In recent years, bread dough has been mixed in the traditional way manually, with a spoon and a bowl. For many people this is difficult to do and can be time-consuming. There are those who argue that using an electric mixer is better because it beats air into the dough. Is this true?
Bread dough is typically mixed with an electric mixer in order to create uniform bubbles throughout the mixture as well as incorporate more dough quickly, which generally leads to a lighter loaf of bread without large holes or bumps in its texture. While it can be done with a spoon and a bowl, it does not produce the same results.
As for the air in bread dough, yeast is much more sensitive to air than flour. If the yeast is concentrated in large amounts and allowed to “breathe” too much, it can overwork and produce a gummy bread. This is why small holes (“humps”) are formed when kneading bread dough manually or when using an electric mixer.
In the end, here are two different methods for mixing bread dough. You can weigh out the ingredients and follow the recipe exactly with a stand mixer or you can make it by hand. Both ways will produce delicious bread that is soft in texture and rises high.
1) By Hand
In many recipes that use a stand mixer, you can skip this step, but if you choose to do it by hand add 2 cups of flour to your bowl. Then add all ingredients at once including salt and water to the flour. Soak for about 20 minutes, then start kneading with your hands in the bowl until you have a manageable ball of dough. Let it rise in a warm place for an hour or until doubled in size. Then roll it into a loaf shape and let it rise again for about 35 minutes on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
2) By Hand
If you choose to make the dough by hand, you’ll need to preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and grease two baking sheets with oil (or butter). Use the recipe below and follow directions exactly, except use 2 cups of flour and instead of salt add 1 tbsp of sugar (in most recipes this is already included). Let it rise for about 35 minutes on chilled baking sheets before baking.
You can top your bread with herbs and spices to add more flavor. Here are some ideas: You can sprinkle a little butter on the loaves as they come out of the oven. Or you can add sesame seeds, poppy seeds, cornmeal or garlic powder. Finally, you can also add seeds or nuts before baking.
Scientists would agree that one thing that affects the texture of your loaf is temperature at which you mix your flour and liquid together. When you use a stand mixer, the motor is usually on a different setting than when you mix by hand. The speed of an electric beater also influences whether you end up with the same texture when mixing by hand.
The texture you prefer is up to you but if it becomes annoying or time-consuming to mix bread dough by hand, there are stand mixers available that can make the job a lot easier. One thing is for certain, you want to remember to add salt when mixing bread dough because it contributes greatly to flavor.
Using a stand mixer for kneading bread dough does not make much sense, primarily because the dough is mixed by whirling. In other words, the dough begins to move under its own weight and stirs to create more movement and thus more speed in the machine. This produces less and more consistent results, which in the end is the same amount of bread.
The main reason for using a stand mixer for kneading bread dough is because it will allow you to reach a higher speed and achieve a faster rise. The faster the rise, the more efficient your loaf will bake in the oven. With hands, nooks and crannies that remain between gluten strands do not develop properly along with pockets of air underneath which can create a result that feels heavy or hollow when baked.
The chemistry involved when you knead your bread dough by hand also keeps it weak enough to rise as much as possible without collapsing or forming large holes or bumps. When you use a stand mixer to mix your bread dough, you can also add other ingredients with it.
Yeast is sensitive to air and moisture which is why adding more ingredients may result in a huge difference between the two methods you choose. Keep in mind that the consistency of the dough will change significantly or the amount of liquid might need to be adjusted when using a stand mixer for kneading bread dough.
If you choose to mix your bread dough by hand, it is an important step for gluten strands to form and begin to stretch out before adding any other ingredients. This allows better structure and a more even distribution of air bubbles than if you simply threw all of your ingredients into the bowl at once.
Also, if your dough has air bubbles that are large enough to catch on your whisk blade and break off, any small bubbles that remain will not accumulate in such a way as they would in an electric beater. If you want to decide if a stand mixer is right for you, do some research on Amazon.com and examine the reviews of different brands of stand mixers, including Kitchen aid and Cuisinart.
Stirring with a wooden spoon is still recommended and it can be done in a stand mixer as well. What’s more, while many people believe that bread dough should be kneaded only until it pulls away from the bottom of the bowl, this is not always true. Since bread dough comes together in a very short amount of time, any additional steps will have no effect on the final product if you don’t overwork your bread dough.
