There are several ways to make bread at home and, in reality, baking your own bread is easy, and the results can be excellent. However, like all things in life, a little practice goes a long way. The biggest hurdle is taking the first step, which is having a go!
Unfortunately, people find 101 reasons not to bake their own bread. Here’s a list of the most common reasons why people procrastinate:
- It’s inconvenient compared to buying bread from a shop.
- It takes up too much time.
- Baking bread is boring.
- Making bread is too messy.
- People who bake bread don’t have a life!
- It’s too complex.
- Homemade bread is as heavy as a rock.
- I might consider it when I’ve retire.
However, there are many reasons you should learn to bake bread aside from taking control of what you eat and saving money, e.g. tastes better, educational. Interestingly, since the outbreak of the pandemic, the popularity of baking at home has soared. Psychological factors have played a significant role. Home baking creates a sense of comfort and nostalgia. In times of uncertainty, this is very important for one’s mental well-being. Also, people have suffered financially, food prices have increased, and there is growing concern about the health implications of mass produced food and its impact on the climate.
Okay, so you’ve decide to try, but how do you go about it?
Well, there are four main approaches and we will go through them one by one below. These range from very simple and time efficient to those more involved. But even the last two ways don’t have to take a lot of time if you practice a little. As you gain confidence, you will appreciate that the last method, making bread from scratch, produces the most satisfying results and the best tasting and nutritional bread.
Method 1: Part-Baked Bread
The easiest way to start is by buying part-baked bread or rolls from the supermarket. This way is the most convenient but compared to other methods, it may not always be the best tasting. You can buy vacuum packed or frozen part-baked bread. When you fancy some fresh bread, simply pop it in the oven and hey presto, in around 10-15 minutes at 180C – 200C (355F – 390F), you have fresh, warm, golden brown bread to enjoy.
Method 2: Frozen Bread Dough
The next level up is to buy frozen bread dough. Simply place this in a greased loaf tin and it will defrost and rise over a 4 to 7 hour period. This is a convenient time frame because you can start the process at bedtime and, by the morning, the dough will be ready to place in the oven.
Cover the loaf tin overnight with plastic film because it maintains moisture and is good for hygiene. You must remove it before placing the tin in the oven! This type of product typically takes 15-25 minutes to bake at around 350F (176C) until it develops a golden brown colour.
The advantage of this compared to vacuum or frozen part-baked bread is that it is usually tastier and also, you can experiment a little by tweaking the defrosted dough. For example, you can try popping in a few raisins or brushing the top of the dough with some milk or a beaten egg.
Some people speed up the process by placing the frozen dough in a loaf tin in oven at 100F (37C) for about 30 minutes. They then remove the loaf tin and raise the oven temperature to 180C – 200C (355F – 390F). Once up to temperature, they will place the loaf tin back in the oven and bake for 15-25 minutes. Whether this is as good as leaving the dough to rise overnight is debatable.
Method 3: Making Bread From a Mix (Premix)
Using a mix (premix) is a great way to get the feel for eventually making your own bread from scratch. There are many types of bread and roll mixes on the market. Here are some examples of what is available: sourdough, cornbread, sandwich, banana, light or dark rye, multigrain, French style, gluten-free, tiger, focaccia, honey wheat bread, Italian cheese and herb, beer, wholemeal, keto mix, various seed mixes, cranberry, hot cross bun mix, pizza dough.
A mix will usually come with all the ingredients you need and measured in the correct amounts. All you need to do is add a bit of yeast (usually included), water and get mixing. Depending on the make or type of mix, the packet may sometimes recommend adding in 1 or 2 other readily available items, e.g. a bit of butter or an egg.
Do take time to read the instructions as they often provide tips to ensure the baking experience and outcome is positive. The adage, “success breeds success” is very true – various studies e.g. Van de Rijt et al. 2014, have even confirmed it. If you have a good baking outcome with a mix, you will be far more likely to try a range of them and ultimately, begin to bake bread from scratch.
The amount of product a mix can make varies between products, but they often make 1 loaf of bread or 12-16 rolls. Although you can mix the ingredients by hand (yes, some people love to knead dough by hand) you might prefer to invest in a mixer that can handle bread dough. Be aware that not all mixers are powerful enough to mix dough.
