How to formulate a bread recipe

How to formulate a bread recipe?

There are a couple of methods that can be used when formulating a bread recipe which we call baker’s percentage. If you are using a preferment such as a biga, poolish or sourdough starter. First you must determine how much of the preferment will be used in the dough recipe. Once you determine the amount you to be used you can either calculate it towards the total flour amount or you can formulate your recipe by subtracting the flour content in the preferment and apply that value to the flour amount in your recipe so it equals 100 %. If you formulate using the first method (calculating towards total flour amount) you will need to compensate the salt amount. Most bread recipes call for 2 percent of salt based on total flour amount in recipe. For example,

Basic dough recipe for bread:

1. Flour 100 %                   1000 grams
2. Salt %                                  20 grams
3. Water 60%                       600 grams
4.  Yeast 2%                            20 grams
5. Dough Improver 1%         10 grams

Biga Recipe:

1. Flour 100 %     1000 grams
2. Water 50%        500 grams
3.  Yeast 0.2%         3 grams
4.  Total –              1503 grams

Basic bread dough recipe with biga calculated on top of flour:

1. Flour 100%           3000 grams
2. Biga    50%           1500 grams
3. Salt    2.5%             75 grams
4. Water 65%             1950 grams
5. Yeast 1.5%               5 grams

Basic bread dough recipe with biga calculated by subtracting the biga total flour amount  :

1. Flour 100%          2250 grams
2. Biga    50%           1500 grams
3. Salt    2%              60 grams
4. Water 65%          1950 grams
5. Yeast 1.5%            5 grams
6.