Ch.10: Cereal Doughs and Batters

Chapter 10 of the book "On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen" by Harold McGee (1984) The Evolution of Bread Structure of Doughs and Batters Wheat Flours Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings Breads Thin Batter Foods Thick Batter Foods: Breads and Cakes Pastries Cookies Pasta, Noodles, and Dumplings

356 flashcards · Other · by lakesare

Part of Public › Books › On Food and Cooking (Harold McGee) · 16 courses

1. [Cereal Doughs and Batters] What was the difference between the first flatbreads and the first raised breads?

   Raised bread is the same paste of ground grain and water, left to ferment a day or two before cooking. Flatbread: the paste cooked at once on a hot surface. The fermenting paste fills with gas, so raised bread has a light interior of small chambers.

2. [Cereal Doughs and Batters] What do the English words lord, lady and companion have to do with bread?

   Lord meant "loaf guardian", lady "loaf kneader", companion "one who shares bread". The lord was the one who supplied the bread. From Anglo-Saxon hlaford and hlaefdige, and late Latin companio.

3. [Cereal Doughs and Batters] What did the word bread originally mean?

   A piece of a loaf. Loaf then meant the leavened, baked substance. Later loaf came to mean the whole baked mass, and bread took over the old meaning of loaf.McGee: "Otherwise we would now ask for a bread of loaf!"

4. [The Evolution of Bread] Throughout the history of bread, which kinds of bread have been the prestigious ones?

   The refined, enriched kinds: white flour, mild yeasts, more fat and sugar. White flour has little bran or germ. Already the ancient Greeks prized white bread. In the 20th century this went to an extreme (flavorless industrial breads); since the 1980s simpler, less refined breads have come back.

5. [The Evolution of Bread] How did the first raised doughs come about, before anyone added yeast?

   Wild yeasts from the air and the grain surface grew in a moist grain paste. Bakers then kept the process going by mixing a leftover piece of risen dough into each new dough. The oldest remains of leavened bread are Egyptian, from about 4000 BCE.

6. [The Evolution of Bread] Before commercial yeast, which two sources of yeast did bakers use?

   A saved piece of fermenting dough, and the froth from brewing beer. Beer froth was valued because it made a less sour bread than old dough.

7. [The Evolution of Bread] Why was the rotating millstone an important step for bread?

   A stone that turns continuously can be driven by animals, water or wind, not people. So grain could be ground into very fine flour with little human labor. Earlier: mortar and pestle, then two flat stones moved back and forth. Saddlestone, lever mill, hourglass mill (Roman), flat millstones (water and wind mills).

8. [The Evolution of Bread] What was a medieval trencher?

   A thick, dry slice of bread used as a plate. It was eaten afterwards or given to the poor. Medieval pastry was similarly used as an edible container for storing and cooking meat dishes.

9. [The Evolution of Bread] What was pearlash?

   An early chemical leavening: potassium carbonate, an alkali made from the ash of burned plants. The ash was soaked in water, and the liquid was drained off and dried down. It appears in the first American cookbook (1796) in recipes for cookies and gingerbread.

10. [The Evolution of Bread] How does pearlash (potassium carbonate) make a dough rise?

    It reacts with acid ingredients in the dough and releases CO2\mathrm{CO_2}CO2​ . Baking soda and baking powder, which work the same way, replaced it between 1830 and 1850.

11. [The Evolution of Bread] Which mixtures could baking soda and baking powder raise that yeast raises poorly?

    Mixtures that must rise at once, such as runny cake batters and sweet cookie doughs. Yeast grows slowly, so it needs a dough that holds gas for a long time.

12. [The Evolution of Bread] How did purified commercial yeast (around 1900) differ from the brewer's yeast bakers had used before?

    It was more predictable and less acidic.

13. [The Evolution of Bread] Why would a medieval Englishman have found "whole wheat flour" a contradiction?

    "Flour" meant "flower", the best part of the grain: what is left once germ and bran are sifted out. French farine and Italian farina instead come from Latin far, a kind of grain.McGee: "To a medieval Englishman, 'whole wheat flour' would have been a contradiction in terms!"

