July 31, 2009 - 1:07am
Help needed, doughy bread
I'm hoping someone can answer my query:
The texture of the loaf I made today just wasn't right. The lower section was somewhat denser than the top half, while the top had some holes in it. As well, the center was a bit doughy and it gives the appearance of not being cooked long enough. The outside was good as was the crust. The dough was allowed to rise as normal and baked at 200 degrees C for 35 min and seemed ok when I took it out of the tin.
I'll welcome any suggestions
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Just off the top of my head I'd suggest that your bread didn't cook long enough to reach a proper internal temperature. There are other opinions on when bread is done, but in my experience, bread is done when the internal temperature reaches about 205 degrees (I pull mine from the oven at about 195 and let it cool on a rack - the internal temperature will usually rise enough to finish the baking while it's resting there). Try to avoid using time to determine when your bread is done. Get an instant read thermometer that you can insert into your bread loaf to get a better idea of when it's done.
As for the heavier layer of your finished bread, my guess would be that it over-proofed. But other more experienced bakers will contribute their ideas here before too long so rely more on they're input that mine relative to the heavy layer issue.
Thanks flournwater - taking bread's temperature never occurred to me LOL
I'll have to buy a thermometer. The bread will be ok for toast etc, just not good enough for sandwiches
200 degrees Celsius is about 400 degrees Farenheit. Depending on the type of bread and it's size, you may try altering your baking temperatures.
I find that 5 to 10 minutes at 500 degrees (F) provides a lot of oven spring. I also use steam in the form of an inverted tin foil roasting pan covering the bread during this period.
Then, I turn it down to 450 degrees for baguettes, 400 degrees for a medium-sized loaf or 350 for a larger loaf. I bake for 5 minutes and then rotate 180 degrees and complete with another 5 minutes.
For larger loaves, I bake for 10 to 15 minutes, rotate and then bake for another 10-15 minutes until the internal temperature is 190 degrees (F).
If the top starts to brown too early, I used too high a temperature and cover the top of the bread with a small piece of aluminum foil and complete the bake at a lower temperature.
Hope that helps.
You might also want to check your oven rack, In my oven, if the rack is in the center of the oven then the crust will brown before the bread is done, Try lowering the rack a notch and see if that helps.
Also, If your kitchen doesn't have a thermometer you really do need one.
I've seen this a lot in breads that have come out of my oven. The bottom-most layer can be under done and dense, whereas the top is perfectly done.
The reason behind why my breads do this lies in the direction of the heat. Usually the heat is most intense coming from the roof and walls of the oven so the bottom doesn't cook as fast as the top.
If your oven is doing something similar, you can re-position your oven rack, or you can just bake it longer so that all parts of the loaf register ~200F.
Are you using a baking stone? Electric or gas oven?