Concha Variety
Concha Variety
Fermented Dough
Even though I have been baking #conchas for a good portion of my professional baking career, #homebaking has opened my eyes to a new set of quality checks that I am taking note of. For example, spacing between breads when baking in a small chamber is critical to the texture of your finished product. Too many breads on a pan may cause the breads that are closer to the edge of the chamber to dry out, whereas the ones in the center of the oven will need a longer bake.
In the case of these conchas, I will need to adjust to 9, 40-gram conchas per tray (noted for the next time we bake conchas). Then again, this is based on a 14” x 14” baking pan and my confined oven chamber. #midcentury
The texture in a concha is also important, but the topping; however, is most critical to the concha enthusiast ... The topping consists of an unleavened, sugar cookie disc that is flattened on one’s palm before placing it over the dough ball. Then the disc is flattened once again before stamping it using a concha stamp (by the way, concha means “sea shell” in Spanish), hence the top pattern of the bread. If a stamp is not available, a knife can be used to carefully create your pattern.
Once the pattern has taken shape, via the rising of the dough, (approximately 2-3 hours) they are then ready to bake. The browning between the concha pattern determines that they are ready to remove from the oven. In my oven, we baked them for 20 minutes at 350°F (177°C).
For me #homebaking always brings out the curiosity of what the dough will create. It also serves as a good way to sharpen your warm beverage barista skills.
Cheers!
#pandulce #bakingevolution #concha #bizcocho #panmexicano #masterbaker #bakery #homebaker
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Alex Peña
“Baking is the most rewarding part of my culinary experiences.”
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