Broa ~ Portuguese Corn Bread
Broa, a bread made with yellow or white cornmeal, is the daily grain food of the poorer regions of Portugal, mountain territory where the semi-wild pigs of the old ibérico breed provide a cash crop. It has a distinctive whitish crust, which cracks to reveal a golden-brown crumb. Corn, a hardy grain, an introduction from the New World which proved a boon to upland farmers, is combined with wheat flour in varying proportions. The higher the proportion of wheat flour, the lighter the loaf.
Broa ~ Portuguese Corn Bread
from https://leitesculinaria.com/
Broa is traditional Portuguese corn bread that's a hearty, substantial bread made with yeast. Unlike the corn bread common in the states, this is still sufficiently sturdy, not crumbly, and perfect for sopping up soup or sauce.
2 pounds white unbleached bread flour
1 pound (3 cups) fine-ground cornmeal, (polenta)
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
Two (2/3-ounce) fresh yeast cakes
About 5 cups warm water
For finishing
Flour, for dusting
Oil or lard, for greasing
In a warm bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, and salt.
In a small bowl, dissolve the fresh yeast in 1 cup of the warm water and sprinkle with a spoonful of the flour mixture. Let rest until bubbly and foamy, 5 to 10 minutes.
Work the yeasty liquid into the flour, adding as much of the remaining water as you need to make a soft, sticky, rather wet dough. Knead the dough by gently pushing and tugging and turning the dough. If the dough is unmanageable sticky, you may need to sprinkle it with a little more flour, but keep in mind, it will be stickier than most bread doughs. Form it into a ball and dust it with a little more flour. Let the dough rise under a damp cloth in a warm place until more than doubled in size, which will probably take a couple of hours. Don’t rush it. You need well-risen dough with nice big bubbles to get a crisp, light crust.
Dust your hands and your work surface with flour. Scoop out the dough and punch it down roughly with your fists to distribute the air. Cut the dough in half, work each piece into a ball, and generously dust with flour.
Slick a baking sheet with oil or lard and place the bread on top. Cover the dough with a cloth and let it rise again in a warm kitchen for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
Bake the bread until well-risen and hollow-sounding when you tap the bottom, about 1 hour. Don't undercook the loaves or they'll be heavy. The surface will be white from flour and probably cracked. That's normal.
Notes
When stored in a cotton bag and hung in a current of air, home-baked bread dries out rather than growing a furry green jacket and rotting. In dried form, it provides the basis for dozens of different soaked-bread dishes, serving much the same function in Portugal as dried pasta in Italy.
32 servings
Portuguese Cornbread: Broa
from https://www.foodnetwork.com/, Tyler Florence
2 packages active dry yeast
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 cup warm water
1 1/2 cups stone-ground cornmeal, plus additional for sprinkling
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup boiling water
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
Extra-virgin olive oil, for brushing
1 tablespoon coarse salt
In a small bowl combine the yeast, sugar, and the warm water in a large bowl until the yeast is dissolved and foamy, about 5 to 10 minutes.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal and salt with the boiling water. Beat vigorously with a wooden spoon to blend. Add the melted butter and mix to incorporate. Now, pour the yeast mixture into the cornmeal mixture, stirring to combine. Gradually add the flour, mixing well after each addition. Add a couple of tablespoons of water if the dough feels dry and doesn't come together easily. Continue to mix until a dough forms into a ball.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead, adding just enough flour to keep the dough from sticking, until smooth and elastic, about 5 to 10 minutes.
Grease a large bowl with oil and transfer the dough to the bowl, brush the top with more oil so it is completely coated. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 11/2 hours.
Turn the dough out onto the floured surface and knead briefly, 3 or 4 times, to punch out the air. Gather the dough into a ball and shape it into a round loaf. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and let rise again until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. and place a pizza stone in the oven to heat up.
Put the dough round on the pizza stone and brush the top with oil. Sprinkle the top of the bread with coarse salt. Bake in middle of the oven for 40 to 50 minutes until the bread is golden brown and bottom sounds hollow when tapped. *To recreate the steam effect from authentic Portuguese brick ovens, spray the bread and oven walls with cold water every 10 minutes. Transfer the bread to a wire rack to cool.
Yield: 1 (8-inch) round loaf
