The protein composition of wheat gives it its unique character, and also makes it possible to bake a leavened bread. Bread is the staff of life and should form an essential component of a healthy lifestyle. Even a cursory glance at the composition tables will show that bread provides vastly more energy and nutrients per unit mass than does any other cooked grain. The reason for this lies in the fact that a large proportion of the water, added in the preparation, which to begin with is only a one to one ratio, is evaporated during the baking process, thus providing a high-energy food which should take pride of place in our diets. Furthermore, bread prepared from whole-grain flour will not be fattening and will contribute substantially to one’s overall health and well-being. There is nothing as pleasant as the aroma and taste of a good home-baked bread, and no home should have to forgo the pleasure of enjoying this commodity. In today’s society the art of bread baking has to a large extent been lost, and modern milling techniques have so changed the composition of wheat flour, that it has, indeed, become difficult to produce a product which will impart all the goodness of whole wheat.
In the past, wheat was milled by stone mills, and all the components of the wheat would be finely ground. Modern mills no longer use stones, and they automatically separate the components of the wheat. Milling involves successive stages during which the bran, the germ and the endosperm are gradually separated from each other. Most mills today use rollers to crush the wheat, and in the first crushing, the rollers are set relatively far apart, thus merely cracking the wheat kernels. Separation of the components is achieved by sieving or bolting, and successive rollers produce finer and finer products. The first process removes most of the bran, and during the crushing action of the rollers, some of the fat in the germ is squeezed out, thus allowing the germ particles to stick together. The high lipid content of the germ causes this component to be lighter than the rest, and it is therefore also readily separated by shaking and bolting. At each stage the fine flour consisting mainly of the endosperm accumulates, and eventually forms the bulk of the milling process. By combining and blending the different components of the milling process, many different flour varieties are produced, but the germ is seldom used in these combinations, in view of its spoiling qualities.
A good wholesome bread should contain all the components of wheat, and it is advisable to scout around for a supplier of whole flour. Some mills will still produce a whole flour, or they will be willing to produce such a product upon request. Failing this, flour can be obtained from stone mills which are still operative, or the grain can be milled in household mills which are becoming more and more popular. Bread baked from stone, or home-ground flour, is a feast and will be difficult to give up once one has developed a palate for it. Bread is so versatile. By the addition of different ingredients it is possible to change the whole character of a loaf of bread. Adding herbs, onions or garlic will produce a delicious savoury loaf, whereas the addition of sweet ingredients or fruits, will produce a totally different culinary experience. The art of bread baking should be regained.
The art of bread baking.
Sadly, many people have given up baking home baked bread, particularly whole-wheat bread, because they have obtained such poor results from their attempts. Often the bread produced is good for building houses, but totally unsuited for human consumption, and so the prospective bread baker has given up in despair and reverted to buying light and fluffy commercial products. This need, however, not be the lot of anyone if a few elementary procedures were rigorously adhered to. As with any other subject, it is always better to adhere to procedures if the principles involved are first understood, so before addressing the subject of bread baking, a brief discussion of the chemical process seems appropriate.
The chief proteins found in all cereals are prolamines and glutelins, and the relationship between these proteins varies from grain to grain. Wheat is unique, in that it contains a prolamine called gliadin, and a glutelin called glutenin in approximately equal proportions.
The presence of gliadin and glutelin in the endosperm of wheat, gives wheat flour its unique baking qualities, because in the presence of water and mechanical agitation, these two protein fractions will form a tough, elastic complex known as gluten.46 Gluten does not occur as such in wheat, but it is formed when the dough is kneaded and it will form an elastic, gummy product as the gluten will absorb water and swell up to 200%. The properties of the gluten, that is formed in the kneading process, will depend on the quality of the flour but in general, hard wheats will form a gluten of good strength.
The gluten that develops in the kneadIng process, acts as a trap for the gases produced by the yeast, which is added to the dough mixture to make the bread rise. The mixed dough must have the texture of chewing gum, which should not break when attempting to spoon out a portion, but should be elastic with good stretching ability. The yeast produces carbon dioxide as an excretory product during the fermentation period, and because it also produces new offspring, which also produce carbon dioxide, the dough will rise as the gas becomes trapped in the gummy gluten mixture. Some strains of yeast produce more gas than others and a number of other components of the dough also influence the rate of gas formation. As yeast is a living organism, it is obvious that it will only grow vigorously if its nutritional needs are met.
Yeast cells utilize sugars to provide for their metabolic needs, and as these are broken down, carbon dioxide is produced as a by-product. The sugars present in flour are mostly glucose, fructose and sucrose, with the first two being present mainly in the germ which is mostly removed in commercial flours. To speed up the rate of fermentation, sugar is normally added to the mixture, but as too much sucrose in dough will slow down the rate of fermentation, it is advisable to bear this in mind when adding sugars to the mixture. The bread recipes given in this book thus use monosaccharide sugar sources to circumvent this problem.
The quality of bread thus depends on a few fundamental principles, which if adhered to should greatly improve the product which is produced. The lightness, texture and taste of the loaf will be determined by the quality of the grains used, by the combination of grains used, by what is added to the dough and by the mechanical preparation of the dough.
Mechanical preparation:
The gluten can be developed either by mixing or kneadIng, but it is essential that it is developed sufficiently to trap the carbon dioxide produced by the yeast. Undermixing will produce a heavy, dense bread which is difficult to digest, and will also discourage the baker. Overmixing will produce a sticky, less rubbery mixture which can also decrease the volume of the loaf.
Other ingredients:
The ingredients added to a dough mixture are very important and will influence the quality of the end-product. A few factors to consider are:
- Grains: In general the addition of flours, other than wheat, will produce denser loaves of bread, but the flavour and nutritional value can be improved. It is advisable to experiment until a happy compromise is reached which suits one’s individual taste.
- Sugar: Sugar can be added as yeast nutrient, but a fructose or glucose source would produce faster and tastier results. It is suggested that fruit or dried fruit such as raisins be added in liquidized form to provide a monosaccharide sugar form.
- Malt: It is often customary to use malt extract, and malted barley in bread recipes, but this practice should be limited, as the malt contains proteolytic enzymes which break down the gluten in the dough, making it sticky, difficult to handle and producing a tacky bread of poor volume. Proteolytic enzymes also occur in the wheat flour itself, and this is desirable as it improves the gluten, however, too much will produce adverse results and that is why an addition of enzymes in malt and malted products can cause a problem.
- Salt: Sodium chloride (table salt) improves the quality of the gluten that is developed, and can thus be added to the bread mixture. Salt will also improve the taste.
- Milk: Milk contains factors which increase proteolytic enzyme activity, and raw or pasteurized milk should not be added to the dough.
- Heat: Finally it should be remembered that grains contain factors which will limit their digestibility, but as these factors are normally neutralized by exposure to heat, it is advisable not to bake very large loaves of bread, so that the heat can penetrate deep into the loaves during baking. This will also ensure that the yeast cells are all killed during the baking process, as it is not advisable to ingest live yeast cells, as these will rob the body of essential nutrients. Live yeast cells, like all living organisms, require nutrients in order to continue their life processes and will thus absorb vitamins and nutrients from the system. If the loaves are, however, small and well-baked, the yeast cells will be killed and will themselves be digested thus adding to the nutrient supply.
The production of a quality bread is thus influenced by many factors, but adherence to the few principles outlined above, will produce an acceptable product. With a little practice and experimentation, it should, however, soon be possible to produce bread of the highest quality.