Proofing is a process of allowing the dough to ferment. During this process, the yeast and bacteria in the dough consume the sugar in the dough and release carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide create air pockets in the dough that allow the bread to rise and contribute to it’s flavor.
Proper proofing result in a strong structure in the bread. Dense or collapsed loaves are the result of improper proofing. If proofing take place too fast, the bread will have a flat taste.
How to Proof Bread
If the proofing process occurs too long, the enzymes will break down the gluten in the dough and make the structure of the bread lose it shape. Temperature play the biggest role in the speed at which the proofing process occurs. As the temperature in the proofing environment increase, the activity of the yeast increases.
As the temperature in the proofing environment decreases, the activity of the yeast decreases. For instance, if the environment is warm, the yeast will work faster during the proofing process meaning the proofing will take less time. However, if the environment is cold, like a refrigerator, the yeast will work slow so the proofing process will take longer.
For instance, if dough is proofed at a room temperature of 72 degree, bulk fermentation will take between one and three hour. However, if you increase the temperature to 80 degrees, the bulk fermentation will take less time. The hydration level of the dough can also impact how fast the fermentation process occurs within the dough.
Hydration is an amount of water that is contained within the dough. The higher the hydration level of the dough, the more water that is within the dough. Because enzymes will move faster within dough that contains more water, dough with a higher hydration level will ferment more faster than dough with a lower hydration level.
Both temperature and hydration need to be accounted for in the baking process to determine when the bread should be proofed. Not all bread require the same amount of time to proof the dough or the same percentage of yeast. For instance, baguettes use a low percentage of yeast at 0.6 percent and a hydration level of 70 percent.
Baguettes proof for four hour at 75 degrees. Most pizza dough recipe use a low percentage of 0.3 percent yeast along with a cold bulk fermentation of 24 hour at 65 degrees. Sourdough recipes utilize wild microbe instead of added yeast and require a long fermentation period of approximately 17 hour.
Lastly, enriched doughs, such as brioche doughs that contain butter and egg, are heavier doughs and proof slower than lean dough recipe. The poke test is used to determine if the dough has finished proofing. To perform the poke test, press the floured finger into the side of the dough.
If the dough spring back quickly after you press the finger into the dough, then the dough is underproofed. If the dough slowly returns to its original shape after you press the floured fingertip into the side of the dough, the dough is perfectly proofed. If the indentation into the dough does not spring back at all when you remove your floured fingertip, the dough is overproofed and the yeast in the dough have exhausted there energy.
To successfully bake bread, it is important to follow a consistent workflow in the kitchen. The recipe workflow begins with the mixing and autolyse portion of the recipe, continues with the kneading portion of the recipe, followed by bulk fermentation, pre-shaping the dough, final proofing, and then the baking process of the recipe. It is important to use tape to mark the initial level of the dough in the mixing bowl.
This will allow you to visual monitor the doughs volume throughout the proofing process. Additionally, you should mist the dough to prevent the development of a skin on the dough. A skin can develop on the surface of the dough if the dough is not misted, and it can trap the gas in the dough.
Precision is necessary in the baking of bread. All ingredient must be weighed in grams. Salt is an important ingredient in that it slow the yeast at a controlled rate, and it helps to tighten the gluten structure.
The target dough temperature after mixing is 78 degree. Additionally, the average hydration rate for most recipe is 75 percent. Finally, it is important to track your temperature and times in a log for the recipe.
Both the temperature of the dough and the times for proofing are the most important variable in the baking of bread. You should of used a scale to be accurate. It is actually alot of work to get it right.
If you dont follow the steps, the bread wont turn out moddern. Youre going to want to recieve a good result.