A customer told me my sourdough was too dense and it crushed me at first

I was selling loaves at the farmers market in Portland and this older lady bought one. She came back the next week and said 'honey, your bread is like a brick, it needs more air.' I was so mad at first but I sat on it. I started weighing my dough more carefully and tracking my bulk fermentation times with a timer instead of guessing. I also switched to a higher hydration recipe at 80% and started using a kitchen scale for everything. After about 3 tries, my crumb got way more open and the crust was actually crispy. Now I always check for that jiggle in the dough before I shape it. Has anyone else had a customer give them a brutal but helpful critique?

3 comments

3 Comments

angela_hart9d ago

I had a baker tell me my ciabatta was "sad and flat" once... stung like crazy but he was right about my starter being too weak. That jiggle test you mentioned changed everything for me too, that's exactly when you know it's ready.

paul_ramirez9d ago

Did you ever try feeding your starter twice a day for a few days before baking? It made a world of difference for me when mine was sluggish, and the jiggle test finally started working after that.

nathankim7d ago

...but is it really that serious though? I mean, someone said your bread was dense and you redesigned your entire process over it. At some point you have to ask if that customer really knows what they're talking about or if they just prefer fluffy grocery store bread. Sourdough is supposed to be dense compared to a sandwich loaf. That's kind of the whole point. I get wanting to improve but going from 70% to 80% hydration and timing your ferment just because one lady at a farmers market said something...that's a lot of trust in a stranger's opinion. You gotta have thicker skin than that in this business.