Pane di Matera IGP con Pasta Madre

Ingredients

• 700 g Senatore Cappelli durum wheat semolina (semola rimacinata), heirloom grain, re-milled fine; the carotenoids give the crumb its gold
• 455–490 ml water, cool, 65–70% hydration; add in stages to allow semolina to absorb slowly
• 140 g active pasta madre (stiff sourdough starter), ripe and risen; 20% of flour weight is the Disciplinare standard proportion
• 14 g fine sea salt, 2% of flour weight

Method

1. 1
   Dissolve the pasta madre in the water, working it apart with your fingers until no lumps remain. Add the semolina and mix to a rough mass. Rest uncovered for 30 minutes (autolyse): the semolina absorbs water far more slowly than soft wheat and this rest is not optional. The dough should feel dense and slightly sandy — not smooth.
2. 2
   Add the salt and work the dough by folding and pressing for 10–12 minutes until it becomes cohesive and pulls away from the surface. Semolina dough will not develop the windowpane of a soft-wheat loaf; the test is different — press a finger in and the dough springs back slowly but completely, and the surface is no longer granular.
3. 3
   Bulk-ferment at room temperature (18–22°C) for 3–4 hours, performing three sets of stretch-and-folds at 45-minute intervals. The dough is ready when it has grown by roughly one-third, feels aerated rather than dense, and holds its shape on the bench for 30 seconds without spreading.
4. 4
   Pre-shape into a tight round and rest 20 minutes. Then shape into the traditional domed crown — the 'cappello del prete': form a taut boule, then press the centre gently to create a slightly flattened dome. Score a single arc cut across the top with a lame or sharp blade; this is the traditional shape mark of Pane di Matera and controls oven spring. Brush the surface lightly with water to prevent surface drying.
5. 5
   Place the shaped loaf on a semolina-dusted couche or in a lined basket, cover, and cold-proof in a refrigerator at 4°C for 18–24 hours. This long cold fermentation is where the complex, mildly sour flavour characteristic of Pane di Matera is built — this is where the bread lives or dies; a shorter or warmer proof produces a flat, underdeveloped crumb with none of the required acidity or structure.
6. 6
   One hour before baking, place a baking stone or heavy steel on the lowest oven shelf and heat to the highest possible setting (250°C or above). The intense bottom heat replicates the stone deck or wood-fired oven floor of the Disciplinare. Remove the loaf from the refrigerator and bake directly from cold.
7. 7
   Slide the loaf onto the stone. Bake with steam for the first 15 minutes (cover with a large metal bowl or use a Dutch oven lid), then remove the cover and continue baking for a further 35–40 minutes. The crust must be very dark — deeply mahogany, not merely golden — to develop the characteristic bitterness that balances the sour crumb. Tap the base: a hollow knock across the whole surface, not just the centre, signals that the interior structure has set.
8. 8
   Transfer to a wire rack and do not cut for at least 12 hours. The crumb continues to set as steam migrates outward through the thick crust; cutting earlier produces a gummy, collapsed interior. The loaf is ready when the crust has hardened to a true crackling snap under thumb pressure and feels completely dry.