People who like to make their own pasta at home often prepare the dough on their own. However, many people have been struggling with tearing dough, which usually means that the gluten is not strong – the gluten must be strong to hold together the dough. In addition, the dough tears easily during the baking process when it is stretched. In simpler words, the most common reason behind tearing dough is dry dough or lack of gluten development. So, with this article, we are sharing many other reasons for tearing dough and what can be done to prevent this issue!
Why Is My Pasta Dough Tearing?
- Excessive Flour
The first common reason behind tearing dough is adding excess flour to the dough. That’s because adding too much flour will make it dry, resulting in tearing. In addition, when the flour is not hydrated in the dough, it will be head to knead and dense – it also results in tearing. The dry dough won’t be able to produce gluten and the yeast won’t be able to move freely. As a result, the dough’s texture will be impacted and it won’t rise either. For this reason, it is recommended that you follow a specific recipe and only add the specified quantity of flour.
- Wrong Type Of Flour
To make the right dough, it’s needless to say that you’ve to ensure sufficient gluten development. To make the pasta dough, it’s recommended that you use flour with a higher protein content, which aids in gluten development – it helps create the right structure and texture. In most cases, people use all-purpose flour to prepare the pasta dough but it’s recommended that you use bread flour. On the other hand, you shouldn’t use spelled flour because it has a lower protein content. So, if the dough keeps tearing even after using the correct preparation instructions, it’s recommended that you shift to bread flour.
- Insufficient Kneading
The dough needs to be kneaded properly to make sure you can roll it without worrying about worrying. In particular, kneading is important to ensure sufficient gluten development. The gluten is responsible for holding gas in the dough and helps create a nice structure. So, if there is no gas in the dough, it will result in tearing. So, make sure you have enough time to knead the dough properly and make sure you conduct the windowpane test to make sure there is sufficient gas in the dough, which creates a way for gluten development.
For those who don’t know how to conduct the windowpane test, you’ve to take a small piece of the dough, stretch it as thin as you can, and see if the light is passing through. If the light passes through it, it means that sufficient gluten has developed and you can make pasta.
- Excessive Kneading
We have already mentioned that insufficient kneading can lead to a bad dough texture but the same goes for excessive kneading. Fortunately, people who knead the dough by hand won’t have to worry about over-kneading. On the other hand, if you are using a mixer or food processor to prepare the dough, make sure you don’t knead it too quickly or for too long. It is recommended that you check the recipe to determine how long the dough should be kneaded, especially if you are using the machine.
- Improper Handling
Ideally, the pasta dough should look like a smooth ball. So, if there are tears, it’s likely that you aren’t handling the dough properly. The only solution is to shape the dough in the shape of a ball and rip it to roll the dough.
- Water
We have already added that adding too much flour to the dough can lead to tearing. Similarly, adding too little water will also leave the dough dry, which leads to tearing. Having said that, when you’ve to prepare the pasta dough, make sure the water content is higher than 60% – this water content will ensure that the gluten development is optimized and the elasticity will be just right.
The Bottom Line
On a concluding note, these are six tips that can help you prepare the perfect pasta dough without any tearing. However, if nothing works, it’s best that you let the dough autolyze by letting the water and flour mixture rest until it becomes a clump of dough.