"There’s no such thing as the perfect loaf of bread."
Now that’s a significant statement, given that it comes from the Spanish-Australian chef Grego Montalban Sanchez, otherwise known as .
The sourdough expert has gained quite a cult following for his perfect-looking loaves made from his , Victoria.
Each day, Montalban Sanchez creates 100 kilograms of dough. Over four days of operation, 400 kilograms of dough are turned into loaves and rolls, as the chef strives to overcome the beautiful inconsistencies of baking and master his profession.
“What makes a bread perfect will always be down to the individual,” says Montalban Sanchez, a guest on on SBS.
“It’s just like coffee – there’s no perfect cup of coffee for everyone. Some people drink a latte while others have black coffee, and then each person likes it made perfectly, differently.”
Grego's nut slice
Nut slice
For Montalban Sanchez, the colour of the crust and the smell of a freshly baked loaf work together to attempt bread perfection. “The crust and the smell of bread are the two reasons why I got involved in baking in the first place.”
Opening the door of a baker's pantry
In Montalban Sanchez’s micro-bakery, a home garage that he transformed into a working kitchen, the chef stores the essential ingredients that fuel his daily pursuit of a great-tasting loaf.
Inside his pantry, he stocks large batches of flour. There’s baker’s, rye, wholegrain, kibble and emmer flour (also known as hulled wheat, a type of ancient grain).
“Plain flour doesn’t smell and it doesn’t have a lot of flavour. So I always use three kinds of flour when baking bread as flours like emmer has a beautiful smell.”
One of the most recognisable breads that Montalban Sanchez bakes is a seeded sourdough. That explains why he always keeps so many styles of seeds in his pantry. “I like using sesame seeds, black sesame seeds, linseeds, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds. I love using seeds when baking because, once toasted, they give your bread such a different, smoky flavour.”
Outside of bread-making ingredients, Montalban Sanchez’s pantry always maintains a steady flow of saffron and paprika “because I make a weekly paella at home”.
“In my pantry, we also have food to fill the kids’ lunchboxes, along with the regular pantry staples that everyone else has. On top of all of that though, I always have blocks of chocolate in my pantry – just because I am a chocoholic.”
Tips to make your 'perfect' bread
In addition to the tangible ingredients that Montalban Sanchez has in his kitchen, two invisible elements significantly control whether or not he can make a ‘perfect’ loaf of bread. They are atmospheric time and humidity.
“If you want to bake the perfect loaf of bread for you, you should always pay attention to temperature and time.
“If you cut corners while making bread, it won’t work. If you rush or overproof your dough, it won’t work. If your environment is too cold or warm, everything will change. So I have a proofer in my kitchen to control the temperature of the starter, dough and pastries.”
You’ll feel the dough, touch the dough and before long, you’ll know when it’s ‘perfect’ for you to use.
Baking is a craft, he says. The more you practice, the better your skill set gets. So if you want to achieve a cracking loaf that you find perfect, then you’ve also got to adopt an analytical mindset and learn from your mistakes.
“Take notes every time you make bread so you can keep building on your experiences and learn. It takes a lot of trial and error to make the right ‘happy’ dough. It’s like a game but you have to keep going.
“After a few tries, you’re going to be able to understand how to make ‘your perfect loaf’ more and more. You’ll start to know how to read your dough. You’ll feel the dough, touch the dough and before long, you’ll know when it’s ‘perfect’ for you to use.”
