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baking bread is chemistry. You really want to have an accurate kitchen scale to get the ingredient proportions correct by weight. Scales are definitely a good
by iainmerrick 7y ago
baking bread is chemistry. You really want to have an accurate kitchen scale to get the ingredient proportions correct by weight.
Scales are definitely a good idea, but I don’t think the general point (“don’t mess with the recipe!”) is quite as true as people make out, at least for bread baking. You can vary the yeast, salt, fat etc a fair amount and still get decent results.
Getting the hydration level right (ratio between water and flour) is the key bit. Too dry (below about 60%, meaning 60:100 water:flour) and it won’t rise. Too wet and it’ll be difficult to work (70% and up is hard) and if you don’t work it properly it’ll be too weak and again won’t rise. The whole business of folding and resting is about working with higher hydration dough.
- DanBC 7y ago> and if you don’t work it properly it’ll be too weak and again won’t rise. Yes, but no-knead recipes tend to be wetter and they come out okay.
- iainmerrick 7y agoThat’s what I meant about “folding and resting” at the end there, yeah. It does work but I find kneading just as easy and a lot faster, personally.
- ReptileMan 7y agoDough is infinitely ... transformable. Mess with the recipe and you will get something else. It will probably still be quite edible but it won't be the loaf you signed up for.
- iainmerrick 7y agoYes! It’s usually still delicious, I guess is my point. Although if you experiment a lot you do find some pretty extreme failure cases. :)