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Bread Basics: How to Make Perfect Loaves Every Time

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There’s nothing quite like the aroma of fresh-baked bread filling your home. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or a beginner, mastering the art of bread making is an essential skill. In this guide, we will cover the basics of bread making and provide you with tips and tricks for perfect loaves every time!

 

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From selecting the right ingredients to kneading and shaping the dough, you’ll learn everything you need to know to make delicious bread at home. So, roll up your sleeves and let’s get baking!

Ingredients

The key to baking perfect bread is having the right ingredients. Here’s a breakdown of the essential ingredients you’ll need:

  • Flour: The type of flour you use will affect the texture and flavor of your bread. All-purpose flour is a good choice for beginners, but you can experiment with bread flour, whole wheat flour, and other types of flour to achieve different results.
  • Yeast: Yeast is what makes your bread rise. You can use active dry yeast, instant yeast, or fresh yeast. Follow the instructions on the package to activate the yeast properly.
  • Salt: Salt is important for flavor, but it also helps control the fermentation process and strengthens the gluten structure in the bread.
  • Sugar: Sugar adds sweetness and helps feed the yeast. You can use granulated sugar, honey, molasses, or other sweeteners.
  • Water: Water is the main liquid in your dough. It should be warm (around 110°F) to activate the yeast but not too hot to kill it.

Other optional ingredients you may want to include in your bread recipe are milk, eggs, butter, and herbs or spices.

Techniques

Making bread is not just about mixing the ingredients and putting them in the oven. There are specific techniques that need to be followed to get the perfect loaf. Here are some essential techniques you need to know:

  1. Mixing: One of the most important steps in bread making is mixing. It’s essential to mix the ingredients properly to achieve the right consistency. Mixing can be done by hand or with a mixer, but it’s important not to over-mix as this can make the bread tough.
  2. Kneading: Kneading is an important step in developing gluten in the dough, which gives the bread its structure and texture. Kneading also helps to distribute the yeast evenly throughout the dough. It’s important to knead the dough until it’s smooth and elastic, which usually takes about 10-15 minutes.
  3. Rising: The rising process is crucial to the success of your bread. The dough needs to be placed in a warm, draft-free place for the yeast to work its magic. The ideal temperature for rising is between 80-85°F. You can cover the dough with a damp towel or plastic wrap to prevent it from drying out.
  4. Shaping: Shaping the dough is where the art of bread making comes in. There are many different ways to shape bread, depending on the type of bread you are making. It’s important to handle the dough gently to avoid deflating it.
  5. Scoring: Scoring is the process of making shallow cuts in the surface of the dough before baking. This helps to release the steam from the bread as it bakes, which results in a crispy crust. It also allows the bread to expand evenly in the oven. Use a sharp knife or a bread lame to score the dough.

By mastering these essential techniques, you can make perfect loaves of bread every time.

Baking

Baking bread is not just about mixing and kneading the dough, it’s also about the baking process itself. After you have shaped your dough, it’s time to put it in the oven. But before that, you need to make sure your oven is preheated to the correct temperature. This is important because the right temperature will help your bread bake evenly and rise properly.

When it comes to baking times and temperatures, there are many variables to consider. These include the size and shape of your loaf, the type of flour you used, and the moisture content of your dough. Generally, most breads bake at 375-425°F (190-220°C) for 30-40 minutes, but it’s always best to refer to your specific recipe for guidance.

To test if your bread is perfectly baked, you can tap the bottom of the loaf. If it sounds hollow, it’s ready! Another way to check is to insert an instant-read thermometer into the center of the loaf. If it reads between 190-210°F (88-99°C), your bread is fully cooked.

Once your bread is out of the oven, it’s important to let it cool properly before slicing into it. This allows the crumb structure to set, giving your bread a chewy texture and preventing it from becoming too gummy. The cooling process can take anywhere from 1-2 hours, depending on the size and shape of your loaf. You can cool your bread on a wire rack or a clean towel.

Troubleshooting

Bread making can be a finicky process, and even experienced bakers can run into issues from time to time. But don’t fret – with a little knowledge and practice, you can troubleshoot most common problems and end up with a perfect loaf every time.

One of the most common problems in bread making is over-rising. This can cause the dough to become too light and airy, resulting in a flat or misshapen loaf. To avoid over-rising, be sure to pay attention to the timing and temperature of your rising environment. If your dough has risen more than it should have, you can punch it down and reshape it before letting it rise again.

Under-rising can also be a problem, resulting in a dense and heavy loaf. To ensure your dough rises properly, make sure your yeast is fresh and active, and that your rising environment is warm and draft-free. If you’re still having trouble with under-rising, try adding a little extra yeast or letting your dough rise for a bit longer.

Tough crusts are another issue that can plague bakers. To get a softer crust, try brushing your loaf with melted butter or oil before baking, or baking it covered for the first part of the baking process.

Sticky or misshapen loaves can also be a problem. If your dough is too sticky, try adding a little extra flour. If your loaf is misshapen, make sure you’re shaping it properly and that it’s not sticking to your work surface.

With a little practice and patience, you’ll be able to troubleshoot most bread making problems and achieve perfectly baked loaves every time.

