loaves that baked up like bricks at my shop in Kalamazoo. Now I mark the starting height on the bucket with a piece of blue tape and wait until it hits 50 percent more, which for my 74 percent hydration dough means about 4 hours at 76 degrees. My old poke test had me pulling dough way too early even though it felt springy to me. Does anyone else use the tape trick, or am I just late to the party here?