Recipe hydration
Miche (Poilâne-Style) — Hydration Guide
Target 78%. Workable range 75–82%.
Why this hydration for Miche (Poilâne-Style)?
Miche is a very large French hearth loaf — traditionally 1-2 kg (2-4 lbs) — made with high-extraction flour (T80 or T85). Deep flavor from extensive bran, dense moist crumb, excellent keeping quality (7+ days). Poilâne bakery in Paris makes the global-reference miche. Weight matters: smaller sizes don't produce the characteristic moist interior.
Flour mix: 100% high extraction.
What 78% hydration does for Miche (Poilâne-Style)
At its 78% target, Miche (Poilâne-Style) bakes up with a very open, holey, translucent crumb — the hallmark of a high-hydration hearth loaf, at the cost of slack, sticky dough that needs confident handling. That's why the style sits where it does on the scale — push it much drier and it tightens toward a sandwich loaf; push it much wetter and it slackens past what the hearth structure can hold.
Worked water math for a 500 g batch
| Flour | 500 g (100%) |
| Water | 390 g (78%) |
| Salt | 10 g (2%) |
| Levain | 90 g (~18%) |
The levain already carries some of that flour and water. The calculator below subtracts its contribution so the numbers you actually weigh at the bench hit 78% exactly.
How this flour mix drinks
Miche (Poilâne-Style) uses 100% high extraction. That's straight white bread flour, which handles predictably at 78% — add all the water up front and adjust only if a new bag of flour behaves differently.
Technique at 78%
Autolyse 60 min with all water at 80°F. Add levain, salt. 4 folds in 2h. Long bulk 5h at 76°F. Shape very tight boule, heavily flour banneton. Cold retard 12h. Bake in LARGE dutch oven (7-qt minimum) at 480°F: 30 min lid on, 30 min lid off, or until internal 210°F.
Calculator pre-set to 78%
- Flour to add
- 450 g
- Water to add
- 340 g
- Salt
- 10 g
- Levain @ 100%
- 100 g
- Total dough
- 900 g
- Effective hydration
- 78%
How the math works
Total water = flour × hydration %. Your levain contributes 50 g flour + 50 g water — both count toward the totals. You add only the remainder as fresh flour and water.
Salt % is computed on total flour weight, not final-dough flour.
Miche (Poilâne-Style) hydration — FAQ
What hydration is Miche (Poilâne-Style) meant to be?
Target 78% — that's 78 g of water per 100 g of flour by weight. The workable range is 75–82% depending on your flour and handling skill.
How much water do I need for Miche (Poilâne-Style)?
Multiply your flour weight by 0.78. For a 500 g flour batch that's 390 g water, plus about 10 g salt (2%). The calculator on this page also subtracts the water your levain already contributes.
Can I make Miche (Poilâne-Style) at a lower hydration?
Down to about 75% gives a tighter crumb and much easier, less sticky handling — a good starting point if you're new to this style. Below 75% the open, characteristic Miche (Poilâne-Style) texture is largely lost.
Can I make Miche (Poilâne-Style) at a higher hydration?
Up to about 82% opens the crumb further but demands confident wet-dough handling (more folds, a well-floured bench, decisive shaping). Above 82% the structure usually slackens and the loaf spreads instead of rising.