BREAD MAKING

The basic steps in any kind of bread production are as follows: Selecting and preparing bread tin: Always use a thick and heavy tray, which can resist the high temperature of baking. Shapes of breads rely on the type of mould or tin used. Tin or mould should be greased properly to avoid the bread sticking to the tin. Mixing the ingredients: Sieve flour and salt together make a well in the center add the yeast mixture and water or liquid according to the recipe and mix well. Kneading: It is the most important step, which aids in developing the gluten-induced elasticity of the dough. It distributes the gas bubbles produced by the yeast so the bread develops a close, even and smooth texture. Kneading is more effective if rhythmic. Fermentation/proving: Process in which the yeast reacts on sugar and produces the carbon dioxide, which increases the dough, size to double. The optimum temperature for proving is 32C. Knock back: Dough is punched down to knock out the air bubbles that have developed during the rising and enable even rising. The knocking back action also redistributes the yeast and the other ingredients evenly all through the dough. Dividing and scaling: This is used to portion dough into pieces of the required weight. Shaping: Divided pieces of dough are shaped in the form of loaf or rolls. It should be done in a sparingly floured surface, handling the dough gently and placing it for final proving. Scoring: the process of giving marks on top of the dough with a sharp blade or a knife. It helps the bread to expand during baking with out cracking. Baking: It involves cooking the moulded or shaped dough in an oven. During baking dough goes through three stages First stage: The oven spring occurs and the gas bubbles in the dough expand and it rises rapidly. Second stage: The dough solidifies and transform into bread. Third stage: The dough gets it colour and crust. Checking doneness of bread: The standard test for yeast bread is to take the loaf from the baking tin and tap/ knock the base of the baked. If it sounds hollow it indicates that the bread is done. The colour should be an even brown from all sides. Practical cookery: Page 642