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_Frozen Dough |
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Making bread dough is a lengthy, multistage process that can't be rushed. On the other hand, it can be stalled. At several points during its assembly, not only is it possible to stop and rest, but it is essential, and the longer the dough rests the better the resulting bread will be, which means a dough can be frozen at any of the resting points and then reactivated after thawing without affecting the quality.
In the first stage of bread-making, yeast, water, and flour are mixed together into a mudlike dough called a sponge. Beating the sponge activates the protein in the flour, forming long elastic bands (gluten) that will give the bread texture. After the gluten is sufficiently developed, the sponge has to rest to give the yeast time to feed on the starch in the dough and produce carbon dioxide gas, which gets trapped in the bands of gluten, causing the dough to stretch and rise. If the sponge is frozen, the activity of the yeast will stop, allowing the baker to store the sponge for extended periods. After thawing, the yeast will resume its life, and the process can continue without any ill effect.
The next stage involves adding enough flour to make it semi-solid and kneading the mass of dough until it becomes bouncy. While this is going on, the yeast continues to feed and thrive and the gluten becomes stronger and stretchier. Again the dough must rest to help it rise and develop texture, after which it is ready to be formed into a loaf and baked. Commercial frozen bread dough is at this stage of development, so once you thaw it at home and let it rise briefly it is ready to go into the oven.
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02-What's Your Hurry?
03-The Ingredients
04-Organic and All-Natural Ingredients
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