Why Is My Bread Crust So Thick Hard 5 Tips For Next Time

The bread crust is the part of the bread that gets baked off after the loaf has been sliced. It is usually discarded, but there are a few ways to use it.

You can bake it into cookies, add it to salads, or even eat it plain. Here are some ideas for using bread crust. The crust is very important in pizza and other types of bread because it adds flavor and texture. If you want your crust to be extra crispy, try baking it at 400 degrees F instead of 350 degrees F. You may also need to increase the amount of time you let the dough rise before shaping it.

Bread is an essential part of every meal. It’s also one of the most frustrating foods to prepare. The bread you buy at the store might be perfectly fine, but if you’re making homemade bread, you’ll probably find yourself frustrated with the way it turns out.

If you’ve ever had to trouble baking bread, you know exactly what I’m talking about. If you’ve never baked bread before, you might be wondering why your crust seems so thick and hard.

Here are five tips for next time that will help you get better results.

Why Is My Bread Crust So Thick & Hard?

Bread is a staple food in every household. It’s delicious, versatile, and nutritious. However, bread can also be a pain in the butt if you’re not careful.

If you’ve ever had a thick, hard crust on your bread, you know exactly what I’m talking about. The bread has been sitting out too long and the yeast has done its job.

But there’s a simple trick you can use to get rid of that crust and make your bread soft and fluffy. Let’s quickly look at 5 tricks that you can try.

Enrich Your Dough

When you first start working with bread flour, you should always enrich your dough by adding 1/2 cup water to every 2 cups of flour. This helps prevent dry crumbly loaves.

It’s best to do this when you mix up the dough rather than later. When you put the dough in the refrigerator overnight, then gluten starts forming and makes the dough tough. Adding more liquid prevents this from happening.

Stay Away From Dark Metal Cooking Tins

Metal tins have a tendency to cause uneven browning during cooking. They also tend to stick to the bottom of the oven which causes them to burn. Instead, choose glass or ceramic pans. These materials don’t conduct heat as well as metal does.

You can use aluminum foil to cover the pan while it bakes. Just remember to remove it once the bread comes out of the oven.

Use A Pullman Tin

A Pullman tin is similar to a springform cake pan. It allows air to circulate around the top of the bread without having to open the lid. This keeps the bread moist and fresh-tasting.

This type of tin works great for sandwich rolls, bagels, and any kind of flatbreads like pita pockets. A Pullman tin is available online or at kitchen supply stores.

Brush It With Butter After Baking

After you take your loaf out of the oven, brush it with melted butter. This gives the bread a nice golden color and creates a crispier surface.

The reason we recommend brushing the bread after baking is because the moisture evaporates faster than the fat content. By applying the butter right away, you keep all those good flavors inside. Furthermore, the butter adds flavor and texture to the bread.

Store It In A Plastic Bag

To avoid drying out your bread, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and place it back into the fridge. You want to leave enough room between the bread and the sides of the container so that steam doesn’t build up.

Once again, you shouldn’t refrigerate the bread until just prior to serving. Doing so encourages bacteria growth.

These are some easy ways to improve your bread recipe. Don’t forget to share these tips with others!

Causes Of A Thick And Hard Crust

Bread crusts are an essential part of our daily lives. They are used for sandwiches, toast, bagels, pizza, etc. However, sometimes bread crusts get thick and hard. It becomes difficult to cut them into slices.

There are several reasons why bread crusts become thick and hard. Some of these reasons are due to improper mixing of ingredients. Others are due to a lack of proper kneading. Still, others are due to the use of too much yeast.

In this article, I will discuss the causes of a thick and hard bread crust.

Overbaking

Overbaking is one of the reasons why you have a thick bread crust The main problem here is overmixing. If you add too many eggs, milk, oil, sugar, salt, spices, herbs, nuts, fruits, vegetables, etc., they end up getting mixed together.

As a result, there isn’t enough time left for the starches to gelatinize properly. As soon as the starch molecules begin to gel, they form strong bonds. Once this happens, the proteins cannot bond anymore. Therefore, the gluten network gets stronger and thicker.

If you bake your dough longer than necessary, then the protein strands start bonding before the starch has had sufficient time to do its job. When this occurs, the bread turns tough and chewy instead of soft and tender.

Using A Temperature That’s Too Hot

Another cause of a thick bread crust is using a temperature that’s too hot when making your dough. Using high temperatures can make the flour absorb more water. As a result, the dough ends up being very wet.

When the dough starts rising, the heat makes the gas bubbles expand quickly. Because of this rapid expansion, the dough rises even further. Eventually, the dough forms large blisters on the surface. These blistered areas contain less gluten.

Therefore, the rest of the dough remains dense and heavy. To prevent this from happening, reduce the amount of liquid added to the dough. Also, lower the oven temperature by 10 degrees or so. This way, the dough won’t rise as fast.

Your Dough Was Lacking Moisture

A third possible cause of a thick bread crumb is not adding enough moisture during the initial stages of the process. Adding too little water means that the dough lacks air pockets.

This results in a denser loaf. Moreover, if the dough contains no air pockets, then the gluten strands don’t have any space to stretch. Consequently, the dough stays compacted throughout the entire cooking period.

Conclusion

The above-mentioned factors contribute to thick and hard breadcrumbs. By following my simple steps, you’ll be able to avoid such problems next time around.