Food - Drink
What Makes Artisan Bread Special?
By SYLVIA TOMCZAK
Commercial sliced white bread is miles different from artisan bread and, although there isn’t a precise definition of artisan bread, you certainly know one when you see it. While it might seem like just a marketing buzzword meant to influence our shopping habits, artisan bread does have specific criteria to follow to be labeled as such.
Artisan bread is a style of bread made using fresh, high-quality ingredients, like flour, water, salt, and sometimes yeast. Bakerpedia categorizes artisan bread as being handmade, boasting pre-ferments, lean formulations, higher water levels, and lengthier fermentation periods, as well as being baked in hearth-style ovens, with a rustic aesthetic or ornate scorings.
Artisanal loaves are unique in that they show the skill and dedication required of the baker. Le Cordon Bleu says that thanks to longer fermentation, flavors, aromas, and textures are able to become more complex, resulting not only in better bread, but boasting the toasted exterior, moist interior, and airy pockets artisan bread is known for.