Rustic Potato Loaves Part 1
Submitted by bandit28
Rustic potato bread dough made with real mashed russet potatoes and reserved potato water for a soft, moist crumb. Part 1 covers the dough mixing and kneading process.
YIELD
1 batchPREP
30 minCOOK
20 minREADY
50 minReal potatoes in bread dough change everything. The starch from boiled russets makes the crumb incredibly moist and tender, and using the starchy cooking water to bloom the yeast gives it extra food to work with for a better rise.
This first part is all about the dough. Boil the potatoes until soft, save half a cup of that cloudy cooking water, then let the potatoes air-dry for 20 to 30 minutes. That drying step matters. Wet potatoes add too much moisture to the dough and throw off the flour ratio.
The mixing process takes patience. For the first few minutes the dough looks impossibly dry, like pie crust. Keep the mixer running. Over 11 minutes of kneading on medium speed, the potato starch hydrates and the dough transforms into something smooth and almost brioche-like. It will clean the sides of the bowl but pool at the bottom. That’s exactly right.
Pro Tips
- Air-dry the potatoes thoroughly. Spread them out on a rack, not in a pile. Moisture trapped in a heap creates soggy dough.
- Save the potato water before draining. It’s easy to forget and dump it all down the drain. Measure it out first.
- Trust the mixer. The dough looks wrong for the first few minutes. Resist the urge to add more water. The potatoes release moisture as they’re kneaded.
- Use russet potatoes specifically. Their high starch content is what gives this bread its characteristic texture. Waxy potatoes won’t do the same thing.
Variations
- Rosemary potato loaf: Fold in 2 tablespoons fresh chopped rosemary after the dough comes together.
- Garlic version: Roast a head of garlic and mash it into the potatoes before adding to the dough.
- Whole wheat blend: Swap 1 cup of the white flour for whole wheat flour for a nuttier flavor.
Ingredients
Directions
Toss them into a 2-quart pot, cover with water, add 2 teaspoons of the salt, and boil until the potatoes are soft enough to be pierced easily with the point of a knife.
Dip a measuring cup into the pot and draw off ½ cup of the potato water and reserve.
Drain the potatoes in a colander and then spread them out, either in the colander or on a cooling rack over a jelly-roll pan, and let them cool and air-dry for 20 to 30 minutes.
They must be be dry before they’re mashed.
When the potatoes are cool, stir the yeast into the reserved potato water (if the water is no longer warm, heat it for a few seconds in a microwave oven -- it should feel warm to the touch) and allow the mixture to rest for 5 minutes; it will turn creamy.
Meanwhile, turn the cooled potatoes into the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mash them.
With the mixer on low speed, add the dissolved yeast and the olive oil and mix until the liquids are incorporated into the potatoes.
Replace the paddle with the dough hook and, still mixing on low speed, add the flour and the remaining 2 teaspoons salt.
Mix on low speed for 2 to 3 minutes, then increase the speed to medium and mix for 11 minutes more.
The dough will be firm at first and soft at the finish.
At the start, it will look dry, so dry you’ll think you’re making a pie crust.
But as the dough is worked, it will be transformed.
It may even look like a brioche, cleaning the sides of the bowl but pooling at the bottom.
Have faith and keep beating.
See Part 2.
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