How to start baking bread
Recently, an acquaintance of mine who loves baking as much as I do announced he's never tried his hand at bread. Even world-class bakers who make jaw-dropping cakes, impossibly complicated pastries, sumptuous pies, or crispy cookies find breads to be in a class of their own. Just ask any baker on the Great British Baking Show on 'Bread week'. For us home bakers, bread baking often carries the stigma of being too difficult, tedious, and time-consuming to be feasible. That is quite the shame, as bread baking has the potential to be a rewarding, life-long hobby that can easily be incorporated into anyone's schedule and would make for healthier bread-eating overall.
But what does bread-making entail exactly? And how can we enlighten ourselves on how best to start this extraordinary craft? Below are some thoughts and helpful resources to guide you through the beginning stages of making bread at home:
1. Start with simple recipes first. Part of what makes bread-baking tricky is the long list of steps involved. Try recipes that break down various elements of bread-making into segments. Below are a few simple recipes that would make for great 'first homemade bread' recipes:
NYT No-Knead bread: this one is fantastically simple, and helps explain the concept of slow rising. With only four ingredients, there is hardly any kneading involved, which makes this a great bread to try first.
Onion and Herb bread: this recipe introduces the concept of adding other flavors to your dough for a flavorful treat.
Focaccia: As the recipe proclaims, this is as ‘fuss-free’ as you can get, and you can add almost any topping you think would go well here.
Soft Dinner Rolls: Sally’s Baking Addiction offers a delightful recipe for dinner rolls that you won’t want to miss. This is perfect for the beginner baker looking to create a fluffy dough.
2. Start with All-Purpose flour, then work your way to other flours. Flours all behave differently with one another and produce varying textures. Before moving on to blends and rye, spelt, or buckwheat flour, all of which require different approaches, start with all-purpose flour. This is a forgiving flour and can be used for a wide variety of other baked goods (breads, cakes, scones, etc.).
3. Study! Reading up on how bread works can be enormously helpful in understanding the science behind the scenes. There are literally thousands of references and guidebooks. I’ve found these resources to be some of the most helpful:
King Arthur Flour: an invaluable resource for almost any bake, the writers and bloggers at King Arthur Flour know their stuff. Their website is chock full of new recipes and insights in baking technology, and they even offer a hotline service if you're in a bind.
Beard on Bread: hailed as one of the best books on baking this world has seen, Beard on Bread was published in a time where bread baking was becoming more popular in American households. Beard's incomparable knowledge and insight into baking will help even the most befuddled baker.
The Perfect Loaf: Maurizio Leo is obsessed with sourdoughs, and that's great news for us! Not only will you find an incredible number of fun recipes to try here, Maurizio also has a discord open where you can chat with him in real time over anything bread-related.
4. Don't sweat the timing. This one is important. I myself have fallen into the trap of not baking simply because I don't believe it will fit into my schedule. However, it's important to remind yourself that the rising times are suggestions only. Different room temperatures and altitudes will affect how long or slowly a bread will rise. With time, you'll learn to see when a bread is ready, rather than wait for the timer to go off.
Also: you can make adjustments to tailor the rising time to your schedule. For example, whenever I need my dough to rise faster, I'll turn on the oven briefly for 3 to 5 minutes (just long enough to create some heat), then stick the covered dough in the oven, keeping the oven light on for added heat. If I'm in the opposite conundrum, I will put my dough in the refrigerator to use for later. Whatever the timing issue may be, there is almost always a workaround.
5. Be precise. This might seem to contradict the above suggestion, but in this case, we're talking about ingredients. Baking is not like cooking a soup, where you can play around with the amount of herbs or veggies you put in your dish. If a recipe calls for a particular amount of yeast or milk, there's typically a reason. Being more precise in your measurements will help protect against heartbreak. Don’t worry though. Once you’ve mastered a few recipes, you can begin playing around.
6. Learn from your mistakes. I'm sure I'll be getting a few eye rolls on this one, but I mean it. Perhaps what makes baking bread seem so difficult is the fact that most of it is done by feel. I now know how a dough should feel after I've kneaded it enough, but I'm not sure I can adequately describe in words what to expect on your first try (I know - and I call myself a writer...). My point being, be prepared to make some mistakes, and learn from them! After that, try again! Before you know it, you'll be smashing out delicious buns, rolls, and star breads, wowing your friends and family with your impressive new skills.
7. Enjoy the process! If nothing else, enjoy yourself. That’s the whole point, right?