October 29, 2015 - 9:42pm
do you prefer a dry heat or moist heat proofer?
I was wondering if people prefer a moist or dry heat for their proofer.
I made a simple proofer. I got the idea from various forum posts. The main reason I went this route was because I could build this out of parts that I own. I spent 10 dollars on a 100 watt adjustable aquarium heater.
It's a cooler with water in the bottom of it and an aquarium heater. It has a rack about 4 inches above the water that I can put my proofables on. I noticed that it's a pretty humid environment. I'd guess > 80% RH. Is this high humidity ideal for proofing?
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Generally yes, higher humidity is preferred to keep the skin of the dough from drying out until you're actually baking.
My makeshift proofer is my microwave with a mug of hot water inside it. It works well so far.
That's exactly what I use too, and it works extremely well. Only downside is that there is not much temperature & humidity control this way, like you might have with a Brod&Taylor or commercial device.