Less Is More
Carefully read recipe directions and descriptions of how the dough will look. For the right texture, your dough may need to be on the sticky side and your recipe will note that. Use the least amount of flour possible to allow you to knead the dough, and use your bench scraper to help lift and fold the dough.
The Consistency of Doughs
BHG bread recipes include descriptions for the dough (or batter)—soft, smooth, ragged, sticky, lumpy—to help you under stand how it will look and feel. These photos offer a visual guide for the mixing and kneading steps.
Gluten Development
Two proteins in flour, gliadin and glutenin, combine to create gluten when mixed with water. During kneading, gluten strands begin lining up and strengthening, essentially forming a matrix within the dough to trap carbon dioxide that is released during rising.
Purpose of Proofing
Proofing is the final rise, which is done in a warm location to encourage yeast activity. This rise produces carbon dioxide bubbles that will get trapped within the network of gluten strands. During baking, these bubbles create permanent air pockets that open and lighten the texture of the bread.
Why Rest?
Resting allows the gluten strands to recover and relax from kneading, which makes rolling and shaping easier and prevents the dough from tightening and shrinking back into its ball shape.
