Application Guide

The Biga
Perhaps the fact that this is made with a biga somewhat mitigates my guilt
about making it. A biga is an Italian name for a kind of pre-fermented dough.
I’m calling it a biga because a biga can be almost any form of pre-ferment,
from a sponge (two parts water to one part flour by weight) to a dough (1
part water to 1
1
/
4
to 112 parts flour by weight). The French have more pre-
cise names for these things, names that are harder to remember and say than
biga. And “biga” seems to be a good name for a creature that has taken up
habitation in your kitchen or refrigerator and keeps reappearing. Besides, this
loaf is more Italian than French in heritage.
A pre-ferment is what a baker uses to speed up the time be-
tween mixing a dough and pulling finished loaves out of the oven, without
sacrificing texture and flavor. By making up a sponge or dough with a touch
of yeast, and letting it work for anywhere from 2 to 48 hours, you can add it
to a newly made dough that will inherit the flavors it has had time to de-
velop.
So in making a bread with a biga, you add one more step.
But it’s only remembering to make the biga that can be called “work” be-
cause it’s a cinch to make. Place your bread machine bucket on a scale and
measure into it:
6 ounces (
3
/
4
cup) water
1 ounce (3 tablespoons) pumpernickel or whole rye meal
7 to 8 ounces (approximately 1
1
/
2
cups) unbleached all-
purpose or bread flour
1
/
4
teaspoon instant yeast (SAF yeast or
1
/
2
teaspoon
bread machine yeast, not rapid-rise)
Put the bread pan in the machine, start the Dough cycle,
and allow to mix just long enough to thoroughly blend all the ingredients, 5
to 6 minutes. Then hit Reset and go away. You can leave this biga right in
the machine until you’re ready for the next step, or you can take the bucket
out of the machine, cover it with plastic wrap, and let it sit. If you aren’t
going to get to it after 12 hours or so, put it, covered, into the fridge. It will
keep very nicely there for a couple more days.
The Day of Baking
The Dough
The dough for this bread is quite wet, one that a bread machine does really
well developing. The final bread will be light, with good-sized holes in it,
and chewy with an assertive crust.
408