Method 4: Making Bread From Scratch
When you make bread from scratch, you start to appreciate bread making in a deeper way. You realise that slight changes in ingredients, the type, shape and size of tin, or the time you allow the bread to rise and temperature you bake it at, can all affect the outcome.
Many people keep notes in order to help them develop better consistency. So, for a given recipe, they can guarantee the same type of loaf every time. They may then tweak the variables and ingredients in order to produce even better tasting variations.
Some people get drawn into this world and spend a lifetime investigating a huge range of ingredients and different ways of baking them. They love the journey and sometimes this has led to people changing careers, forming a small side hobby business selling artisan bread, or even self-publishing books on the topic.
There are 2 main approaches to making bread from scratch: either by hand or using a bread machine. Learning to make bread by hand is very educational, as it is the best way to learn the principles involved. Our advice is to try by hand at least once in order to get a feel for the process. Using a stand mixer with a dough attachment makes mixing far easier. Be aware that most hand mixers are too underpowered for bread dough and will burn out.
Bread machines are popular and are certainly convenient. For some, it is a natural progression from making bread by hand. However, there are many people who still prefer to make bread in the traditional way by hand.
Basic Recipe For Making Bread from Scratch
The following recipe demonstrates various principles involved in baking bread from scratch by hand.
EQUIPMENT
Medium-sized bowl for mixing
Spatula for stirring
Kitchen film or moistened cloth
Standard-sized loaf tin
BAKING TIME
Preheat oven to 190C (375F or Gas Mark 5)
Bake for 35-40 minutes
INGREDIENTS
Yeast Mix:
Water (warm 40C to 45C or 105F to 115F) – 1⅓ cups
Instant yeast – 1 package (7g or 0.25 ounce). Dry yeast can be used but takes up to 2x longer to rise
Sugar – 1 tablespoon
Olive oil – ¼ cup
Salt – 1½ teaspoons
Dough:
Use ingredients above with four cups of bread flour
Extras:
A little flour for dusting
Milk (optional) – One quarter of a cup, or
Egg (optional) – 1x beaten
METHOD
- Yeast mix. Stir together water, yeast and sugar in a medium-sized bowl. Let sit for 10 minutes until it foams. This process is termed proofing (proving) or blooming yeast.
- Add olive oil and salt to the yeast mix.
- Gradually stir flour into the yeast mix whilst mixing until a rough dough forms.
- Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface between 5 to 10 minutes until smooth (not sticky) and elastic.
- First dough rise. Place the ball of dough in a bowl covered with kitchen film or moistened cloth and allow 1 hour for it to rise. Allowing dough to rest and rise is termed proofing (proving) the dough.
- Second dough rise. Place the ball of dough on surface and gently push down on it to remove gas pockets. After a few minutes, shape and place in greased loaf tin. Brush top with milk or beaten egg mixture. Allow dough 1 hour to rise.
- Bake. Place loaf tin in a pre-heated oven at 190C (375F or Gas Mark 5) for 35 to 40 minutes until golden brown.
- Cool. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Then remove bread from tin and allow it to cool for a further 10 minutes before cutting. Allow bread to cool further before cutting.
Many variations on this basic recipe are possible and simply require a little experimentation, e.g. adding a little honey or half a cup of dried raisins, cranberries or blueberries at stage 3. Or, at stage 5, add a criss-cross texture with a knife to the top of the dough before placing in the oven or a sprinkling of salt crystals to form a tasty crust.
One can also experiment regarding the baking temperature. Some people prefer to bake the bread at 180C (356F) for about 35 minutes before removing it from the baking tin and then baking it for a further 10 minutes. They feel this reduces the risk of sogginess when the bread cools prior to serving.
The basic recipe is just a first step to the world of bread making. There is just so much to explore. It’s fun, rewarding, educational and something the whole family can take part in and experience. It’s a win-win situation because not only do you control the ingredients and avoid artificial additives and chemicals found in commercial bread, but you will also make bread that is far more tasty and nutritious.
