Slap and Fold Tutorial (Kneading high-hydration dough)

A quick tutorial about the slap-and-fold technique for kneading high-hydration dough.

For those who are curious:
The dough is:

50% whole wheat flour run through a large (~1mm) mesh strainer from Castle Valley Mill (it has _huge_ 1cm pieces of bran in it, hence the straining)
25% KA All-Purpose
25% Central milling bakers craft+

@ 80% hydration

In the video, it's post a 2h autolyse, 30m post mix with levain and 5m post mixing with salt. (2%)

[benhowellthomas]

Finally! A slap and fold technique video which has everything in shot and is understandable 😂

[coryserratore]

dough on the lights, counter, floor, face (and hair, you forgot the hair).
Yeah, that was me, and what brought me here. Thanks for the tips.

[NancyAnneMartin]

Most helpful demo of slap and fold I've found. Great tips. Thank you!

[MMStudios]

Hey Russell! Really cool and informative tutorial! This is very good for beginners with this stage of making bread! I found your techniques very interesting and cool and I support your Tutorial Journey! Great job!

[akkyjohn]

Tried this technique. Worked out wonders on my dough. Thanks a ton.

[MathasiaJ]

I've been struggling with my slap and fold forever! Thank you so much

[thatslife-danette]

This was super helpful! The book I was working out of only showed pictures, which didn't help much. This was perfect. Thank you!

[brittanyadee]

Thanks for this video! I love the wrist trick and how thorough your explanation and angles were. I'm going to try this next time I make bread. My problem is always my fingers get stuck in the dough and from there things go all kinds of wayward 😵

[SisuBjörk]

Man I wish they would have taught this in school cooking class

[billnroger]

I did your slap and fold method for the first time today and it worked! No flour on my granite counter and at the end it was totally clean of dough! Now it’s resting for an hour before I make a pizza. Thanks for a very specific and informative video…

[Johnny__Silver]

Going to make my first Pan Gallego tomorrow so I needed this. Thanks for the clear demonstration!

[hmoore]

Thanks for the tips but the beat came in crazy. 🙌🏾🙌🏾

[edgersonjunior]

Russell, boa noite! Sensacional essa técnica de dobrar o pão, Parabéns!!

[suejames]

What an excellent video, it has helped me immensely. Thankyou. I have subscribed.

[chipayres]

This is a good demo. The key was grabbing the dough at a 90 degree angle. That wasn't clear with the Bertinet demos.

[Gregasaurus]

What devilry is this!? What hydration is this dough? as soon as my dough comes out of the bowl (75%) it is a total sticky mess. It doesn't even stick to your fingers on the first slap. As soon as I touch mine it is a web of mess. Totally does not come together in 2 slaps like yours. Excellent skills, I will persevere.

[ranjitpatel]

What hydration is this dough? I'm going to try this thank you from UK.

[bertoldoborn]

Muito bom. Parabéns pelo seu trabalho nota dez. 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

[be.A.b]

So I tried this, but Im so out of shape and weak, that the dough started feeling like lead 😭 I modified it by stretch and folding horizontally, rarely lifting it completely, and tucking in the edges as I came down. It worked! Now.. to the gym!

[Joesmith-fups]

Great Tutorial. This is something I want to learn. But I have to ask. Why not use a stand mixer if you have one? Is the dough significantly better done by hand?