What to look for in a baguette
|
The baguette is a long thin, crusty loaf, the name of which is derived
from ‘baguette magique’, the French for magic wand. A good
baguette should have a crisp, golden brown crust that will break if you
push it inwards. The interior crumb (or ‘mie’ in French) should
be a creamy colour with large, irregular, air holes.
The diagonal slashes in the crust provide an escape route for the carbon
dioxide given off during the fermentation process as the bread bakes.
They should be evenly spaced and slightly darker at the edges. The baguette
should smell of toasted wheat with a moist and chewy texture and a nutty,
buttery flavour.
In comparison a mass produced loaf will be a paler, straw colour. The
‘mie’ will be pure white with tiny, regular air holes and
the loaf will be tasteless and dry.
Other Types of French Bread |
| Boule |
A round loaf sold in various sizes. |
| Ficelle |
A very thin version of the baguette. Ficelle means string in French. |
| Fougasse |
A flat rectangular bread often filled with bacon, onion or herbs. |
| Pain à l’ancienne |
Bread made using traditional methods |
| Pain complet |
Bread made from whole wheat flour |
| Pain de campagne |
A big rustic loaf with a thick crust.(campagne means country) |
| Pain de mie |
Sliced, packaged white bread; this is a soft sweet loaf mainly
used for sandwiches. |
| Pain au chocolate |
Bread filled with chocolate chips |
| Pain aux noix |
Bread filled with nuts. |
| Pain aux raisins |
A light bread filled with raisins. A breakfast treat. |
| Pain bio |
A bread with at least 95% organic ingredients |
| Pain de siegle |
Loaf with two thirds rye flour, one third wheat flour. |
| Pain viennois |
A baguette shape but softer and sweeter. |
| Pain d’épices |
Spiced or gingerbread |
| Pain grillé |
Toasted bread |
| Pain |
Peasant bread |
|
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
