Classic French Boule Recipe with Poolish

Learn how to make this large round classic French boule recipe using a poolish to leaven the bread for a delicious dark brown crust.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Bob’s Red Mill. The opinions and text are all mine.
So, I’ve made a sourdough starter (Levain), I’ve used in a Graham Flour recipe, I’ve used a biga as a preferment and now I’m going to make a boule recipe using a poolish. A lot of bread making the past few weeks, but if you’ve ever been interesting in baking bread then all of these recipes need to be at the top of your list.
For some reason in the states you buy a machine and boom out comes a loaf of bread 3 hours later. I’m here to tell you that is not bread making and not how it was intended to be made. Making delicious bread takes time and love. Do you think they’re using bread makers at a bake shop? I don’t think so. If you don’t have 28 hours to wait for bread, maybe you can wait for 18 with this French boule recipe using a poolish.
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Ingredients for this Classic French Boule Recipe with Poolish:
550 grams of Bob’s Red Mill Artisan Bread Flour
550 grams of Bob’s Red Mill Whole Wheat Flour
858 grams of water
24 grams of sea salt
4.5 grams of active yeast
Makes 1 large boule bread
Prep Time: 17 hours
Cook Time: 1 hour
Procedures:
1. In a large container mix together 550 grams of bread flour with 550 grams of water at 80° to 82° and .5 grams of yeast until combined. Cover and let sit at room temperature for 10 to 24 hours or until tripled in size.
2. In a separate large container mix together the remaining 50 grams of bread flour, whole wheat flour, salt, remaining 4 grams of yeast.
3. Add the remaining 308 grams of water at 105° to 107° to the container with the poolish to help loosen it up.
4. Add the poolish and water mixture to the container with the flour, salt and yeast and vigorously mix it by squeezing, stretching and folding until completely mixed in, about 3 to 4 minutes. Cover and let rest for 20 minutes.
5. Fold the dough by stretching and turning it 6 to 8 times every 20 minutes for 60 minutes.
6. Cover and let rest for 2 more hours or until it has tripled in size.
7. Transfer the dough to a clean floured surface dusted with flour and form it into a medium tight ball. Move the dough to a floured proofing basket, cover with a towel and let proof for 60 to 90 minutes.
8. Place a pizza stone into the oven and preheat to 500° and let sit for 30 minutes.
9. Invert the dough directly onto the stone, score, cover with a large metal bowl and bake 30 minutes, then uncover and bake for another 20 to 25 minutes or until the outside of the bread is dark brown.
10. Set on a cooling rack for 30 minutes.
11. Slice and serve.

[@MyWTFName]

Tried so many other KZbin baker's recipes and they never came out right. Used your one 3 times now and perfect every time. I reduced the time of baking with the lid off to 8 minutes and the crust is great - soft but still has texture.

[@tyedyesky449]

Thank you so much! I've been making this bread every weekend and we don't need bread from the store anymore. Absolutely delicious and the whole family loves it. And love the mixing bowl over the bread trick because I don't have a dutch oven. Perfect!

[@Al1975Alo]

Thank you for this easy recipe. I tried it and it was the best bread I ever baked. Great video.

[@gordonwaite2]

Yesterday I used my first ever poolish to make a bread using AP flour (instead of bread flour) and some whole wheat flour. For the first time ever I did not use any measures except a teaspoon of sea salt. I basically did the same process and times that you did in this video. After it’s final rise it had fantastic firmness to it that held the numerous slices I put in it. I used a 5 qt. Dutch oven and it was a beautiful, large, amazing loaf with a big ear on top. My best ever! The flavor was fantastic but still the crum was too small or tight. Looking for a more open crumb. Waiting for my mail order S.F. Sourdough to come to life so I can step up my skills. It’s kind of like carbohydrate porn for me though, as I live a low carb life, but my neighbors love that I make homemade bread.

[@tiagoxandra]

I was a bread Baker for 17 years shabbata or sperlonga is one of my favorite. Know just make bread for the family.

