TIL a baker told me I was kneading my bread all wrong for 3 years

I always thought you had to push hard and fold aggressively to get that perfect gluten structure. A baker at a farmers market in Portland watched me for a minute and said, 'You're fighting the dough, not feeling it.' She showed me to use a lighter touch and let the dough rest between sets. Now my loaves come out way softer, no more bricks. Has anyone else gotten a random tip from a stranger that totally changed their cooking?

3 comments

3 Comments

charles64029d ago

Yeah same thing happened to me with pizza dough. I was killing myself slamming it on the counter for like 10 minutes straight thinking I was being all professional. Then this old Italian guy at the store just goes 'hey, you gotta let the dough tell you what it needs, not beat it into submission.' He showed me to fold it gentle and let it rest for 30 seconds between folds. Felt like a total idiot but my crust went from dense bread to actually airy and crispy. It's crazy how one little trick can flip everything.

park.miles1mo ago

Three years ago a guy at a coffee shop told me I was over-stirring my oatmeal. He said I was breaking down all the oats into mush and that I should just stir it twice, then leave it alone. Changed my whole breakfast game, the texture went from baby food to actually nice and chewy. It's funny how we get locked into doing things the hard way until someone just points out we're being a goof.

amy_craig281mo ago

Dropped by to say thanks @park.miles, just tried two stirs this morning and my oatmeal didn't taste like paste for once.