Even so, there are times when an electric mixer makes sense, especially if you want to create small pockets of air in your loaf or need to ground down tough pieces of wheat into flour. In this case a stand mixer would be the better choice.
How long should dough be kneaded in a mixer?
Once your dough is prepared, it’s important to let it sit for a few minutes before trying to knead it. While this waiting time might seem like a waste of time that could be used to start baking, waiting is important because you want all of the ingredients in the right position before you begin.
While using a stand mixer makes kneading bread easier and faster than doing it by hand, the trick is still that there are too many holes and gaps in the dough after mixing it with hands for any difference to be noticed. This becomes clear when you consider how long it takes an experienced baker to create a good loaf of bread compared with how quickly an average home cook can do so.
In other words, the convenience of using a stand mixer won’t save you time if you don’t have enough hands-on experience. When we compare it to the time involved in kneading bread dough by hand, it simply doesn’t make sense to use an electric beater.
This is probably why you see bakers using a stand mixer very rarely outside of their own home unless they run a bakery. Conversely, most home cooks would not want to use one for kneading bread dough because of how much effort it takes out of them compared with how long the process would take if they were to do so themselves.
Is machine kneading better than hand kneading?
One of the biggest concerns in the kitchen is mixing bread dough. While it is true that quicker and easier mixing has led to noticeable changes in many foods, some have been ruined as a result of this process.
The fact is that bread dough, like any other kind of dough, will expand if not properly kneaded which leads to a loaf with poor structure. Granted, using a stand mixer does allow for a faster rise but this can also be achieved by using a different method such as resting your bread dough for five minutes after kneading before taking it out of the oven.
If you’re confused as to what kind of mixer is the best, read our article on the best stand mixers and choose one that has multiple speeds and attachments. The fact is that even a modern electric beater will produce good results when you know what you are doing such as creating a dough with a good gluten structure.
Is it necessary to knead bread dough if I use an electric mixer?
It is not necessary for kneading bread dough if you use an electric mixer. This means that even professionals who manufacture cavities and sell their wares in bakeries around the world do not often use a stand mixer to mix dough because it takes too long.
The thing is that kneading bread dough helps stretch out the gluten which has air pockets between it. These then become tiny bubbles when they become trapped into the loaf, resulting in a loaf that has a tender texture and fluffy texture.
While an electric beater can mix a dough without taking away any of the ingredients you want to add to it, the end result will be different than if you kneaded and mixed it by hand. The speed with which an electric mixer works is too fast for gluten strands to hold on for long enough and typically result in a dense loaf that won’t rise as much as you might expect of it before being baked.
Can I knead dough by hand instead of a mixer?
You can knead dough by hand instead of using a mixer if you wish. However, it is important to know that you will have to do it for a while until the dough is thoroughly mixed and the gluten strands are stretched out well enough.
As you know, kneading bread dough helps create bigger air bubbles as well as taking some time to mix all of the ingredients so that they don’t stick to each other or the bowl. It also helps make sure each ingredient is cut down into very fine pieces so that they can be distributed evenly throughout the process of rising and shaping.
Is it better to make bread by hand or by mixer?
Given how much time it takes to make bread by hand, most people prefer to use an electric mixer for their bread dough making. In the end, homemade bread is more often than not delicious because of the care and attention that was taken when making it.
However, it’s important to remember that even though you may not want to use a stand mixer for kneading bread dough, there’s no reason why you can’t make your own if you are careful about what goes into your recipe. As long as you respect the process and measure out your ingredients properly then a good loaf of homemade bread should be right around the corner.
CONCLUSION:
How to knead bread dough is one of the most important lessons for the baker. It is necessary to knead the bread dough for about ten minutes, depending on the amount of ingredients you put in it. Kneading makes good gluten strands and expands them so that there are gaps between them which make room for air bubbles. This makes your bread fluffy and fun to chew. There are many kinds of mixers when making bread dough, but if you want to make your own, you should choose one that has a sufficient number of speeds and allows you to use attachments as well. This will help you prepare an assortment of meats and other ingredients that can be added later on.
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