Rocketeering

Thinking about and now mid way through drawing up new oven plans ready for quotation, and then onwards to building.

Our mark 1 oven currently in use on bake days is a characterful but clunky black oven – black ovens are high mass wood fired ovens, with the fire inside the baking chamber.

The main driver for a new oven is a) more oven space and b) inside! (It rains up here you see…). We had been thinking a new white guerlard type oven – white ovens are still high mass wood fired ovens, but the fire is located outside the baking chamber, with only the hot gases continuing into the baking chamber.

We are now minded to go rocketeering instead. Rocket ovens are low mass  wood fired ovens, where the fire and the hot gases are outside the baking chamber. They have several benifits:-

a) Less mass = less wood = less cost environmentally in terms of burning wood

b) Because the hot gas do not enter the baking chamber theres no scuffling etc = easier / cleaner to manage

c) Less time to heat, and heating can continue between batches if required

Sounds great huh? They were originally developed for third world (see this good document on the subject). Downside we see it is a) much harder to build and b) more unknown / less established for bread than their heavy black and white siblings.

Good news is some #realbread bakers / rocketeers have blasted off ahead of us – googling reveals some other #realbread rocketeers:-

e5bakehouse in London

Steamie Bakehouse in Dunfermline, Fife

The Bread Kiln in Fochabers

Time for lift off 🙂 Will keep you posted