15
Know your ingredients
Understanding baking
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It is often said that cooking is an art relying on the creativity of the chef
while baking bread is much more of a science. This means that the process
of combining flour, water and yeast results in a reaction that produces bread.
You have to remember that when the ingredients combine with each other
they produce a specific result. Read the following information carefully to
gain a better understanding of the importance each ingredient plays in the
breadmaking process.
Important note on flours
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Fours, while visibly similar, can be very different by virtue of how they were
grown, milled, stored, etc. You may find that you will have to experiment
with different brands of flour to help you make that perfect loaf. Storage is
also very important, as all flours should be kept in an airtight container.
All purpose flour/plain flour
All purpose flour is a blend of refined hard and soft wheat flours especially
suitable for making cake. This type of flour should be used for recipes in the
cake/quick bread section.
Strong white flour/bread flour
Bread flour is a high gluten/protein flour that has been treated with
conditioners that give dough a greater suitability for kneading. Bread flour
typically has a higher gluten concentration than. All purpose flour, however,
depending on different milling practices, this may vary. Strong plain flour or
bread flour are recommended for use with this breadmaker.
Whole wheat flour/wholemeal flour
Whole wheat flour/wholemeal flour is milled from the entire wheat kernel
which contains the bran and germ and makes it heavier and richer in
