Coca bread

If there's one thing that must not be missing from our tables, it's bread. But if we can also make it at home, then we can guarantee it will be enjoyed twice as much. Not only for the wonderful process of making it, but also for the difference in flavor, texture and aroma. When making bread at home we can find a wide range of possibilities, not to mention all those we want to create ourselves. On this occasion we will see how to make at home the famous Pan de Coca.

This type of bread is very similar to cristal bread. It is a slightly flattened bread, with a very thin and crunchy crust, accompanied by a very light and airy crumb. Without a doubt the perfect option to use as a side or to enjoy as a base for a coca. For example using the same ingredients we use to make the Coca de Recapte.

Origin of the coca

Pan de coca is a variety of bread from Catalan cuisine, characterized by a thin and crunchy crust accompanied by a light crumb. As I mentioned above.

Apparently, the coca was born from making use of doughs that had not been baked. Instead of discarding them, they were stored and baked flat. The most common practice was to sugar them to serve as dessert. This custom makes bread coca the base of all cocas, whether topped with ingredients or baked to accompany them afterward.

Making Pan de Coca

This type of bread is a variety that can be classified as high hydration breads. That means we will work with a sticky dough that's difficult to handle. But only at the beginning, because once you get used to working with these kinds of doughs, you will find it very easy. In fact they're addictive.

To prepare it we can make the process a bit easier by using the KitchenAid sifter and scale attachment. We know that our time is precious and anything that makes life easier, we'll welcome with open arms! It helps us weigh as we add it to our KitchenAid.

To make our pan de coca we will follow some simple steps.

• We will mix the flour with the water
• We will perform autolysis so the flour proteins hydrate and reduce kneading time
• We will knead until we achieve perfect gluten development
• We will carry out bulk fermentation along with folds to strengthen the dough and create an internal structure
• We will retard in the refrigerator
• We will divide and shape the loaves
• We will let them rest
• We will bake

Perhaps reading them all may seem like too many steps, but quite the opposite. It's a very easy process to combine with other preparations and by no means tedious to carry out. The result is a wonderful bread, perfect to accompany any dish.

KitchenAid Artisan 5KSM125 food processor and KitchenAid sifter and scale attachment

Ingredients (for 2 loaves)

• 500 g strong flour, W=300
• 400 g very cold water
• 2.2 g instant dry yeast
• 25 g olive oil
• 10 g salt

Preparation

Preparing the pan de coca dough

1. We reserve 10 g of water for later.
2. In a bowl we add the flour along with the water and mix until obtaining a homogeneous mixture. We can do it in the KitchenAid with the help of the KitchenAid sifter and scale attachment. We knead using the dough hook or perform the process by hand, if you prefer.
3. We will mix until there are no traces of flour left, this may take us around 2 minutes.
4. We cover with plastic wrap and perform autolysis for 1 hour and 40 minutes.
5. After this time we add the yeast, previously dissolved in the water we had reserved, and the salt. We mix again.
6. We transfer the dough to a clean work surface and start kneading using the French kneading method.
7. We will alternate 3-4 minutes of kneading and 5 minutes of rest until we observe that our dough gains body, strength and becomes smooth. We should observe a smooth surface.
8. Once the dough is at this point, we add the oil. Ideally do it little by little while working the dough to help it integrate well.
9. It is very important that the dough has well developed the gluten before making the first fermentation.

We do the first fermentation

1. We grease a container with olive oil and place the dough inside.
2. We cover and let rest 1 hour and 30 minutes at 24.4ºC (in my case) with a fold every 30 minutes. In total we will do 3 folds and, after doing the last one, we store it in the cold until the next day. In my case it was 14 hours at 4ºC.

Shaping the pan de coca loaves

1. We take the dough out of the cold and let it rest for 15 minutes at room temperature. You will see a dough that has quadrupled in volume, and also has a surface full of bubbles.
2. We prepare a board/peel, line with baking paper and dust with flour (rye is better, it handles humidity better). We set aside.
3. We dust the work surface very generously with flour and turn the dough out. If necessary we will help the dough slide to avoid tearing it. Correct handling of the dough is very, very important so as not to damage the structure and, consequently, the internal alveoli. We gently stretch the dough to form a rectangle.
4. Using a metal bench scraper, we divide the dough into two equal pieces. Or approximately equal.
5. If you want it to have a more defined shape, you can trim the ends to give it a rectangular finish.
6. With our hands we move the dough from the table to the board. We slide our hands underneath, close as if it were an accordion and place it on the board while stretching the dough.
7. We dust the surface with flour, cover with a cotton cloth or plastic wrap and let rest for 45 minutes at room temperature.

Baking the pan de coca

1. We preheat the oven 30 minutes before baking to 250º C with a steel or stone griddle and a container/tray with volcanic stones that we place inside from the moment we turn on the oven, so they will also come up to temperature.
2. If you don't have a steel griddle, the perforated Buyer trays work very well. That said, remember to preheat the oven with them inside.
3. Five minutes before putting the bread in the oven we heat water (a little more than half a cup), we can do it in the microwave.
4. We place our pan de coca loaves in the oven on the lowest rackSlide the bread using the peel/board onto the tray or steel griddle.
5. We pour the water over the stones, close and bake for 5 minutes with steam.
6. After this time we remove the tray with volcanic stones, close, reduce to 240ºC and bake 10 minutes.
7. We lower the heat to 230ºC and bake 5 more minutes with fan.
8. We take out of the oven and let cool completely on a rack.
9. We enjoy with a good tomato, olive oil and flakes of salt.

NOTES

• This time we will use strong flour instead of baker's flour, as we do with ciabattas, since besides working with high hydration, we will subject the dough to a long fermentation process.
• Not all flours have the same absorption capacity. If you use a flour with lower strength, reduce the amount of water when mixing the ingredients to do the autolysis. You can always add more later when you are ready to knead. Remember one thing "doughs are always adjusted with water, never with flour".
• Do not skip the autolysis time, it helps the flour hydrate and reduces kneading time. Among other very beneficial factors for the dough.
• If using fresh yeast instead of dry, you should add 3 times that amount. That is, for each gram of dry yeast, 3 g of fresh yeast are used. In this case it would be 6.6 g of fresh yeast.
• Kneading will be somewhat laborious due to the high hydration. Do not add all the water at once or this step will be a real nightmare. It's easier to develop the gluten in doughs with more moderate hydration and then continue increasing hydration.
• We will retard the dough in the refrigerator to prolong this step and encourage the development of flavors and aromas.
• To prevent the crust from softening after baking bake the final minutes with fan. Otherwise the interior humidity will migrate to the surface and, after a few hours, we will have a chewy bread.
• Ideally consume the bread the same day it is baked since it does not have a long shelf life.

Recipe prepared with: KitchenAid Artisan 5KSM125 food processor and KitchenAid sifter and scale attachment

I definitely encourage you to make this Pan de Coca at home so you can enjoy both the process and the result. When carrying it out, the biggest "complication" you may find is the kneading process. But, following the steps I describe and with patience, it won't be difficult.

You may wonder if this bread can be kneaded in a mixer. It can, but the result will be infinitely better if we knead by hand. Why? Because these types of high hydration doughs don't knead well in a home mixer and therefore the gluten doesn't develop correctly. This leaves us with a flatter bread and/or a crumb structure that is not what we are looking for.

So get those muscles ready to make one of the most wonderful breads you can imagine!