My family's been making easy, 4-ingredient baguettes for years, and I think everyone should know the recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret of best baguette? ›

One of the secrets of a great baguette is to start with a sponge (a mix of flour, water, and yeast), which gives the yeast time to mature and combine with the other ingredients, creating the mildly sour and nutty flavors and chewy texture.

Based on various laws on making bread over the last century, the 1993 le Décret Pain French decree states that traditional French bread must be made only from four main ingredients - good quality water, salt, a rising agent and wheat flour containing no more than 2.8% (in total weight) of bean, soya or malted wheat ...

In France, bakers pay careful attention to where their flour is made and which grains are used in the milling process. The result is usually softer, heartier, and tastier bread than can be found in other parts of the world. French flour tends to be made with a lower ash content than the flour from other countries.

The French bread law

The law states that traditional baguettes have to be made on the premises they're sold and can only be made with four ingredients: wheat flour, water, salt and yeast. They can't be frozen at any stage or contain additives or preservatives, which also means they go stale within 24 hours.

Like I said, a real baguette contains nothing more than flour, water, yeast, and salt. Here's what goes into my formula, and why: High-protein all-purpose flour: Most French baguettes are made with a medium-protein flour (11 to 12%) for the proper crisp, yet tender texture.

Overall, the ideal flour for baguettes should have a moderate protein content, a fine texture, and should be of high quality. While traditional French type 55 flour is the ideal choice, a combination of all-purpose and bread flour can also work well in its place.

'Le quignon' is the pointy end of the baguette.

First and foremost, the flour used in France is of very high quality. But the major difference between French and an American baguette is the fermentation process. Most French bakers use a poolish process, which consists of a mix of yeast and water that's allowed to ferment overnight.

A short baguette is sometimes known as a baton (stick), or in the UK, referred to using the English translation French stick. None of these are officially defined, either legally or, for instance, in major dictionaries, any more than the baguette.

Of all the food in the country, the French baguette is perhaps the one that most unites France and its culture. Okay, so perhaps that's overstating it a tiny bit. But the French — every man, woman and child of them — do manage to eat an entire baguette every day. To many French a meal without a baguette is not a meal.

Do French people eat baguettes every day? ›

95% of French people eat bread every day. This is the number of baguettes sold in France every year. That means more than 300 baguettes sold every second, and more than 27 million per day.

From breakfast to dinner, on its own or with spreads, toppings, or fillings, baguettes are eaten all day long.

This thin-crusted variety of French Bread—more commonly known as the Baguette, Po' Boy Loaf or Sunday Cap Bread—is fundamental to the New Orleans gastronomy. Each version of the French bread is slightly different. The baguette is the traditional 18-inch loaf that is served in many New Orleans restaurants.

1 – Regular French Baguette = Cheap Bread in France

Hence, the bakers use the cheapest ingredients to keep it low cost. And some people apparently like that taste because “le pain” (the bigger loaf of French bread”) and “la baguette” still sell like… hot cakes (pun intended). Of course, it's a question of taste.

For example, baguettes made from whole grains or sourdough baguettes are healthier than traditional French baguettes. Bread made with whole grains provides a higher nutritional value as well as helps to control cholesterol levels and blood pressure.

Well as the name suggests, the tradition must be made using the traditional methods, while a baguette can include extra ingredients. A tradition must be made using only flour, yeast, salt and water - the recipe specified in the French government's 'bread decree' of 1993.

A baguette is a long, thin type of bread that is commonly made from basic lean dough (the dough, though not the shape, is defined by French law). It is distinguishable by its length, crisp crust on the outside and soft inner core.

In 1993 a French bread law (le Décret Pain) was passed making it mandatory that any baguette called homemade (maison) must only use four ingredients — flour, salt, water and yeast — and be made entirely on the premises. It also states that any baguette called “tradition” can't ever be frozen or contain additives.

Use steam: To create steam in your oven, place a tray of hot water on the bottom rack of your oven or spray water on the sides and bottom of the oven right before putting the bread in the oven. The steam helps create a crisp crust on the bread.