[@davidwkaminsky8781]

I finished this this recipe today. It turned out magnificently!! I noticed the video has different flour measurements than the printed recipe. I used the printed recipe, since most printed recipes have corrections from the video. I wasn’t able to use my clay baking cloche as I usually would since the loaf was much too large, so I used the pizza stone method described in the video and covered the loaf with my wok cover. It worked perfectly but did rise up a bit since it wasn’t quite wide enough as the dough expanded. All in all, I wouldn’t change one thing in this recipe. It was perfect and very tasty.

[@aliciacorelli2908]

Like your explanation , very clear how to make a good bread going to try it. Thank you

[@Rob_430]

I’m a home bread baker and have made straight dough yeast and sourdough breads. Yesterday I experimented with a poolish and made baguettes. I was very impressed. The final dough after mixed kept bubbling as I went to shape. Large holes and a crunchy crust.

[@khalidahrizwan7225]

Thanks for the perfect recipe ..i made it today and came out a perfect country bread

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Fantastic!

[@NoniZara]

Nice tips. Thanks!

[@sylviacarlson3561]

I like this video Billy. You are a good speaker. I will try this recipe. By the way, I use a Dutch oven on 450F with the lid on for 20 minutes and then taken it off, spray it with water and put it back in for 15 minutes. This is a different recipe of course. I think everyone should have a dutch oven. It's a must item!

[@panajotov]

Last night I was googling poolish bread because I was craving a proper, homemade bread. I stumbled upon Billy's site, halved the amount of ingredients, mixed poolish, and without any additional fuss (nor Dutch oven/cast iron utensils - I used heatproof glass bowl with a lid), I had an amazing bread today. Now I regret reducing the amount of ingredients haha. Brilliant explanation! This was my first time making it. And now I am wondering: can it really be better than this?!

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Thanks for giving it a shot!

[@janeybakarbessy2330]

Wow, I wanna try and make this, this week!

[@ChefBillyParisi]

you got this!

[@pattyinsandy]

I bake it today it came out really good. I use my big stainless steel pot instead of bowl. Crispy outside and nice texture inside.the result was wonderful. I will use this recipe forever. Thank you very much☺️

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Nice!

[@jlf1430]

Thank you for your videos, easy to follow and very informative. Your studio is stunning. I read that your wife is an interior decorator, she did a fantastic job.

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Thank you so much.

[@Woowoooph]

I followed all the steps and I am so happy how this has worked out beautifully, thank you! I just wondered whether it won't succeed just as good when I use half of the amounts, because, ehrm... I live alone and this gigantic load is almost intimidating 🤪

[@oceanbaby4521]

Gorgeous! Yes you're right... It is EVERYTHING! 👩🏽‍🍳😋❤️

[@sweetcherrywine]

WOW really cool recipe, Love love love the mixer container you use...!!!

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Thanks!

[@Glow46836]

Where did you get your mixing container? Thanks for the bread recipe.

[@RobMyself]

I’m doing this tomorrow. Wait, maybe I’ll do the polish now!

[@mikemachen4170]

Gonna make it oh yes

[@jacquiegordon4541]

Hi Billy, loved the inspirational video. I made the polish yesterday evening but this morning it has barely risen, I wonder if overnight my house wasn’t warm enough and it’s stormy today :( can I add a little more yeast and warm water and try it in another couple of hours?

[@jbraddockm]

Thank you for this wonderful recipe. I’ve made this bread today and it’s come out amazing. I slightly changed the recipe by increasing the initial yeast amount to 4gr for the poolish, which was placed into the fridge overnight. My kitchen is around 15C so I wasn’t sure how the poolish would react if I keep it in the room temperature. Also, I have a pizza steel, my oven got really hot so much so that the crust was set with 15 minutes remaining to fully cook - uncovered. So I had to use foil to prevent it getting any darker. Again, thank you 🙏🏻

[@camsree]

The recipe looks simple and do-able. The only issue I noticed is the crumb looked little closed (tight) when it was cut open in the end. Does it need deeper slitting prior to baking, since it didn't seem to get much oven spring?

