it's no secret that it's tough to get
read right screw up just one thing and
you'll end up with a loaf that didn't
rise one that got super dense or one
that's still goopy in the middle here
are the most common pitfalls standing
between you and a perfect loaf back when
your parents grandparents or
great-grandparents used to bake bread
chances are they only had one option
when it came to flour that's definitely
not the case today while you still might
choose all-purpose flour for some breads
there's also whole wheat flour almond
flour white whole wheat flour and so on
and so on and each of those flowers acts
a little differently according to the
experts treating them all the same and
trying to use them interchangeably will
absolutely ruin your bread say you use
grandma's recipe for bread which may
have been written with all-purpose flour
in mind you want a loaf of wheat bread
though and it's not going to work as
written whole-wheat flour is much more
absorbent than the recipes assuming your
flour is and you'll end up using more
water and getting a super sticky dough
that's incredibly hard to knead right
that's even further complicated by the
fact that coarse whole wheat flour will
break up gluten and protein chains if
it's overworked and you'll end up with a
loaf that crumbles instead of cuts every
type of flour has different properties
so match your flour to your recipe and
it'll be easier to get your proportions
100% correct we're all looking for ways
to get healthier and it might seem like
swapping low-fat oils or butters into
your bread is an easy way to cut back
but it's not and here's why fats play a
key role in the chemistry of baking
they're necessary for lubricating the
dough and retaining gasses which not
only helps the loaf rise but also keeps
it fresh when you're using a standard
full fat version of whatever butter or
oil you're mixing into your dough you're
probably fine the problems start when
you try to use reduced fat ingredients
partially because the lower fat content
means you'd have to use more than the
recipe calls for to get the same effect
and that's going to mess up your water
and liquid ratios also reduced fat
spreads and butters are made with a
different process than the regular kind
since they have more water a different
chemical emulsion is needed to keep the
water in fats mixed
so when you go to mix it into your dough
it's not going to incorporate as well as
a full fat product would you should
always make sure you're using an
ingredient that contains 70% or more fat
otherwise your bread is going to be
tough chewy and dry whether it's white
sugar brown sugar molasses or fruit
juice sugars essentially act as the fuel
for yeast yeast needs it to work and
undergo the process that's going to make
your bread rise if there's not enough
sugar the yeast isn't going to work well
because it doesn't have enough of that
fuel to feed on but if you add too much
sugar you'll end up getting the same
lackluster effect this time because the
extra sugar is stealing water away from
the yeast
that's why sweet breads always call for
more yeast than savory ones and here's
another thing if you add your yeast and
then sugars right on top of it it'll
slow the process down and your breads
not going to rise to get this particular
process to work right you'll have to mix
it precisely according to your recipe
yeast also doesn't feed on artificial
sweeteners so you can't use them to
replace sugar and get the same loaf of
bread and the darker the sugar the more
quickly the bread is going to Brown so
keep that in mind when you're setting
your time and temperature hydration is
exactly what it sounds like it's the
amount of liquid in your dough one of
the most common reasons a loaf doesn't
rise is because it doesn't have the
right liquid to flour ratio a well
proportioned dough shouldn't stick to
your hands or to the side of the mixing
bowl in a way that makes it frustrating
to peel off it should only feel tacky to
the touch and when it does that means
the dough is the right environment for
the gluten to stretch and the yeast to
feed releasing carbon dioxide to cause
the bread to rise it's not just water
you have to worry about you also have to
consider milk fruit juices and sneakier
sources of moisture like eggs fats or
liquid sweeteners keep that in mind if
you're tempted to add something the
recipe doesn't call for it's all going
to change what's happening in your dough
just because the water coming out of
your tab is safe to drink doesn't mean
it's going to make for great bread if
there's chlorine in your water it can
interfere with the way enzymes in the
dough work and that'll change the final
product yeast is also super sensitive to
chlorine so if you've got chlorinated
water
running through your pipes you might
want to filter it for the sake of making
bread if you have hard water which is to
say water with high levels of calcium
and magnesium ions that's also going to
interfere with the chemical process of
your baking the gluten won't be as
pliable and the fermentation rate will
slow but having water that's too soft is
just as bad they got to be soft how soft
is that to self without those minerals
your dough won't form into that firm
ball you're looking for if your tap
water isn't right down the middle on the
hardness scale you might want to find an
alternative not too hard not too solid
here's a mistake that's super easy to
make especially considering most of us
