Pain de Campagne
This is the perfect dough for creative shaping, and the one used throughout France for many types of breads sold under various local names. The dough is similar to regular French baguette dough, but it includes a small percentage of whole grain, either whole wheat, pumpernickel-grind or white rye, or cornmeal. This additional grain gives the bread more character and grain flavor, and contributes to the brownish-gold, country-style crust that distinguishes it from white flour French bread. Most important, this is the dough, as I learned it from Professor Raymond Calvel, that opened my thinking to the use of large percentages of pre-ferment. On pages 72–79 you will see a number of shapes you can make from this dough. The most famous are the fendu, épi, couronne, and auvergnat. There are many others that you may also have seen. As always, though, the first emphasis must be on the quality of the dough. There is nothing more disappointing to a bread lover than to see a lot of work go into a shaping technique for a dough that does not deliver world-class flavor and texture. This particular dough never disappoints.
Pain de campagne, a traditional artisan loaf, can be shaped in many ways. Clockwise from center top: tressé (braid), pieces from an épi wreath, épi, tabatière, and casquette (a variation of auvergnat). In the center, an example of a baked couronne bordelaise before it is torn into rolls.
Recipe information
Yield
makes 3 loaves of various shapes or numerous rolls
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Remove the pâte fermentée from the refrigerator 1 hour before making the dough. Cut it into about 10 small pieces with a pastry scraper or serrated knife. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and let sit for 1 hour to take off the chill.
Step 2
Stir together the flours, salt, yeast and pâte fermentée pieces in a 4-quart mixing bowl (or in the bowl of an electric mixer). Add the water, stirring until everything comes together and makes a coarse ball (or mix on low speed with the paddle attachment). Add a few drops of additional water, if needed, to gather any loose flour into the ball. The dough should be soft and pliable.
Step 3
Sprinkle flour on the counter, transfer the dough to the counter, and begin to knead (or mix on medium speed with the dough hook). Knead for 8 to 10 minutes (6 minutes by machine), sprinkling in bread flour if needed to make a soft, pliable dough. It should be tacky but not sticky. The dough should pass the windowpane test (page 58) and register 77° to 81°F. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.
Step 4
Ferment at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size. If the dough doubles in size more quickly, knead lightly to degas it and let it rise again, covered, until it doubles from original size.
Step 5
Sprinkle a small amount of flour on the counter and gently remove the dough from the bowl, being careful to degas it as little as possible. Divide the dough into 3 or more pieces by cutting it with a pastry scraper or a serrated knife, again trying to avoid degassing any more than necessary. Shape the dough as shown on pages 72–79, depending on what shape you desire (baguette, bâtard, couronne, épi, fendu, or auvergnat). Line 2 sheet pans with baking parchment and sprinkle with semolina flour or cornmeal and transfer the dough to the pans (or use the couche method described on page 38). Mist the dough with spray oil and loosely cover with plastic wrap, a food-grade plastic bag, or a towel.
Step 6
Proof for about 1 hour, or until the pieces are approximately 1 1/2 times their original size.
Step 7
Prepare the oven for hearth baking as described on pages 91–94, making sure to have an empty steam pan in place. Preheat the oven to 500°F. If you are making épis, you can make the scissors cuts shown on page 76.
Step 8
Épis can be baked directly on the sheet pans. For other shapes, generously dust a peel or the back of a sheet pan with semolina flour or cornmeal and very gently transfer the dough pieces to the peel or pan. Slide the dough onto the baking stone (or bake directly on the sheet pan). Pour 1 cup hot water into the steam pan and close the door. After 30 seconds, spray the oven walls with water and close the door. Repeat twice more at 30-second intervals. After the final spray, lower the oven setting to 450°F and continue baking for 10 minutes. Check the loaves and, if necessary, rotate them 180 degrees for even baking. Continue to bake for 10 to 15 more minutes for baguettes and fendus, less for rolls. They should be a rich golden brown all around and register 200° to 205°F in the center of the loaf. The bread should sound hollow when thumped on the bottom.
Step 9
Transfer the bread to a cooling rack (off the sheet pan if used). Allow the bread to cool for at least 40 minutes before slicing or serving.
BREAD PROFILE
Step 10
Lean, standard dough; indirect method; commercial yeast
DAYS TO MAKE: 2
Step 11
Day 1: 1 1/4 hours pâte fermentée
Step 12
Day 2: 1 hour to de-chill pâte fermentée; 12 to 15 minutes mixing; 3 1/2 hours fermentation, shaping, and proofing; 25 to 35 minutes baking
Commentary
Step 13
The amount of whole grain used in this dough may vary from region to region, but typically it amounts to somewhere between 10 and 20 percent of the total flour. Feel free to adjust the relationship of white to whole grain as you play with this formula.
Step 14
As with the baguette, this formula utilizes a full batch of dough as the pre-ferment for the final dough, effectively doubling the amount. Because the baker’s formula is based on the relationship of each ingredient (in this case, pâte fermentée) to total flour weight, the percentage of pre-ferment amounts to 168 percent against the combined weight of bread flour and whole-wheat or rye flour. It is this huge amount of pre-ferment that makes the bread perform so well in a home kitchen.
BAKER’S PERCENTAGE FORMULA
Step 15
Pain de Campagne %
Step 16
Pâte fermentée: 168.4%
Step 17
Bread flour: 84.2%
Step 18
Whole-wheat flour: 15.8%
Step 19
Salt: 2%
Step 20
Instant yeast: 1.2%
Step 21
Water: 63.2%
Step 22
Total: 334.8%
