October 16, 2012 - 2:47pm
How to prevent braided breads from "cracking" when rising?
When I see braided breads at the bakery, the braids are always nice a whole, like this
Yet whenever I braid bread, the braids always "crack" at the seams during baking, resulting in a bread that looks like this:
Any idea what causes this, and how I can prevent it from happening in the future? The cracks make the bread hard to transport and cut, as the bread always wants to rip at the cracks first.
Thanks!
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You can try letting them proof longer before baking.
I agree with Mary Clare. The cracks are the result of 'oven spring' so it is just timing you are dealing with.
Janet
and is preventing the dough from stretching during the proof. Brush or mist the braid to prevent drying or cover loosely with a wrung out moist flat cotton towel if humidity is low.
It could also be that the rest step between shaping the ropes and braiding is not long enough. Give the ropes some time to relax and rise a tiny bit before braiding and braid looser. Or when done braiding, shorten the braid by pushing the ends toward each other rather than away from the middle. See if that helps.
The "bakery" braid is a 4 strand braid and looks like a lower hydration dough.