plaited bread

 Last week I made several plaited breads, so much fun to do. When I first made a plaited bread years ago I was completely confused after laying the strands back and forth 5 times, but now I have learned a lot of practice. It is important that you keep counting and make sure you don't forget a string.

6 braid with double strand, 5 braid, 6 braid, 9 braid

The recipe of this challah is from Eric Kayser of the famous bakery in Paris. In 2017, I bought all kinds of tasty sandwiches there together with my daughter. The store was really packed and there was a long line waiting for us. The long watch was worth it. As I type this, I suddenly wonder if I'll ever get to Paris again. The corona virus is still throwing a spanner in the works worldwide, a happy holiday trip is not yet possible at the moment and there are so many other cities that I also want to visit.

Today I made an 8 braid with the recipe below. I arrived at 120 grams of dough per strand. By the way, the process is very much like a 6 braid. You can see a video of how to make a 6-braid on my YouTube channel. In the recipe for a festive braid bread that is already on my blog, I explained how to make a 5-braid (and the video for the 6-braid is also in that article).

In the recipe below, sourdough and yeast are used in the dough. The sourdough is used as a raising agent but also as a seasoning. Don't have any sourdough? Don't panic: you can replace the sourdough by adding 37 grams of wheat flour and 37 grams of water extra to the dough. Increase the amount of yeast to 7 - 10 grams of instant yeast or 21 - 30 grams of fresh yeast.

And now get started :-). I mostly followed Eric Kayser's recipe in terms of ingredients but used a slightly different method and made an 8-braid instead of 3 braids.

If you think an 8 fight is too much hassle, you can of course also make a 3-braid out of it (make two) or bake the bread in a baking tin.

Challah - 8 braid

Dough:

500 grams of wheat flour *

9 grams of salt

50 grams of sugar

225 grams of water, 20-25 C

50 grams of egg

 50 grams of sunflower oil or mild olive oil

75 grams sourdough, 100% hydration (see note above)

5 grams of instant yeast or 15 grams of fresh yeast

Finish:

1 egg, beaten with a pinch of salt and 10 grams of water

* You can use French flour T55, French flour T65 but also American patent or Patent extra for this. With American patent or Patent extra, the dough will become slightly firmer.

Kneading dough in a stand mixer / spiral kneader / bread maker: Place all ingredients for the dough in the bowl. Knead into a smooth dough in 10 - 15 minutes. The dough is well kneaded if you can pull a skin from it.

1st rising: Form a ball of the dough, put it back in the bowl and let the dough rise, covered, for ± 30 minutes. It doesn't have to double in volume.

Shaping: Divide the dough into the desired number of pieces. For an 8 braid, divide the dough into pieces of ± 120 grams. Loosely round each piece of dough, cover the balls with bubble wrap or plastic wrap and let them rest, covered, for 20 - 30 minutes.

Then make strands of the dough balls:

Turn the balls over so that the bottom is up.

Roll out the balls one by one with a rolling pin into a patch that is the same thickness throughout.

Roll the piece tightly into a skein and pinch the seam with your fingers. Roll the skein back and forth under your palms (press against the work surface) to close the seam.

Roll out the strands in stages up to ± 40 cm. Make sure the strands are a little thicker in the middle and the ends more pointed. Tip: grease your hands with a little oil when you roll out the strands.

Don't make the strands too long or it will become a long thin loaf. Always cover the dough strands in between.

Place the 8 strands in a spacious work area and divide them into 4 strands on the left and 4 strands on the right. While braiding, do not pull too much on the strands.

Move the left strand all the way to the right (becoming the right strand).

Move the right strand all the way to the left (becoming the left strand).

Move the right strand 3 strands to the left.

Move the 2nd strand from the left all the way to the right.

Move the left strand 3 strands to the right.

Move the 2nd strand from the right all the way to the left.

Always repeat steps 3 to 5.

Pinch the bottom and top together and fold under the dough.

To make it clearer I have made a document. If you click here you can open / view the document and you can also print it.

Place the braid on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, brush the dough lightly with the beaten egg with a brush and cover loosely with bubble wrap.

2nd rise: let the braid double in volume at room temperature in 60 - 90 minutes. Tip: do not let the braid rise too short, otherwise the braid will tear during baking due to too much oven rice. The dough is good if you press it with a wet finger and the print remains visible.

Preheating the oven: during the 2nd proofing, preheat the oven to 200 ° C (top and bottom heat).

Baking: brush the braid again thinly with beaten egg. Tip: do not skip a piece of dough, otherwise you will see that after baking. Bake the braid in ± 35 minutes until done and golden brown. If the braid threatens to become too dark (after ± 20 minutes), place a sheet of aluminum foil over it and lower the temperature to 180 ° C if necessary.

Place the braid on a wire rack immediately after baking and let it cool down.