[@Jeff-fc7nf]

Yeast, not bacteria. Looks amazing, very similar to my Ciabatta recipe but without the olive oil.

[@ChefBillyParisi]

??

[@roblynch99]

I like to control my temperature by placing it in the sink and filling it with warm water.. I use a thermometer to get the water to around 103deg and then each time i fold it reset the temp.

[@daxpresuto3077]

Looks amazing, and I will split the dough after folding into two loaves as I love all the crust! Question (for anyone): If I don't want a loaf with as much whole wheat, has anyone done it with more bread flour as a ratio? What is the difference in hydration?

[@Rob_430]

Actually you can vary the % of flour type to suit. I normally use more bread flour when using whole grain flours. I was brought up on white Italian bread, so it’s what I like.

[@Steven-hq4mb]

Hey Chef Parisi, may I ask you why do you choose Bob’s Red Mill over King Arthur flour since most bakers I know use KA more...

[@Rob_430]

I’ve been using the No knead overnight fermentation direct dough method. I’ve tried a Poolish method a few times, especially for baguettes. My question is, what advantage is using a Poolish, then still have to mix and bulk the next day, as opposed to mixing direct dough, 1/4 tsp yeast, bulk overnight, and dough is ready next morning. I think the long fermentation is easier and all the dough ferments. Thanks, Rob

[@unclejed2431]

I went by the written recipe and cut it in half. Wow this is the best bread I have ever made, the crust and the chew are amazing. I'm wondering how this would taste as an herb bread?

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Delicious I’m sure!

[@archivradio]

may i offer a variation? cook it at maximum heat (260° C = 500 F or higher) under the lid for 20 minutes. then, without the lid, lower the temperature to 160° C and cook it for another 60-80 minutes. it creates a crust which grows deeper into the inside. greets from europe!

[@Thejzzman4]

Cool tip. I'm having trouble with my bread not staying crust after it cools. I'm hoping the long / low second phase of the baking helps .

[@archivradio]

@@Thejzzman4 the crust is made in the first step, with a lot of humidity under the lid. if you want a hard crust, lower the heat in the second phase to 200° C. when the bread turns brown, you can lower the temperature further. my breads stay crusty for a week or so.

[@eriklevot2896]

Made this recipe, turned out great, didn't use any special flour, too novice for all of that but I did throw in a bit of rosemary, and also used a cast iron to cook it, followed the same cooking instructions, covered 30 uncovered 20-25 min. Quick question if anyone can answer it: can I use this dough for baguettes? By that I mean instead of resting and proofing it in a round shape doing it in a baguette shape? (This recipe would likely easily yield close to 6 baguettes) I'm guessing the cook time would be different, probably 20-30 min, you'd have to put a dish with water on the bottom rack of the oven to humidify the oven and spray water on them periodically to create a nice crust. But curious if it would work well. I guess I'll just have to try if no one answers before the

[@buenaonda7588]

Hello Billy, thanks for inspiring me... I will try to do it now but don’t have bread flour. Could I use flour 00 instead?

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Yes

[@SepidehNekoozadeh]

Hi, is it possible to use dutch oven in this recipe?

[@followme8238]

Looks great - I have my first poolish bubbling away since this afternoon. Money saving hint: those 6 quart plastic containers with lids in this and other bread videos are EXPENSIVE. However Home Depot sells food grade 2 and 3 gallon pails and lids to match (8 quart & 12 quart respectively) for about $5 plus another $3 for the lids. And yes, those new, clean, empty paint buckets are ‘food grade’ plastic: they’re made from High Density Polyethylene (HDPE). A web search will confirm what food grade really means. Update: the 3 gallon was a little too tall and awkward to work with, next time I’m at HD I’ll pick up a 2 gallon bucket

[@Jeanetseschats56]

Food grade plastic is expensive...Make shure your 'bucket' is food grade, those industrial plastics release dangerous compound when in contact with food.

