Easy Breadmaking - Dummy's Guide to the White Loaf

Want to make a loaf of bread, but you don't know how? You're probably scared. Have no fear. In 20 minutes you'll be ready to bake. Put on your apron. Wash your hands. It's time for the Dummy's Guide to the White Loaf.

Let's make this really easy.  Make sure you've got a weighing scales and one big bowl.   When you add liquid, you should know that 1ml of water (or milk) weighs 1g.  So when you're asked to add hot water, you can pour it straight from the kettle into the bowl.  You just need to look at the weighing scales to see how much water you've added.  Sweet.

One more thing, lots of people think that when you knead bread you are trying to get air into the dough.  Wrong.  If that's what you thought, make sure you follow the kneading instructions carefully.

Shopping

1kg Strong White flour. The Strong means there's extra protein. You'll find it in a decent supermarket. While you're there, pick up some fast-action yeast. It's cheap and lasts ages. And some milk and some unsalted butter.

Mixing

1. Get your biggest bowl and put it on a weighing scale.  Add 700g of that Strong white flour, 5g of salt and 7g of the yeast.
2. Chop up 50g of the butter into little bits and sprinkle on top.
3. Boil the kettle.  Pour 220ml of hot water on top.
4. Before you stir, add 250ml cold milk.
5. Stir it up.  Squidgy.  Once you've combined all the stuff properly it'll feel like play-dough.  If it's too crumbly, add a dollop of milk.  If it's too squidgy, add a dollop of flour (less than a handful).
   

Kneading

You've already done the hard work.  Kneading is easy.  You just have to know what's going on.  What you're trying to do is stretch the dough like an elastic band.  If you imagine bread made up of loads of tiny strands it might help.  Imagine that if you stretch these strands, they become more elastic.  Elasticity is the key.  It's what allows the dough to grow.

So, now you know the secret, here's how to make it work.  Slap the dough onto a floury surface.  Holding one part of the dough close to you with one palm, stretch it lengthways away from you with the other.  At first it will rip easily when you do this.  No problem.  Now roll the dough back up into a ball, turn it 90 degrees and repeat.

When is it done?  After 10 minutes it's ready.  Look at the way the dough stretches.  If the texture (the clumping of strands and hairy looking nature) looks like the inside of a loaf of freshly cooked bread, then it's good to go.

Waiting

Put the dough into a big bowl.  Wrap it in a Big plastic bag, inflate it with air and tie it off.  Wait for an hour and a half, or until it rises to twice it's size.  Now punch it down.  Shape into a log.  Put it on a greased baking tin (use a dribble of oil and smudge it around).  Wrap this in a Big plastic bag, inflate it with air and tie it off.

Wait 30 mins.

Baking

While you're waiting, pre-heat the oven to a medium heat (around 180 degrees).  Slice the dough with a sharp knife, once, down its length, really shallow, like a paper cut.  Bake for 25 mins and then transfer the dough from the baking dish to the oven grill.  Bake for another 25 mins.  Knock on the bottom of the bread.  Does it sound hollow?  Really hollow?  Then it's ready.  If not, bake for another 10 mins and repeat the test.

Voila!

To impress... Put some sliced garlic, dried oregano and dried basil in at the start.  Just before it goes in the oven, brush it with milk and sprinkle with sesame and onion seeds.