Pain Brié | Normandy bread

Makes: 1 loaf

If there is a bread that is aromatic, soft, with a texture and flavor that will pleasantly surprise you (without adding sourdough) that is, without a doubt, Pain Brié. I can assure you that it is a bread worth the effort to make and try. 

Ingredients

For the poolish

• ⅔ cup (5.25 oz./150 g) water
• 0.07 oz. (2 g) fresh yeast
• 1 cup + 2 tbsp (5.25 oz./150 g) all-purpose flour (T55)

For the bread

• 5 tsp (1 oz./25 g) water
• 0.1 oz. (3 g) fresh yeast
• ¾ cup + 2 tbsp (3.5 oz./100 g) all-purpose flour (T55)
• 1 tbsp (0.75 oz./20 g) butter, at room temperature
• 1 tsp (0.2 oz./5 g) salt

Directions

1Prepare the poolish*: Heat the water to about 77°F (25°C). Place in a medium bowl, add the yeast, and stir or swish to dissolve. Stir in the flour until just combined. Cover and let sit at room temperature for about 2 hours, until bubbly on top.

2Prepare the bread: Place the 5 tsp (1 oz./25 g) water in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and crumble in the fresh yeast. Mix to dissolve the yeast, then add the poolish, flour, butter, and salt.

3Knead for 3 minutes on speed 1, followed by 3–5 minutes on speed 2. Cover and let rest at room temperature for about 30 minutes (bulk fermentation*).

4Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and shape it into a ball or a very short bâtard. Cover and let rise for 1 hour (proofing*).

5Meanwhile, place a rack at the lowest oven position and place another rack directly above it. Place an empty heavy-duty baking sheet, oven-safe skillet, or drip pan on the lower rack, and a baking stone or heavy-duty baking sheet on the upper rack, and preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C/Gas Mark 8). Bring 1 cup (250 ml) of water to a simmer.

6At the end of proofing, refrigerate the dough for 10–15 minutes to firm it up before baking.

7When the dough passes the poke test*(SEE BELOW), remove it from the refrigerator and place it on the floured peel. Holding a lame at a slight angle, make three to five quick parallel slits, about ¼ in. (5 mm) deep, from one end of the dough to the other.

8Slide the dough onto the baking stone or sheet. Carefully pour the hot water into the skillet to create steam and quickly close the oven door. Bake for 20–25 minutes, until deeply golden. Toward the end of the baking time, crack the oven door open for 5–10 minutes to lower the temperature and encourage the bread to develop a thick crust.

9Remove the bread from the oven and place it on a rack to cool.

POKE TEST

• If the proofing time is too short, the dough won’t build up enough CO2 to rise correctly during baking. Conversely, if the proofing time is too long, the gluten network weakens and the bread may fall during baking. Even professional bakers use the poke test to evaluate the dough’s resistance and determine when it is ready for the oven. Gently press your finger about ½ in. (1 cm) into the dough. If the dough is ready to bake, it will spring back slowly but retain a small indentation where you poked it. If no indentation forms, the dough is not ready; leave it to proof a little longer. If the indentation doesn’t spring back at all, it’s too late—the dough is over-proofed.

Extracted from Upper Crust: Homemade Bread the French Way by Marie-Laure Fréchet (Flammarion, 2021).

Photography © Valérie Lhomme.