[@merseltzer]

Smart & Final carries them for a reasonable price.

[@lboyle6101]

Thanks for the recipe, looks great! Question: Can I make this in a Dutch Oven?

[@baderrealm]

Will be even better !

[@NinaNinaNB]

Dear Billy thank you so much for inspiring me 🙏 I learn every week and enjoy your content very much. I've found more pleasure and rewarding, creating 'things' in my kitchen, and especially when baking, than in my own career. Baking has kept me sane and motivated 😊 Thanks so much for this. Q: could you use this same dough for a Fougasse? 🙏😊

[@jacellhs9644]

Looks amazing. I guess you can divide the dough and make 2 breads? I have mine in the oven right now 😬

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Yes of course!

[@jacellhs9644]

Great thanks I did assume that. Anyway my bread turned out great!

[@KeskinCookin]

Looks great. Try my bread recipes for a change :)

[@singhsaahib]

This is actually very similar to the poolish recipes in "Flour, Water, Salt, Yeast"

[@0607dell]

How do you Store the bread? Thank for a great videos.

[@johnbroadway7709]

Chef Billy Parisi I use Grease Proof Paper (also known as Baking Paper here in the UK) - never had a problem with Freezer Burn. Great series which I really enjoyed. Obviously with local flour as can’t get Bob’s Red Mill locally.

[@pauloalves7413]

Hi Billy. I am trying this recipe. One question: the quantity of bread flour indicated in step#2 does not match with video instructions. Steps #2 says 50grams of bread flour while video says 150grams. Besides the total quantity (550grams) was already used in step#1. Would you please help me indicating the quantity I should used in Step#2? I have already tried Homemade Artisan Bread and Homemade Brioche Bread Recipes. They were amazing! Thank You!

[@lukedeenz5698]

It seems like many people are having this same issue. The totals are not matching up on the website as well. The conversions of dry ingredients grams to wet ingredients ml doesn’t match up either. Please send help.

[@marydesimone2944]

I know this is old but the directions imply that there is leftover bread flour (50 g) to be added to the wheat flour mixture but in the instructions for the poolish says to use all the 550 grams of bread flour. So in total its 600 grams of bread flour?

[@cags0602]

Check what temp your parchment is oven safe too. Mine is only good to 450F so it'll burn at 500F.

[@ChefBillyParisi]

No there’s enough moisture in the bowl from the bread that it won’t burn. You can simply not use it either.

[@robohippy]

Well, I am one who has to experiment, and I have been playing with the poolish. After learning about the fruit yeast water for a yeast source I wondered if it could be done from Kombucha, which is a yeast based fermented liquid. If you use the sludge from the bottom of the bottle, it has more yeast in it than the liquid. I have never been able to get the poolish to double in size, seems to settle down at about a 50% increase. No idea why. So, I use that for my base and add a tiny bit of yeast, and then it will double. It has a really distinct sour flavor to it, and I prefer that to the flavor I can get from standard yeast. This pandemic has made me get back into baking....

[@sylviacarlson3561]

robochippy, how much of the Kombucha are you putting in? Do you measure it?

[@robohippy]

@@sylviacarlson3561 I never really measured amounts. I keep 2 jars of poolish mix in the fridge. One that is Kombucha mix, and one standard mix. I will mix them for bread about a 1 part K to 3 parts regular. I do like the flavor it gives. There are videos of using Kombucha for sour dough. I guess beer mash works too.

[@sylviacarlson3561]

@@robohippy Thank you! I love Kombucha and I will give it a go!

[@chrisll5690]

subscribed👍🏼

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Thank you so kindly!!

[@lalatorres683]

Can I use instant dry yeast?

[@gennyeger5759]

How much additional bread flour? You say 150g in the video, 50g in the description and 100 on the website.

