Kneading bread is crucial for creating a light, airy texture. The dough should be squeezed and pushed, folded and rotated for 10-20 minutes, allowing gluten to develop. The surface should be floured and the dough stretched without breaking.
One of the most important steps to master in baking bread is how to knead bread. The technique is relatively simple. It involves squeezing the dough under your palms and pushing down on it. Once a clean pass is made through the ball of dough, it is turned over and the process repeated. This is done for a period of time usually prescribed by the recipe for the bread. If the bread is not kneaded, it will create a thick inedible lump or pile of unevenly cooked crumbs when baked.
The first thing to do when making bread dough is to prepare the surface. The surface to be kneaded must be hard and secure so that it does not slip due to the pressure exerted on it. The surface should also be sprinkled with flour so that the dough does not stick to it.
The bread dough should be placed in the center of the kneading area and formed into a loose ball or pile, depending on the consistency. If you need to add wet ingredients, you should form a well in the center of the dough and stuff the ingredients into it. The walls around the ingredients are then pushed towards the center until the liquid is partially incorporated into the dough and oozes out the surface. Once the dough is in a cohesive pile, it’s time to start kneading the bread dough.
One begins kneading the bread dough by pushing into the pile and lightly down with the heel of the hand. Once the heel of the hand has reached the opposite side of the pile, the dough is folded in half and rotated about a sixth to a quarter. The process, including bending and turning, is then repeated. This is the real kneading process.
It is necessary to knead the bread for as long as indicated in the recipe. For many yeast-based doughs, the kneading time is between 10 and 20 minutes. This time interval allows gluten to develop in the bread. This gluten development is what causes the airy, spongy interior of the bread.
It’s important to knead the bread dough in such a way that the gluten strands are stretched but not broken. This means that the dough should be folded and stretched with your hands rather than being broken. It’s also important to keep the flour nearby when kneading because if the dough is too sticky, it may need more flour to handle. Flour can also be used to coat your hands so the dough doesn’t stick to them.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
