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Crusty Bread
The secret to crusty bread is steam. Craft bakers inject steam into the oven which then condenses on the surface of the dough. It causes the flour starch to gelatinise forming a thin film on the dough. This creates an attractive crust with a high degree of colour.
Some bakeries do not have steam generators but throw in a bowl full of water onto the floor of the oven or use a garden sprayer to spray water onto the sides of the oven.
You can do it at home in your own oven, but beware water and electricity do not mix.
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In a preheated oven place a cast iron or heavy dish to heat up in the oven for 10-15 minutes, and then place the bread in the oven. Now carefully put a mug of water into the dish or a handful of ice cubes. It should boil and steam away. Remove the dish after 15 minutes so that the baking can finish in a dry atmosphere .
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You can also use a small hand held garden sprayer to spray the sides of the oven to create the same affect.
Be careful ovens need to be very hot for baking.
