a “biga” is one of the Italian methods of making a pre-ferment. The difference between saving some of the dough from your batch of dough and a biga isn’t very much, but as you know with bread, each different technique has it’s uses.
Making a biga is very simple, and there are several kinds, probably depending on the region in Italy...
I think the traditional Biga is very stiff, and the reason the Italians do this is to develop some kind of acid in their flour, but I forget the name... for their flours are a lot weaker than ours.
Your method is the French one “pate fermentee” and it is used by the french bakers who bake daily. If one isn’t baking daily, it can get too acidic and alcoholic if it isn’t kept cool.
There are other methods of pre-ferments. The Polish one is called, curiously, “poolish”, and then there is “sponge” or levain-levure. And various combinations of the above. Each gives a diferent characteristic, and which you use depends on what kind of bread you prefer to make.
Here is one “biga recipe to try for Ciabatta.
The morning of the day before you plan to bake
1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
2 cups bread flour
about 2 Tblsp whole wheat flour, coarsely ground is good.
2 Tblsp rye flour, ditto
3/4 cup water
This will be extremely stiff, and hard to knead... add a little extra water, tblsp or two, if you have trouble. Then set it aside at room temp, and let it do it’s thing. Probably won’t look like much for quite a long time, but by bedtime you should see some activity.
When it is about tripled in size, the next day, mix up the following:
a tad over 2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp instant yeast
3 tsp. sea salt
1.5 cups water (did I mention that I prefer non-chlorinated water, we have well water here)
the fermented biga
I mix mine in my Bosch, then let it rise for about 3 or 4 hours. I have a big plastic bucket I use with a tight lid. Turn it over several times every 20 minutes or so for the first hour and a half, then let it be... (and please know the dough should be gloppy. This is where I run into trouble, as I am always putting in more flour than I should.)
Then flour the top of the dough, and on a floured surface, turn it out. Cut it in half, and shape it into long flat rectangles. I think you are supposed to make an envelope type turn, but I usually just pat it, as I am afraid of overhandling it.
Cover with a dishtowel (I save the old ones just for this. Some people put the dough on top of floured towels too.
Preheat the oven to 450.
About 45 minutes later, gently get the dough on the baking sheet you have covered with parchment paper, and pat it back into a rectangle. Bake on your stones if you have them for about 35 to 45 minutes. Depending on your oven, you might want to rotate them halfway through. I do spray with water to make some steam.
Get out your olive oil and favorites seasonings for dunking, or layer up with your favorite sandwich materials...
Shall I chat about an easier pre-ferment? like the levain? I use that when I am in a hurry, and feeling lazy...
I know that typically, the weak Italian wheats have a lower protein content and doesn't make gluten as well.
I had to convert your recipe to grams to understand it. ;) My school textbooks were "On Cooking 3rd ed" and "The Professional Chef 6th ed". And chef made us use metric weights in Baking Skills.
Your recipe seems about right. Maybe more salt than I would use. And yes, sloppy bread is a pain to handle. It takes some time to learn, and watching a pro do it a few times helps to pick up the techniques. Brioche is just about as wet and sloppy.
/johnny