14. [The Evolution of Bread] How do 20th-century bread factories develop the dough, compared with traditional baking?

    In minutes, with machines and chemical additives, instead of hours of yeast fermentation. Result: a soft, cake-like interior, a soft crust, an unusual flavor, and a loaf that stays soft in a plastic bag for a week or more.

15. [The Evolution of Bread] What is par-baking?

    Partly baking loaves and freezing them, so a shop can finish the baking on site. Factories par-bake; supermarkets finish the loaves and sell them crusty and fresh.

16. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What sets wheat dough apart from doughs of other cereals?

    It holds together in one mass and springs back after being pressed. These qualities make possible light loaves, flaky pastries and silky pasta. Most other powders mixed with water give an inert paste.

17. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What are the three basic structural elements of doughs and batters?

    Water, gluten proteins and starch granules. Bread and cakes are light because millions of gas bubbles divide this protein-starch mass; pastries are flaky because thin layers of fat divide it.

18. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What distinguishes a dough from a batter?

    A dough has more flour than water and can be handled; a batter has more water and can be poured. In a dough all the water is bound to gluten and to starch surfaces. In a batter much of the water is free liquid, with gluten and starch dispersed in it.

19. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What makes the structure of a dough or batter permanent during baking?

    The starch granules absorb water and swell, so the mass turns solid.

20. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] Bakers call the spongy network of starch and protein inside a bread or cake the crumb; the drier, denser outer surface is the crust.

21. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What is gluten?

    The elastic mass of wheat proteins that forms when flour is mixed with water. Chew a piece of dough and a gum-like elastic residue remains: that is gluten. The Chinese called it "the muscle of flour". Its proteins may be the largest protein molecules in nature.

22. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What changes when the gluten proteins of flour get wet?

    They become mobile: they change shape, slide past each other, and bond with each other. Gluten proteins do not dissolve in water, but associate with water molecules and with each other.

23. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] Which two kinds of protein make up most of gluten?

    Gliadins and glutenins. Both are around a thousand amino acids long.

24. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] Gluten is made of gliadins and glutenins. Which of the two forms the network?

    The glutenins: they bond to each other in several ways. Gliadins fold into compact shapes and bond only weakly.

25. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] How do glutenin molecules link end to end?

    Their ends contain sulfur, which forms strong sulfur-sulfur bonds with other glutenins. The sulfur is in the amino acids at each end. The result: chains a few hundred glutenins long.

26. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What do the ends of glutenin molecules need in order to bond to each other?

    Oxidizing agents. Sources: oxygen from the air, substances produced by yeast, or flour "improvers" added by the miller or baker.

27. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What bonds does the long coiled middle part of a glutenin molecule form?

    Many weak, temporary bonds with neighboring gluten proteins. These are hydrogen and hydrophobic bonds. Together with the end-to-end links, they make gluten an interconnected network of coiled proteins. Glutenins link end to end into long coiled chains; stretching straightens the kinks, and releasing lets them re-form.

28. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] Bread-wheat gluten is both plastic and elastic. What do the two words mean here?

    Plastic: it changes shape under pressure. Elastic: when released, it springs back. So the dough expands with the yeast's CO2\mathrm{CO_2}CO2​ , yet its bubble walls do not thin until they break.

29. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What makes gluten plastic, able to change shape under pressure?

    Compact gliadin molecules between the glutenins let the glutenins slide past each other.

30. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What molecular structure makes gluten elastic?

    Kinks and coils in the proteins: stretching straightens them, and they re-form when released. So the dough shrinks back. Coiled proteins also store some of the energy of stretching.

31. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] Why does a taut ball of well-developed dough slowly relax into a flatter shape?

    The bonds between gluten proteins are weak, so the tension slowly breaks some of them. Many weak bonds make the ball firm; their weakness lets it relax. Without relaxation, dough could not be shaped.

32. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] Which baked goods need strong gluten?

    Yeast breads, bagels and puff pastry. In other pastries, cakes, griddle cakes and cookies strong gluten makes them tough, so bakers limit its development.

33. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What factors let a baker control gluten strength?

    Kind of flour High-protein bread flour gives strong gluten; low-protein pastry and cake flours, weak gluten. Example: durum semolina for pasta gives a strong but plastic gluten. Oxidizing agents Aging and improving agents increase end-to-end linking of glutenins, so the dough is stronger. Water content Little water: incompletely developed gluten, crumbly texture. Much water: diluted gluten, softer and moister dough. Kneading Stretches and organizes the gluten proteins into an elastic network. S…

34. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] How does salt strengthen gluten?

    Salt ions shield the charged parts of the proteins, so they repel less and bond more. Sodium and chloride ions gather around the charged parts of glutenin, so the proteins can come closer together.

35. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] How does acidity weaken gluten?

    Acid gives the proteins more positive charges, so they repel each other more. Example: sourdough cultures produce acid and weaken the dough's gluten.

36. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] Where does the word gluten come from?

    The Latin word for "glue". The name was given in 1665 to a sticky substance found in the durum dough used for pasta.

37. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] About what fraction of flour weight is protein, and what fraction is starch?

    About 10% protein, about 70% starch.

38. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What do starch granules do to the gluten in an unbaked dough?

    They break up the gluten network, which makes the dough more tender. With their surface water, they make up more than half the dough's volume. In cakes, starch is the main structural material: the gluten is too diluted by water and sugar to give solidity.

39. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] During baking, how does swelling starch turn a foam of separate bubbles into a sponge?

    Rigid starch stops the bubbles from growing, so the gas pressure breaks the bubble walls. The bubbles then connect. Without this, the water vapor in closed bubbles would contract on cooling and the bread or cake would collapse.

40. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] Up to what fraction of the volume of bread and cakes is gas?

    As much as 80%. Bread dough magnified: starch granules embedded in gluten sheets, divided by gas bubbles.

41. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] Do yeast and chemical leavenings create new bubbles in a dough?

    No: their CO2\mathrm{CO_2}CO2​ only enlarges air bubbles that are already there. The gas dissolves in the dough's water and moves into the bubbles. Those first bubbles come from kneading, creaming butter with sugar, or whipping eggs. More initial bubbles give a finer, more tender product.

42. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] What does shortening mean in baking?

    Fat or oil that weakens a dough's structure, so the product is more tender or flaky. In pie crust and puff pastry, solid fat layers separate dough layers. In cakes and rich breads, fat bonds to gluten proteins and prevents strong gluten.

43. [Structure of Doughs and Batters] How does a baker make a rich bread (e.g. panettone) that still has strong gluten?

    Knead flour and water first to develop the gluten, and only then work in the fat.

44. [Wheat Flours] What is the most important difference among kinds of bread wheat?

    The amount and quality of gluten protein. High protein and strong gluten often go with a hard, glassy, translucent grain interior.

45. [Wheat Flours] What are hard, soft and club wheats like?

    Hard wheat High protein, strong gluten. Example: hard red spring wheat, 13 to 16.5% protein, for bread flour. Soft wheat Less protein, somewhat weaker gluten. Example: soft red wheat, 9 to 11% protein, for all-purpose and pastry flours. Club wheat A separate species (T. compactum) with especially weak gluten. Example: 8 to 9% protein, for cake flour. Durum wheat, another separate species (12 to 16% protein), is used mainly for pasta semolina.

46. [Wheat Flours] Why does flour from white wheat taste sweeter than flour from the common red wheat?

    White wheat has far fewer astringent phenolic compounds in its seed coat. So whole-wheat flour from white wheat is also lighter in color, a light tan.

47. [Wheat Flours] Why does hard wheat flour make stronger gluten than soft wheat flour?

    In hard wheat the protein is one strong continuous mass; in soft wheat it is broken up. In soft wheat, starch and air break the protein into thin, weak sections. In milling, hard wheat breaks into chunks and soft wheat into fine particles. Left: a wheat kernel (about 6 mm long). Right: soft wheat flour (fine particles, top) and hard wheat flour (chunks, bottom).

