Baker’s Tip
Remember that the coarser flours take more water. This is because bran is very thirsty, and the presence of bran is why any flour would be described as coarse. Strong English wholemeal to make a cob loaf will take 70% water, whereas a cob loaf from strong English white flour will be taking only 60-62% water.
This awareness of water absorption becomes very important when you are working from a recipe but do not have on hand the same flour as the recipe stipulates. For example, the recipe may call for a flour that is basically coarse but has been sieved, like a brown stone-ground, and you may have on hand only wholemeal. In those circumstances you would need to add 5 – 10% more water.
On the other hand, perhaps you have become accomplished at making baguettes or ciabatta using strong flour that can take 75% water to make a suitably soft dough. If you were setting out to make them with an imported French T55, or a standard English bread flour that was not particularly strong (11% protein, say), it would be prudent to opt for only 65% water to the flour.
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