Скачать или смотреть Belgian Pistolets (split rolls)

It amazes me how many possibilities are out there when it comes to different doughs, their structures, shapes, and tastes. What is even more amazing is that you use the same basic few ingredients but the final delicious product variations are countless.
My extreme love for oven-baked bread goes back to my childhood. I was always in love with oven-baked bread way more than the flatbreads that are made on a hot cast iron griddle on an everyday basis in our homes. And back at home, we usually buy oven-baked bread from local bakeries.
In my childhood, I had access to a clay oven at home, which my mom wouldn’t let me use on my own as it was not safe for me at that age. Once we had a baking oven installed in our kitchen, and from that day till this day I must have made baked goods thousands of times. And experimenting with different ratios of different flours, dairy, eggs, different fats, different yeast brands, and even different varieties of salts gives me different results and something new to learn every time.
So long story short, I made these split rolls recently and fell in love with the recipe. These rolls have a tender, pillowy, and sweet interior and a crusty exterior which is the definition of a perfectly baked bread. My whole family loved these rolls so much that they deserved to have a separate story to tell. Let's begin then.

MEK Belgium Pistolets (Split bread rolls)

Bread flour 480g, 4 cups
2 tbsp sugar, 20 g
1 tbsp malt syrup or maple syrup
2 tsp salt, 9 g
2 ¼ tsp active dry yeast, 8 g
3 tbsp dry milk powder
1 ½ cups warm milk, 12 Oz.
4 tbsp soft butter, 54 g
Fine semolina flour for dusting the rolls
A bamboo straw or a small dowel for shaping
A large size baking tray

Combine flour, sugar, yeast, and malt syrup in a heavy mixing bowl. Mix everything and make a well in the center. Slowly add milk to the center and using a dough whisk, whisk it starting from the middle and incorporating flour from the sides. Keep using a dough whisk for as long as your arms have the strength. Then cover the dough bowl and let it rest for 20- 30 minutes. During this time the yeast will activate and develop and the dough will hydrate.
Then add the salt to the very shaggy dough and knead it with wet hands. Once you incorporate the salt, throw in butter and continue kneading it. Once all the butter is absorbed by the dough, cover the bowl again and let it rise in a warm spot for half an hour.
After the second short rise, transfer the dough to the surface and knead it with a strong push-pull method. Use a slap-and-fold method in between the kneading and try to develop a good smooth structured strong dough. Once you see the dough is creamy and smooth, place it back in the bowl and cover it airtight using a plastic wrap. At this point don't just use a towel for covering as the dough surface will dry out. Let the dough bulk rise for a total of 3- 4 hours.

Then remove it from the bowl and spread it in a rectangular form or make a log out of it. Cut the dough into eight equal portions and roll into tight balls. Cover the balls for 10 minutes to let the gluten relax.
Sprinkle some semolina flour on the dough balls and use a small dowel to shape them gently as can be seen in the video. Don't push the dowel all the way to the bottom, and stop ¾ the way through the dowel push. The two sides will rise and touch each other and that is what we want. Using your fingers gently pull the slit outward and elongate the rolls slightly. Flip the roll upside down. Place them back on the tray spacing them out enough so they have room to rise. Cover them and let them rise till they double in size.

Heat the oven to 425 F and place a rack in the middle. And have a kettle of boiled water ready. Once the oven is done preheating, slide the tray under the baking rack and pour 2-3 cups of the boiling water in there. Uncover the rolls and flip them back so the two split lips are facing up. Make sure to space them two inches apart. Bake them in the preheated and moist oven for 25-28 minutes. Take them out and enjoy them as dinner rolls or slice them through and use them as burger buns. May it be healthy for you, enjoy!