[@laiflessons6916]

Recipe list flour as 650g +500g which is 1150g but the video list 550g +550g+ 150g is 1250. I’m a bit confused.

[@laiflessons6916]

Thank you for the super quick reply because I have my Polish ready and about to make the bread now!

[@laiflessons6916]

I just made this with 100% Kamut flour and that works beautifully too.

[@auntychristy]

Hello, can you convert this recipe to Cups and AP flour ? Trying to make due without a scale right now.

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Yes you can!

[@PhyllizR]

Looks great....but how does that amount of yeast raise the dough so well ?

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Because it’s a preferment, that’s the job of the Poolish!

[@PhyllizR]

@@ChefBillyParisi ooh, ok. Good, then I' ll give this recipe a try this week. Thanks

[@huynhanh595]

Hi Can I make the poolish with all 858 gram of water / 858 gram of flour instead of saving some water to add at the end ?

[@ChefBillyParisi]

No, that’s not how it works

[@jz2120]

it seems the ingredients' amounts in the description of the procedure are different from the video.

[@ucblaj]

Can I use a Dutch oven to bake the bread in?

[@theoptimisticnihilist504]

Yeah anything that will produce steam is fine

[@imhungry343]

Hello, if I don't have whole wheat flour, is there a substitute for it?

[@ChefBillyParisi]

you could use another flour like spelt or something else but the hydration level would also change.

[@JohnRichardsonLauve]

In step 1, it says to use half a gram of yeast. There is a space between the decimal and the 5, so it could be easily mistaken for 5 grams.

[@ChefBillyParisi]

No it’s a 1/2

[@nessagerritsen1689]

Hi can the poolish be put in the fridge over night/for 24hrs?

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Yes

[@nessagerritsen1689]

@@ChefBillyParisi awesome thanks for confirming.

[@anilharlalka1]

Hey chef. The ingredient quantities is not clear in the video. Please provide asap. I'm dying to make this bread

[@tonycasarrubia1394]

I would have placed it in a bread basket and give it one more day of rise in the refrigerator.

[@tosapetric8603]

is the temperature of the water in celsious or fareinheit?

[@ChefBillyParisi]

F

[@breadaholicinprague1388]

May I know what is the final weight of the dough after being baked?

[@ChefBillyParisi]

No clue, didn’t weigh it

[@breadaholicinprague1388]

@@ChefBillyParisi thanks. so for anyone who wants to know, I used half of Billy recipe and the loaf weigh around 880 gram :)

[@rubo1964]

Isn't poolish supposed to be refrigerated after 1hr room? He said 12 to 24hr in room temperature is this correct? Thank you

[@ChefBillyParisi]

It’s correct

[@rubo1964]

@@ChefBillyParisi I assume the reason it works 12plus at room temperature becouse very low amount of yeast hence slower fermenting That makes sense thank you

[@SoloBudgetVegan]

Where did you get the bowl?

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Gosh I can’t remember at all. Maybe a restaurant depot store?

[@SoloBudgetVegan]

@@ChefBillyParisi Of course! Hopefully I'll be able to find one of similar quality and thickness. All of the ones I've seen so far seem a bit of the thin side. Thanks!

[@PerseusEsq]

I wish you would put the imperial measurements because grams may be accurate but also not everyone has a scale

[@travelchannel304]

Whats artisan flour?

[@polarbearal]

Why did you add HOT water to that poolish? That would kill the ferment. Maybe add water in between 75 to 85 degrees

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Does it look like it was killed?

[@polarbearal]

@@ChefBillyParisi It looked a tiny bit flat when you put it onto the pizza stone, but who is to say what the reason is? The oven spring seemed to work very well too, so maybe it's not that important. I am curious about the hot water was specifically called for in the recipe. Was that in the "Flour, water, salt, yeast" book? I'm sure the flavor of the poolish still comes through regardless, which is the important part. Cheers :)

[@victoriawhitehead3290]

The total flour in the recipe shows 550 g for bread flour. I see the 550g is added at the beginning, but then another 50g is added after the 24 hour period. Is it correct to say the total amount would be 600g? Sorry if I'm missing something, just don't want to mess it up!

