Ficelle

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The ficelle (‘string’) is the baguette’s slender, elegant sibling: a thin, crunchy French bread weighing approximately 125-150g and measuring 55-65cm in length but only 3-4cm in diameter — roughly half the width of a baguette. Its defining characteristic is an extraordinary crust-to-crumb ratio: the ficelle is almost entirely crust with a minimal ribbon of tender crumb at its centre, making it the ideal bread for those who prize the shattering, caramelised exterior above all else. The dough is identical to baguette tradition dough (flour, water, salt, yeast or levain at 68-72% hydration), differing only in the smaller division weight and the more delicate shaping required. Shaping the ficelle demands a lighter touch than the baguette: the dough piece (125-150g versus 350g for a baguette) is pre-shaped into a short cylinder, rested 15 minutes, then rolled with gentle, even pressure under the fingertips (not the palms, which would flatten this delicate dough) to its full length, tapering both ends to fine points. The ficelle is proofed seam-side up in a couche with narrower pleats than for baguettes, as the dough pieces are closer together. Scoring consists of a single long diagonal slash down the entire length, or 3-4 shorter diagonal cuts — the narrow width cannot accommodate the 5-7 overlapping cuts of a baguette. Baking is faster than a baguette: 12-15 minutes at 240-250°C with steam for the first 8 minutes. The thin diameter means the ficelle passes through the oven spring phase rapidly and colours quickly, requiring vigilant attention to prevent overbaking. The finished ficelle should be deeply golden, impossibly crisp, and so light it barely registers in the hand. It must be eaten within hours of baking — by evening, a morning’s ficelle has lost its magic, the crust softening as moisture migrates from the thin crumb to the surface.

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