/ck/ - Food & Cooking

[Anonymous No.16794460]

made bagels for the first time, half with egg wash, ik i rushed the forming i'll do it better next time
they were good but pretty dense, i let them proof overnight, anyone got any tips for getting them lighter?

[Anonymous No.16794547]

>>16794460
overmixing is usually the culprit for dense baked stuff

[Anonymous No.16794554]

>>16794547
that'd make sense, i'm not 100% sure how to strike the balance between kneading enough and not overmixing
i suppose it'll just take practise

[Anonymous No.16794557]

>>16794554
Easy, don't spend hours letting the thing prove then knock all the air out like a retard and end up with biscuits. Try to touch the bread as little as possible after proofing.

[Anonymous No.16794561]

>>16794557
damn, is that bad? i have like zero experience with breads and pastries and stuff, and every recipe said to do that and then let it proof a second time

[Anonymous No.16794564]

>>16794557
>>16794561
*let it proof a second time after forming the bagels

[Anonymous No.16794566]

>>16794561
yes, first proof is to stretch out the gluten which you then knead out to get the nice chewy texture. After the first proof if you overwork you gonna get stuff that's way too chewy and dense. 2nd proof is for the final rise for it to look nice.

[Anonymous No.16794572]

>>16794561
The gluten is developed enough when you can make a window out of the dough that you can see through. After that stop kneading and get it ready for proof and shaping.

[Anonymous No.16794573]

>>16794566
ah yeah that makes sense, ty friend
i'll be gentle with the dough next time i make bagels

[Anonymous No.16794577]

>>16794572
thanks for the tip, i'll keep that in mind also

[Anonymous No.16794581]

>>16794577
remember that the thing that makes bread nice is the air and you're trying to keep as much air as possible in without having large air pockets (which is the 2nd reason why you do a 2nd proof as the first proof might have large air bubbles).

[Anonymous No.16794588]

>>16794581
i probably should've assumed that, ig i just followed the recipe a little too close since it's my first time, i think i might just do what feels more natural with less recipe next time

[Anonymous No.16794802]

>>16794460
buy diastatic malt powder, it makes the bagel crust perfect texture and its shiny without egg wash
knead to the point of windowpane and no further. proving the dough overnight in the fridge does some of the process for you like a no knead recipe, so dont overknead it.
make them as tall as you can when you shape em because they slacken and spread out when proving.

[Anonymous No.16794812]

Unironically based thread. Great job anons, these tips will help me too.

[Anonymous No.16794831]

>>16794460

Those look really good anon, even if they were a little dense. Good job for a first attempt.