48. [Wheat Flours] What does refining remove from flour?

    The germ and the bran, leaving the endosperm.

49. [Wheat Flours] Why are the germ and bran removed from most flours, although they carry nutrients and flavor?

    They turn rancid within a few weeks, and they hinder the formation of a strong gluten. This is why breads and pastries made from whole-grain flour come out darker and denser.

50. [Wheat Flours] How does stone-ground flour differ from flour milled with steel rollers?

    Stone-ground flour has more flavor but goes rancid sooner. Stones crush the whole grain, so some germ and bran end up even in refined flour. Grooved steel rollers break the grain open, squeeze out the germ, and scrape off the endosperm for grinding.

51. [Wheat Flours] What is the extraction rate of a flour?

    The percentage of the whole grain that remains in the flour. Example: whole wheat about 90%, most commercial white flour 70 to 72%, French bread flour 72 to 78%.

52. [Wheat Flours] Why does flour make stronger gluten after aging a few weeks in air?

    Oxygen lets the ends of the glutenins bond, so longer gluten chains form. It frees their sulfur groups for bonding. Freshly milled flour gives a slack dough and a dense loaf. Aging also turns the yellow pigments colorless, so the flour gets paler.

53. [Wheat Flours] What do millers add to strengthen flour quickly instead of aging it in air?

    Oxidizing agents, today mostly ascorbic acid (vitamin C) or azodicarbonamide. Earlier: chlorine gas, then potassium bromate, which was largely dropped over worries that its residues might be toxic.

54. [Wheat Flours] Ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is an antioxidant. How can it still strengthen gluten, which needs oxidation?

    It is first oxidized to dehydroascorbic acid, which then oxidizes the gluten proteins.

55. [Wheat Flours] How can fava bean or soy flour act as a flour improver?

    Their fat-oxidizing enzymes indirectly oxidize and lengthen the gluten proteins. The same enzymes produce a beany flavor.

56. [Wheat Flours] What does bleaching flour do?

    Whitens it chemically, as aging in air slowly does to its yellow pigments. Agents: azodicarbonamide, peroxide. Bleaching is not allowed in Europe.

57. [Wheat Flours] White flour is only about 1% fats and phospholipids. Why do they still matter?

    Some stabilize the growing bubbles; others make the bread softer and slow its staling. The second kind attach to the starch granules.

58. [Wheat Flours] Why do millers add malted grain or fungal amylase to flour?

    To supply enzymes that break starch into sugars to feed the yeast. Flour's own sugars feed yeast only briefly. Malt (sprouted wheat or barley) darkens the flour and varies in activity, so purified enzymes from molds are replacing it.

59. [Wheat Flours] What are the approximate protein contents of US bread, all-purpose, pastry and cake flours?

    Bread 12 to 13%, all-purpose 11 to 12%, pastry 8 to 9%, cake 7 to 8%. Whole wheat 11 to 15%, durum semolina 13%, vital gluten 70 to 85%. Regional US all-purpose flours (South, Pacific Northwest): 7.5 to 9.5%.

60. [Wheat Flours] Do high-protein and low-protein flours absorb the same amount of water?

    No: high-protein flours absorb much more. So with the same water they give a stiffer dough.

61. [Wheat Flours] How can you approximate pastry flour using all-purpose flour?

    Mix 2 parts all-purpose flour with 1 part starch, by weight. Only approximately, since flours also differ in protein quality.Example: 200 g all-purpose flour + 100 g cornstarch ≈ 300 g pastry flour.

62. [Wheat Flours] How can you approximate all-purpose flour using pastry flour?

    Add ¼ part vital gluten to 2 parts pastry flour, by weight. Dried gluten keeps a little more than half of its original strength.Example: 400 g pastry flour + 50 g vital gluten.

63. [Wheat Flours] Why do whole wheat flours make dense breads despite their high protein?

    Much of their protein makes no gluten, and bran and germ particles get in the way of the gluten. The protein of the germ and the aleurone layer does not form gluten.

64. [Wheat Flours] What is special about cake flour?