aren't used to cooking with ingredients
that are actually living things like
yeast while most ingredients are fine if
they sit in your cupboard for a while if
that dry yeast has been there for a bit
it might be dead it also might be dead
if it was stored improperly or passed
it's best if used by date this is one of
those times those dates actually means
something's really honestly gone off
because yeast will become less and less
active with age that's even true if you
haven't opened it yet properly storing
your yeast is crucial to and if it's
kept in a way that brings it into
contact with air heat or moisture it's
going to degrade very quickly so keep it
in a cool dry place in your fridge or in
your freezer
whether you're kneading by hand or with
a stand mixer it's a crucial part of the
process that's incredibly easy to get
wrong meeting bread develops not just
gluten but in turn also develops a sort
of straight network of proteins that
allows bread to rise while still holding
together but here's the thing if you
don't need bread long enough you won't
get enough air in the dough but if you
need it too much you're also going to
damage your dough the movement of the
dough your hands and the dough hook is
going to cause too much heat to build up
and too much air to get into the mix
which will make a loaf that doesn't have
too much flavor the key is to look for a
few things in your dough it should
easily pull free of the sides of the
bowl or your work surface and when you
pull it it should remind you a bit of a
rubber band in the way it snaps back if
that's your dull stop kneading
not everyone has a stand mixer and you
certainly don't need one to need bread
but according to America's Test Kitchen
having one saves you from making a few
mistakes for starters it means you're
working the dough in a more uniform
fashion it takes a lot of muscle to
knead dough in a regular way for 20 to
25 minutes after all but there's
something else at work here too you're
also keeping your liquid to flour ratios
more exact what's the first thing you do
when you're kneading by hand you
sprinkle some flour on the work surface
on your hands and on the dough to keep
it from sticking you probably do that a
few more times over the course of the
kneading process and if you use too much
flour that can turn into a huge mistake
while some dough's might need a little
extra flour they're not going to need a
lot not if you're following the recipe
right at least if you do add too much
it's going to change the texture of your
loaf into something you're not going to
want to replicate ever baking bread is
tricky and you can even make mistakes as
you're doing nothing but watching the
clock first off never forget to cover
your bread with a protective little hat
and that's not even a joke a shower cap
can work pretty brilliantly for this
step you can also use plastic wrap or a
clean tea towel you're basically
covering it to keep the moisture in
that'll also keep the skin of the dough
from drying out too much but there's
nothing wrong with it drying slightly
breaking that skin when you're splitting
your dough and putting it into bread
pans is a mistake too because if you
don't break that super thin skin you'll
be able to cut long deliberate slashes
in the top to give the bread a place to
break and fold as it bakes and expands
which will give you a much better
looking loaf how many times have you
pulled a loaf of bread out of the oven
and been disappointed that it didn't
rise much your mistake might not have
had anything to do with the recipe or
ingredients at all it may have risen
just fine
but if you use the wrong size pan it
certainly won't look that way and we're
not even talking about a huge difference
in pan sizes you might have two
different size bread pans in your
cupboards right now and not even realize
it there's nine by five inch pans and
there's eight and a half by four and a
half inch pans is that really enough to
make a difference yes it is the bigger
pants are actually for breads that don't
use yeast like your favorite banana
bread the smaller pans are for breads
that call freezed and that half-inch
makes a huge difference do the math and
you'll find that the bigger pan actually
has about 30% more room in it and that
means yeast breads aren't going to rise
as big and tall in the bigger pan size
does matter you've measured and mixed
needed and proofed and finally you've
baked you're in the clear now right not
exactly
if you've ever pulled the pan out of the
oven and left it somewhere too cool
you're not doing it any favours the most
you should do is let yeast bread rest in
the pan for about five minutes then
transfer it to a wire rack that five
minutes isn't always necessary either
and it's only to allow a slightly wobbly
loaf to firm up a bit ideally you'll
want to transfer it to a rack
immediately after taking it out of the
oven that'll prevent the crust from
getting tough and no one wants a super
tough crust here's another tip for
getting the crust just right if your
bread seems to be as brown as you want
it but it still has some baking time
left don't take it out of the oven early
just cover it gently with a piece of
aluminum foil and let it finish the bake
time that way you should be able to take
it out of the pan immediately look at it
this way it'll cool faster and it'll be
ready to eat faster - check out one of
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