This is my best homemade bread recipe, created during the pandemic/epidemic, and as a result of our reduced social activities. Tried and perfected several hundred times, which is quite enough for me to brag about the result.
If you are expecting a recipe and the text "You won't believe it", "Scandalous", "Bread is better than from a bakery" - let's be clear right now: there is nothing in the recipes that you haven't seen before, so this is not for "disbelief" and it is not " scandalous". Also, not a single recipe (in a large number of cases, up to almost 100%) was created in a bakery or restaurant, but in a home kitchen. You don't believe it? Bread was not invented in a bakery!? Well, I guess you've read about the social division of labor?
READ: THE BEST BREAD AT THE TEST BY RADA BOGOJEV!
"Some" ancient Egyptians made bread at home 6-7 thousand years ago and used it to pay for other goods. One such specimen can be seen in the setting Art History Museum in Vienna (Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien), picture below:
Anyway, the recipe for bread, since time immemorial, usually has only three ingredients: water, salt and flour, and over time yeast, sugar, fats, eggs, milk, malt and other ingredients were added to the recipe, according to wishes and taste.
Note: this bread recipe is not intended for people who have an allergy or any kind of intolerance to gluten, or cannot consume white wheat flour. The amount of dry yeast in the recipe is minimal (about 1 g).
Before I start explaining the recipe itself, let me analyze how to choose flour. Because, of course, not all flours are the same. For my recipe, I use type 400 wheat flour with a slightly higher protein content (10 g per 100 g of flour). Why is it important? Because it is when mixing, that is during wetting of flour particles, protein chains are formed in the air-flour-water interaction due to surface tension forces (mixing). The protein chains quickly react with each other and form cross-links between the flour particles. So, the more protein in the flour, the number of protein chains and their interaction will be greater, which means that you will have a more elastic dough.
Here, a couple of photos, what is on offer in terms of types of flour and the amount of protein in them and you should pay attention to that when buying (amount of protein in flour):
The best bread recipe, ingredients:
- 600 g of white wheat flour type 400,
- 200 g of rye flour, wholemeal,
- 460 g of hot water,
- tablespoon of homemade lard (full to the brim),
- 2 level teaspoons of coarse sea salt,
- 1 level teaspoon of dry yeast,
- 1 level teaspoon of sugar,
- 50 - 100 g of white wheat flour type 400, for mixing the dough.
The best bread recipe, preparation:
- Weigh out 600 g of white wheat flour on a scale.
- Weigh 200 g of rye flour on a scale.
- Pour 460 g of hot water into a bowl and measure out on a scale.
- Add two level teaspoons of coarse sea salt to the water and stir well to dissolve the salt. (Note: salt is added as a filtered, saturated solution; salting is then more even, and the bread is more elastic and firm.)
- Add one level teaspoon of dry yeast to the water and stir well to dissolve the yeast.
- Add one level teaspoon of sugar to the water and mix well.
- Melt one tablespoon of homemade fat.
- Pour white wheat flour and rye flour into the mixing bowl. Mix well and make a hole in the middle.
- Pour the mixture of water, salt, yeast and sugar into the hole in the middle.
- Pour in the melted homemade lard.
- Mix well to even out the mass. When the dough is connected and even, by hand, while adding flour, turn over and press the dough.
- When the dough is well combined, flour the work surface and transfer the dough to it.
- Work the dough for 10 – 15 minutes, pressing and pushing it away from you, tearing it and bringing it back. It is the aforementioned interaction of the protein chains, which creates the elasticity of your dough. And let me remind you that the more protein the flour has in it, the more elastic it will be. Mixing the dough essentially achieves complete hydration of the flour particles and the formation of a viscous-elastic protein network.
- When the dough is mixed, it is of minimal mobility, soft to the surface touch.
- Shape the dough into a ball.
- Pour 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil into the mixing bowl and oil the dough ball.
- Place the mixing bowl in a large bag and tie tightly, or cover with self-adhesive transparent film. Leave in a warm place. To prepare the best dough for the best homemade bread, tthe temperature must not exceed 30-35 degrees C, with 85% humidity (that's why we coated the surface of the dough ball with olive oil, to ensure high surface humidity and prevent gases from escaping), because yeasts die at higher temperatures.
- The dough must double in size and rise (fermentation) takes about 4 hours, due to the small amount of yeast we added to the dough.
- When the dough has doubled in size, flour the work surface and transfer the dough to it.
- The dough is very soft and stretches.
- Add a little more flour on top and work the dough well, using the same method as for the first kneading (pressing and pushing it away from you, tearing it and bringing it back), for about 5 minutes.
- Divide the dough into two parts.
- Make two loaves and transfer them to two moulds, in which you have placed baking paper. Cut the loaves in two or three places with a knife, crosswise. Spray the loaves with a water sprayer (set to water mist).
- Allow the formed loaves to rise (ferment) before baking, 30-60 minutes. The conditions of temperature and humidity are the same as for the previous growth of the dough.
- After the loaves have risen, place them in a cold oven, on the bottom level (about 1/3 of the oven floor). Turn on the oven at 200 degrees C and set the timer for 20 minutes (depending on the strength of the oven and the heating speed - the oven I use heats up to 12 degrees C in 13-200 minutes). Before baking, spray the loaves with a water sprayer.
- After 20 minutes have passed and the timer sounds, reduce the temperature to 180 degrees C and bake for another 10 minutes. Spray the loaves with a water sprayer.
- Then, turn off the oven and leave the loaves inside for 5-10 minutes.
- Keep checking how the bread is baking and how the top crust looks, until you determine how your oven is working, ie. what is the most optimal temperature and length of baking.
- Take out the baked loaves, spray a little with a water sprayer, wrap them in a clean cotton cloth and put them in a cool place to cool.
Homemade bread prepared in this way, without additives or preservatives, stays fresh for more than 5 days.
Best Bread Recipe Summary:
Preparation time: total: 375 minutes
- preparation: 10 minutes
- mixing: 15 minutes
- fermentation: 240 minutes
- kneading, forming a loaf: 10 minutes
- fermentation: 60 minutes
- baking: 30-40 minutes
Required knowledge level: intermediate
Miodrag Ilić
READ: WHERE CAN I BUY THE BOOK TRADITIONAL RECIPES OF HOME SERBIAN CUISINE?
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