Bread Lames for Baguettes
How we tested
Bread bakers score shaped loaves before putting them in the oven to ensure that the bread expands fully and in the right direction during baking. Professional bakers use a tool called a lame (pronounced “LAHM”), which means “blade” in French. Lames can have straight or curved blades. Straight blades are best when approaching the dough head-on to make perpendicular slashes, like the X often used for rustic boules. For these types of slashes, you can get fine results by simply using a serrated knife or razor blade. To produce the classic almond-shaped slashes that baguettes are known for, a curved-blade lame is the traditional choice. It approaches the dough at a lower angle to create a cut with a flap instead of a simple slash. In the oven, this type of slash expands into an almond shape while the flap peels back to become a crispy ridge or “ear” that adds both flavor and texture.
We tested four different curved lames (priced from roughly $9 to about $17), as well as two common substitutes—a small serrated blade (also known as a tomato knife) and a box cutter—to find out if you really need to invest in a lame to get a properly scored baguette. As we scored, it became clear: A knife or a box cutter is acceptable, but lames are better. Overall, lames were easier to hold and thus control, and they slid through the dough more cleanly.
The lames we tried were all equally sharp. We docked points from the only model with a fixed blade since once it dulls, you have to buy a whole new lame. The other lames could be refitted with cheap double-edged straight blades from the drugstore as needed. We considered how easy it was to change the blade on each model, downgrading one whose blade was difficult to secure in place. We also evaluated handles; the better the handle, the more clean and even the slashes. Our winning model has a sharp blade that’s easy to replace and its handle was easy to grasp; though the handle was a bit long, we simply choked up for good control. It also came with five extra blades.