[@eriklevot2896]

I think he adds 150 not 50 g so like 700g, but yeah wished he made the 'cheap' version lol

[@laurencecore]

Yes I believe so, and when making the recipe there the additional 308g water added to the polish (warm water). And it looks like this is where we get the final percentage from 50% when we started the poolish to the final 62% "hydration" desired. That is my take on it at least ;)

[@laurencecore]

Yes that too, please excuse. Also 150g not 50

[@nochese]

Step 1 says 550 g bread flour and step 2 says use remaining 50 grams of bread flour but up top it says 550 g bread flour. Should any bread flour be used in step 2?

[@ChefBillyParisi]

Yes, sorry. Read the instructions below it’s a little more clear.

[@nochese]

@@ChefBillyParisi I don't understand. My question is based on the text instructions. Are you saying that this recipe uses a total of 600 g of bread flour, not 550?

[@poksana5476]

@@ChefBillyParisi it says remaining 150 g of bread flour in the video but 50 g under the video. What is right?

[@lilyferoce9273]

It is also different on his website. Says total bread flour is 650g and whole wheat flour is 500g. He still starts with the 550g of bread flour and then adds 100g after the 24 hour rest. So I think the text is correct and not the video. I think as long as the total amount of flour is 1150g you should be good. At least that is what I am going to do right now :)

[@poksana5476]

@@lilyferoce9273 This is the best bread recipe I have tried so far. And yes in total I use 1150 g of flour. So written recipe is correct.

[@kenb3552]

France and Poland have long been allies with close cultural ties. "Poolish" is actually from Poland and when pronounced by the French, became "poolish". The Italian, slightly different version, is called a biga which is pronounced bee-gah - not big-ah.

[@rohinikumar5985]

The French word for Polish is Polonaise, not just the English word Polish said with a French accent

[@kenb3552]

@@rohinikumar5985 It's actually "polonais". I never claimed that "poolish" was the English word "Polish" pronounced with a French accent. That is an assumption on your part. The point remains - poolish is a French culinary term derived from a Polish baking practice adopted by the French.

[@arnoldschwarzenegger3849]

How much flour this is not wright

[@TarekTawfik]

From the crumb I feel you over proofed the final dough

[@michaell4235]

This ^ One look at the crumb at the beginning of the video and I almost turned it off. The crumb is missing the wider holes and looks far too dense.

[@jannicoboon3677]

Nice video, crumb looks a bit dense and gluten a bit weak Nice scoring though

[@annagampert8298]

The ingredient amounts do not match in the written description! The video says 550 flour for poolish, then the next day 550 wheat flour and 150 bread flour. In the written it’s not 150, it says 50…. Doesn’t add up in the measurements. Which is right?!

[@ranjanasharma-dx3jc]

I guess the bread came out a little bit denser.

[@jorats]

It's called boule because it's rounded...which literally means ball.

[@lisamurphy9824]

I’m sorry but what you do in the video, what you list for ingredients and “instructions” you wrote, do not add up correctly . I’m a bread maker so it wasn’t a problem for me but you might look at that? Thank you for the video and polish recipe!

[@edkaempf906]

.... or use a Dutch oven.

[@ChefBillyParisi]

If it can fit

[@pato20995]

Wtf is a boulangeray?

[@udayaliyanage3776]

Just for the record, sourdough starter is not what you used for this bread. I think your comments about benefits of sourdough bacteria in this recipe is misplaced and misleading.

[@ChefBillyParisi]

I didn’t say I did. I used a poolish.

[@Cyanideone]

You don't really seem to understand why the dough is doing what it is doing...

[@tylerchad5741]

Gay.

[@mana1407]

I just mixed poolish ingredients. I will wait 24 hrs to start the dough. In my country, the temperature reach 114 F these days.