UTees 4-day rolls

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 100 g sourdough (Lievito Madre), preparation see recipe description
• 100 g semolina (durum wheat semolina)
• 50 g water
• 150 g Manitoba wheat flour
• 125 g water
• 1 ½ g yeast
• 250 g dough (biga)
• 275 g dough (pre-dough)
• 375 g wheat flour, type 0
• 125 g wheat flour, Tipo 00
• 75 g rye flour, 1150
• 375 g water
• 10 g honey
• 20 g salt
• 10 g olive oil
• Rye flour, for laying
• Olive oil, for the fermentation form

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Rest time approx. 2 days 12 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 20 minutes; Total time approx. 2 days 13 hours 20 minutes

Rolls with a long cold fermentation and an incomparable aroma

First, prepare the biga and pre-dough: For the biga, knead the listed ingredients together, then cover and let the meatball stand in a sufficiently large bowl at 18-22°C for about 18 hours. It will expand, rise, and become slightly foamy. For the pre-dough, stir together the listed ingredients and also leave to stand in a covered bowl at 15-18°C for about 18 hours. The pre-dough will rise and become foamy. Then, for the main dough, mix the biga, pre-dough, flours, water, and honey in a food processor and let it pre-soak for about 30 to 40 minutes. Then add the salt and oil, and knead the dough thoroughly with the machine (at least 10 to 12 minutes). 1. Retarding: Now the dough is placed in a slightly larger, oiled box and refrigerated for about 18 hours. During this time, it is stretched and folded twice (let it slide out, carefully pull it apart lengthwise and fold the top third towards the middle, then the bottom third over it. Then pull it apart crosswise and fold it back into the middle again. Be careful not to break the bubbles!). After the refrigeration time, the dough needs to acclimatize. This can take up to three hours (it’s best to check with a thermometer until the dough temperature is at least above 20°C), and the dough will continue to rise. Stretch and fold it once more, then divide it into 16 equal-sized dough pieces. Flatten the rolls, let them rest for a short time, and then roll them out into a slightly lengthwise shape. Let them rise briefly in a couche (a linen cloth that is folded between the dough pieces) lightly dusted with rye flour, ideally on a baking sheet. Place the remaining cloth over the dough pieces and cover the baking sheet with the drip tray (upside down) to prevent the dough pieces from drying out. 2. Retarding: Place the baking trays with the dough pieces in the refrigerator for approximately 18 hours. After that, the dough pieces need to acclimatize again (still covered). This can take up to two hours. The dough pieces will continue to rise during this time. Now preheat the baking stone in the oven to 240°C. Score the dough pieces deeply with a baker’s knife and place them in the oven (ideally in two batches of 8 pieces each). Steam well for the first 10 minutes. Bake for approximately 20 minutes. The very long cold fermentation gives these rolls an incomparable flavor. Although the preparation is time-consuming, each step only takes a few minutes and it’s less complicated than it seems at first glance. The Italian flours listed here are my favorites in this combination after several trials, but they can also be substituted with 550 and/or 1050 flour. This will, however, change the result slightly. Lievito Madre is a type of Italian wheat sourdough. It is made once only over 5 days: Mix 1 tsp of wheat flour 550, 1 tsp of whole wheat flour with 1 pinch of sugar and a little lukewarm water to form a soft crêpe-like dough. Place in a small bowl, cover with a paper towel and put a loose lid on top so that air can get in but no critters. Stir about every 10 hours. Over time the dough will thicken and become a little slimy and start to bubble. After 4 days add 1 tsp of wheat flour 550, 1 tsp of whole wheat flour and a little water. Cover again and let stand for 24 hours. Then add 2 tsp of WM 550, 2 tsp of WVM and about 3 tsp of water. Cover and let stand for 24 hours. Then add 4 tsp of WM 500, 4 tsp of WVM and about 6 tsp of water. Cover and let stand for 24 hours. You now have about 200g of Lievito Madre. Use half of this for baking (mentioned above in this recipe), and top up the remaining 100g with 40g WM 550, 40g WVM, and 40g water. Roll the dough (now a bit firmer) into a ball, lightly oil it with your hands, and store it in the refrigerator. It’s ready to use again after about 3 days. I’d like to extend a huge thank you to LarissaL, who did such valuable preparatory work for this!