Solving The 6 Biggest Mistakes Faced When Baking Bread
Paul Chen
The most common mistake by far would be when you forgot to add salt when you mould your dough. The outcome is that this results in a really bland bread, and affects the rising of the dough even - Causing your bread to lie flat on top.
My solution to you is for you to post "stick-ups" and notes on places like your kitchen wall, fridge, recipe book, next time so that you will never ever have to forget about adding salt to your dough again! Dont sacrifice a good bake because of poor memory!
Baking Mistake #2
When people heat up their kettles and water to add yeast in, they often accidentally leave it overheated. This is a huge mistake! It will destroy the yeast and your bread will not rise. You can correct this by investing a little in a good old cooking thermometer. That will make your temperature measurements and life so much easier for you!
Baking Mistake #3
Another common mistake is when people allow the bread dough to over rise, which then leads to it having to fall.
This happens many a time when people forget about their dough. As everyone gets a little busy, worked up, and over-excited - Who doesnt forget little things as such?
Yet so, dont worry! Solution: If the bread is already on the pans when it over rises, just use a simple pair of kitchen scissors to cut off all the excess dough on the unbaked sides of the loaves. Next, you segregate and roll the dough into small little balls of dough. Be patient, allow them to rise from about 20 to 30 minutes on a cookie sheet (oiled), then bake them on 350F for about 15 to 25 minutes as the bread rolls.
Remember to allow the loaves of dough to rise for another 10 minutes extra before having it baked extremely flat on top.
Baking Mistake #4
Your bread gets burned. Yes, nothing can get any worse than bread black as charcoal! To avoid that, have yourself be sure that you follow all baking times and temperatures strictly like a work timetable/routine. Again, do not be shy to make the timer your best friend - it could and would save your bread from getting roasted!
Also, keep in mind that temperatures vary from different oven types (Gas to electric). Therefore, make sure the temperatures used are constant in whatever oven youre baking with.
Baking Mistake #5
Dont forget about air bubbles when you bake! "Pockets" they call it, creates large holes inside the bread after its done baking. This makes your bread very fluffy and gives it poor texture and taste. It loses the aroma and quality as well.
The best solution would be to pinch those "pockets" whenever you notice them occurring in your baking dough before having it baked. This will inflate any such bubbles and save your bread from deterioration.
Baking Mistake #6
Ok......last but not least, what flour should you use? Should you add some sunflower seeds? Add rye with oregano, and honey?
I know every once in awhile everyone likes to get creative but be sure to know your ingredients well before you attempt to jumble them all up and have them mixed! Imagine baking a large amount of loaves for your family on a weekend only to have them look you in the eye in dismay and disappointment of weird tasting bread they have had to put up with. Be sure to experiment with small amounts of such dough/ingredients in advance before you attempt to bake it large and huge in quantity!
Now Im sure you know what to do and what not-to-do! Know your ingredients well, keep the 6 deadly mistakes of bread baking in mind - and youre on the way to becoming a great successful bread maker!
Have fun and share with your friends about your baking adventures today.
Paul is one of the most enthusiastic teenage bakers in Asia and he calls himself "The Baking Ninja!" He is also a competitive Thai boxer for Punch Academy Gym in Singapore and is an expert on the topic of Health and Nutrition. He simply loves baking, bread, photography and likes to share it with others.
You can find out more about his baking tips, recipes, stories, and happenings on his blog at http://thebakingninja.blogspot.com
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