Try all these tips to bake the perfect bread to have with your favorite dish. If this guide wasn’t enough, we’ve also got your dish covered, check a recipe here: https://minuterice.com/recipes/rice-stuffed-eggplant-parmesan/. Enjoy and let us know how it goes!

Make the Perfect Bread – Here’s How the Falling Number Test Works

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Do you have trouble making the perfect bread at home? If you are using the incorrect flour, you will never get that delicious soft bread you’ve always dreamt of. Here are some ways to use science and the falling number test to figure out which flour to use to make the perfect bread!

Make this rosemary bread! Recipe was featured here.

The Falling Number (FN) test measures enzyme activity in flour. This is related to the alpha-amylase (AA) cereal enzyme, which is found in wheat after harvesting. FN measures the amount and activity of alpha-amylase in flour samples. Why is it important to measure this, and how does the Falling Number test work?

The Effects of AA in Grain

A certain amount of alpha-amylase is important in ensuring proper baking happens, because AA breaks down starches, which provides sugars that fuel fermentation processes. With the right amount of AA activity, you can achieve a high volume of bread that has the right firm and soft texture combination. If the level of alpha-amylase is high, there will be a greater formation of dextrins during the breadmaking process. The resulting dough will be sticky and harder to manage, producing a lower volume.

On the other hand, if AA activity is too low, then the result is likely to be a dry breadcrumb, also with a lower volume.

What is the FN Test?

Developed in Sweden, the Falling Number test transforms a flour sample into a gravy-like substance, by combining it with hot water. It then uses a falling paddle to test how thick this substance stays over a given time period, measured in seconds. The FN time is the time it takes to mix the substance and for the paddle to fall through the gelatinised starch in the mixture. Where there is high enzyme activity, this breaks the starch down rapidly, with the paddle device falling through the mixture in a relatively short time.

Essentially, it is a risk management tool. If FN is below 300 seconds, it significantly increases the chances of the AA enzymes being active. Grain with high AA activity, where low falling numbers are shown, may not produce good quality products.

Knowing Your Falling Numbers

You can also use the Falling Number test to bake products with specific or desired FN values. For example, flours used in bread baking will have different FN values to flours used for other products, such as crackers or biscuits. FN values over 250 seconds are most suitable for bread baking processes, whereas falling numbers over 350 seconds may mean that the flour will require supplementing with malted grain or a form of amylolytic enzyme.

What Influences Falling Numbers?

There can be several reasons for lower falling numbers, and correspondingly high amounts of AA activity in flour. Fluctuations in precipitation and temperature can affect wheat harvests. Unpredictable weather patterns can result in pre-harvest sprouting, initiating germination that turns wheat from green to gold. Large temperature increases or decreases can lead to late maturity alpha-amylase during grain maturation. 

The Benefits of the FN Test

FN can test for:

  • Activity of enzymes in wheat flour
  • Damage to wheat kernels from sprouting
  • Water-binding capacity and water absorption
  • Dough-handling issues
  • Different flour specifications.

Calibre Control provides expert Falling Number testing equipment, including the Perten Falling Number 1000 and the Falling Number 1310. For more information, please get in touch on +44 (0) 1925 860 401, or email info@calibrecontrol.com

Walnut Bread Roll Recipe (Croatian Orahnjaca)

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A traditional European delicacy, a walnut roll is the ideal recipe for a special occasion or for a every day treat. You can alter this recipe with poppy seeds as well and even add in raisins soaked in rum for an even yummier taste.

Walnut Bread Roll Recipe (Croatian Orahnjaca)

 

Ingredients:

Dough
 
  1. – 100 grams caster sugar
  2. – 200 ml milk
  3. – 30 grams yeast
  4. – 600 grams plain flour
  5. – 150 grams butter, melted
  6. – 4 egg yolks
  7. – 1/2 tsp salt
Filling
 
  1. – 400 grams wallnuts, finely ground
  2. – 4 egg whites
  3. – 200 grams caster sugar
  4. – 100 ml milk, scalded

Instructions:

  1. Dissolve the sugar in warm milk, blend in the yeast and leave for 15 minutes.
  2. Mix together flour, yeast, salt, butter and egg yolks to make a dough. Beat with a wooden spoon until blisters begin to form on the dough.
  3. Cover and let stand in a warm place until it doubles in size, about 1 hour.

Filling

  1. Beat egg whites until stiff.
  2. Heat the milk in a pot until scalding hot. Pour the scalded milk over the walnuts. Combine with sugar and rum. Allow to cool.
  3. Gently fold in beaten egg whites.

To Assemble

  1. Spread flour on a large table-cloth. Divide the dough into two sections.
  2. Roll each section out very thin (on the table-cloth).
  3. Divide walnut mixture into half and fill each rolled out down with the wallnut filling making sure it’s spread out evenly.
  4. Roll by up by lifting the edge of the table-cloth on which the dough was rolled out, to form an even roll.
  5. Liberal oil 2 bread pans and place a roll into each pan.
  6. Brush the rolls with melted butter and bake at 175 C (350 F) for about 40 minutes or until they become golden. Let cool in the pan. Slice and enjoy.
Notes
 
  1. Add raisins soaked in rum for a hit of taste. Freeze the extra loaf by wrapping in tin foil and sealing in a plastic bag.