January 4, 2015 - 7:29am
Why are these brioche buns different? Oven Spring inconsistency help, please.
We've begun making brioche buns and sliders for a slowly growing wholesale baking operation. They just aren't all behaving the same and I can't predict which ones are going to be right and which ones have too much oven spring.
- These are made using using the 50% (Middle Class Brioche) from PR The Breadmakers Apprentice.
- The dough (batter) is placed on an oiled sheet pan, covered and into the walkin. About 15 pounds of dough
- The next day I shape them nto 5oz buns and 2.2 oz sliders
- They proof next to each other in the proofer at 90F
- Then brushed with 100% egg wash.
- Then baked in our Moffat turbofan convection oven on the same tray. 400F
Any suggestions and/or troubleshooting tips much appreciated. Artisan variation is one thing but I'm having to bake extras. Kills our margin but makes the staff happy!
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I'm no pro but it has to be related to temperature-final dough temp before going into the proofer, proofing temp or walk-in temp. Or it can be a mechanical issue with temperature maintenance.
Easiest place to start is to measure the temp of the proofer and the walk in and see how variable it is. Perhaps there is too much rise in temp before it kicks the compressor on-both for the proofer and the walk in. Not many refrigerator/warming units maintain an even temp-they can swing a lot.
The dough temp before it goes into the walkin is also a consideration. I know we have multiple professional bakers that can comment on this. I would think you would want the dough temp of each batch to be in the desired range before going into the walk-in so that the dough will rise until chilled in a consistent manner.
This also assumes ingredients and technique are consistent between batches.
I'm no pro either, self taught (and it shows). Thanks for the suggestions on where to look for the trouble.
No sure I made this clear but these buns are from the same bake. They are the same batch of dough, proofed on the same tray, and baked at the same time. Batch-to-batch variations are one thing, but these are bun-to-bun variations in the same batch and driving me slightly bonkers.
I will take notes on temperature. It may be that by the time I get around to shaping the last buns they have warmed up from the overnight chill and that while they look all innocent-like they are really getting ready to over proof. Or the other way round, the first buns I shape may be the bad boys. Or maybe the overnight in the walkin is chilling the outer edges of the slab more than the middle causing the problem. Or all three.
Again, very much appreciate the response.
Richard
related to their location in the oven? Location of fan? Is there a baffle on the fan and is it properly mounted?
Good points.
Yes, there is a baffle on the fan it is mounted per the manual. The fan reverses direction every 75 seconds so it is much more even than our older Lang oven. (which had the same problem, so I though the new ovens would fix it).
Good thought -- I will check on the location for the next bake. Think I will start taking pictures of the pan as it comes out of the oven after noting the temp of each bun on each pan before they bake for a few batches.
Have you sliced open the ones that seemed to "explode" like the one on the top left of your posted photo to see if there are any large air pockets? I've had inconsistencies in my brioche buns due to large air cavities that I created due to improper shaping or inadequate degassing.
That was a tactful way to suggest it might be "operator error!" :) Sure could be!
That is another good clue. I'll try that on the next batch.
Bread is humbling, not doubt about it.
:-) Never would have suggested it if I hadn't had similar issues myself so many times. Being so rich with fat, brioche dough sometimes doesn't even like to stick to itself. It's so irritating because I shape the dough into these perfectly uniform, pristine little buns, and when they come out of the oven, they've got ugly lumps and bumps. Please keep us posted on what ultimately solves the problem for you!
...is that people come looking for help, say they'll try it and never give any feedback about how things turned out. So I will do my best to get back and pay it forward.