    It is treated with chlorine, which changes its starch and makes it slightly acid. Chlorine dioxide or chlorine gas modifies the starch granules and leaves a trace of hydrochloric acid. So cake flour cannot be imitated by mixing other flours with starch.

65. [Wheat Flours] What is self-rising flour?

    Flour with baking powder already mixed in. About 5 to 7 g baking powder per 100 g flour; used for quickbreads and pancakes without added leavening.

66. [Wheat Flours] What is instant flour?

    Low-protein flour whose starch has been precooked and dried again. Water gets back into the precooked starch easily, so the flour suits tender pastries and last-minute thickening of sauces.

67. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What is a leavening?

    An ingredient that fills a dough or batter with gas bubbles, so the product is lighter. The product is also less dense and more tender.

68. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] For how long did people eat raised bread before anyone understood that yeast causes the rise?

    About 6,000 years. Louis Pasteur's studies in the 1850s and 1860s first explained leavening.

69. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What kind of organism is a yeast?

    A microscopic single-celled fungus, a relative of the mushrooms. More than 100 species are known; some cause human infections, some spoil food.

70. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] Which yeast species is used for both baking and brewing?

    Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The name means "brewer's sugar fungus".

71. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] How is baker's yeast produced today?

    Strains selected for bread making are grown on molasses in industrial fermentation tanks.

72. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] When yeast breaks down sugar for energy, what does it produce?

    Carbon dioxide and alcohol (ethanol).

73. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What is the overall equation of yeast fermentation?

    C6H12O6→2 C2H5OH+2 CO2\boldsymbol{\mathrm{C_6H_{12}O_6} \to 2\,\mathrm{C_2H_5OH} + 2\,\mathrm{CO_2}}C6​H12​O6​→2C2​H5​OH+2CO2​ One glucose gives two ethanol and two carbon dioxide molecules.Example: 180 g glucose (1 mol) gives 92 g ethanol and 88 g CO2\mathrm{CO_2}CO2​ , about 49 liters of gas at room temperature.

74. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] In beer and wine making the yeast's CO2\mathrm{CO_2}CO2​ escapes and alcohol accumulates. What happens to both in bread?

    The dough holds both, and both leave the dough as gases during baking.

75. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] Which sugars does yeast feed on in a dough with no added sugar?

    Glucose, fructose and maltose. Maltose (two glucose units) is made by flour enzymes from damaged starch granules.

76. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] How do added sugar and salt affect yeast activity?

    A little sugar increases it; a lot of sugar decreases it, and so does salt.

77. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] Why does a lot of sugar slow yeast down?

    The sugar draws water out of the yeast cells.

78. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] How do bakers make up for slow yeast in very sweet doughs?

    They use more yeast than in ordinary bread and let the dough rise longer.

79. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] At what temperature does yeast grow and produce gas fastest?

    About 95°F / 35°C.

80. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] Apart from CO2\mathrm{CO_2}CO2​ , how does yeast affect dough consistency?

    Yeast releases oxidizing substances that strengthen the gluten and make it more elastic. They help glutenin molecules bond end to end into long chains, during mixing and throughout the rise.

81. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What are the three forms of baker's yeast sold to cooks?

    Cake (compressed) yeast A moist block of live cells straight from the fermentation vat; produces the most gas. Perishable: refrigerate, keeps one to two weeks. Active dry yeast Dried granules of dormant cells coated with yeast debris; keeps months at room temperature. Must be soaked in warm water before mixing. Instant dry yeast Dried faster, as small porous rods that take up water quickly; needs no soaking and produces gas more vigorously than active dry yeast. Each form is a different strain…

82. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] At what water temperature should active dry yeast be soaked?

    105 to 110°F / 41 to 43°C.

83. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What goes wrong if active dry yeast is soaked in water that is too cool?

    The cells recover poorly and release glutathione, which hinders gluten formation.

84. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] Which chemical leavening works without an acid-base reaction?

    Ammonium carbonate, once called "hartshorn". At 140°F / 60°C it breaks down into CO2\mathrm{CO_2}CO2​ and ammonia, and releases no water. It was once made by distilling deer antlers.

85. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] Why is hartshorn (ammonium carbonate) used mainly in thin, very dry cookies and crackers?

    Their large surface lets its pungent ammonia escape during baking. Hartshorn also adds no water, which suits very dry products.

86. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] Why are weak doughs and runny batters leavened chemically rather than with yeast?

    They hold gas for only minutes, and yeast needs an hour or more to make enough.

87. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What goes wrong with too little or too much chemical leavening?

    Too little: flat and dense. Too much: the batter rises too far and collapses. The collapsed batter gives a coarse structure with a harsh flavor.

88. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What reaction do nearly all chemical leavenings use?

    An acid reacting with an alkaline carbonate to give CO2\mathrm{CO_2}CO2​ , the same gas yeast produces. Example: potash with the lactic acid of a sour dough: 2 C3H6O3+K2CO3→2 KC3H5O3+H2O+CO22\,\mathrm{C_3H_6O_3} + \mathrm{K_2CO_3} \to 2\,\mathrm{KC_3H_5O_3} + \mathrm{H_2O} + \mathrm{CO_2}2C3​H6​O3​+K2​CO3​→2KC3​H5​O3​+H2​O+CO2​

89. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What is baking soda chemically?

    Sodium bicarbonate, NaHCO3\mathrm{NaHCO_3}NaHCO3​ , an alkali.

90. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] When can baking soda be the only leavening in a recipe?

    When the dough or batter contains acid ingredients for the soda to react with. Acid ingredients: sourdough, buttermilk, yogurt, brown sugar, molasses, chocolate, non-dutched cocoa, fruit juice, vinegar.

91. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] About how much acid ingredient neutralizes ½ teaspoon (2 g) of baking soda?

    1 teaspoon of vinegar or lemon juice, or 1 cup of buttermilk. Metric: 5 ml vinegar or lemon juice, or 240 ml buttermilk-type fermented milk. Or about 5 g cream of tartar.

92. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What does baking powder contain?

    Baking soda plus a solid crystalline acid, mixed with dry starch. The starch absorbs humidity, preventing a premature reaction, and adds bulk for easier measuring.

93. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What determines when a baking-powder acid releases its gas?

    How easily the acid dissolves: soluble acids react during mixing, poorly soluble ones in the oven. Example: cream of tartar releases two-thirds of its leavening during two minutes of mixing.

94. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What does double-acting baking powder do?

    It makes one set of bubbles when mixed into the batter and a second set in the oven. Powders for restaurants and factories use slow-release acids, so the batter can wait before baking.

95. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What do most double-acting supermarket baking powders contain?

    Baking soda, monocalcium phosphate (MCP) and sodium aluminum sulfate (SAS). MCP reacts immediately during mixing; SAS reacts slowly and when heated. Single-acting powders leave out the SAS.

96. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] What causes a bitter, soapy "chemical" taste in chemically leavened baked goods?

    Too much baking soda, or powder left undissolved because the batter was poorly mixed. Some leavening acids (sulfates, pyrophosphates) also taste astringent.

97. [Yeasts and Chemical Leavenings] How do even slightly alkaline conditions change the color of baked goods?

    Browning speeds up, chocolate turns reddish, and blueberries turn green.

98. [Breads] What are the four basic steps of making yeast bread?

    Mixing Flour, water, yeast and salt are combined. Kneading Develops the gluten network. Fermentation (rising) The yeast fills the dough with CO2\mathrm{CO_2}CO2​ . Baking Sets the structure and generates flavor.

99. [Breads] Why should bread ingredients be weighed rather than measured by volume?

    A cup of flour can vary in weight by as much as 50%, depending on whether it is sifted or packed.

100. [Breads] How do bread flour, all-purpose flour and soft-wheat flour differ in the bread they give?

     Bread flour The highest rise, a chewy texture and a slightly eggy flavor; needs long kneading. All-purpose flour A lower rise, a more neutral flavor and a less chewy texture. Soft-wheat flour A denser loaf with a tender, cake-like crumb.