Know Your Ingredients
In this section, we provide all the information you need to know about the common ingredients used in bread making and baking. You can find information on the various types of flour, dry and liquid ingredients, how yeast works and even details on adjusting the bread making process in high-altitude baking.
Flour
The chart below provides details on the various types of flour and grains most commonly used in bread making and baking.
Some Tips on Flour Storage:
- Keep flour in a secure, airtight container.
- Store rye and whole wheat flours in a refrigerator, freeze, or a cool area to prevent them from becoming rancid.
- Allow flour to come to room temperature before using.
Note: Flours, while visibly similar, can be very different in how they are ground, milled, stored, etc. You may wish to experiment with different brands of flour to help you make the perfect loaf.
Flour & OTHER GRAINS |
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All-Purpose Flour |
All-purpose flour is a blend of refined hard and soft wheat flours ideally suited for making quick breads and cakes. |
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Bran |
Bran (unprocessed) is coarse outer portion of wheat or rye grains that is separated from flour by sifting or bolting. It is often added to bread in small quantities for nutritional enrichment, heartiness and flavor. It is also used to enhance bread texture. |
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Bread Flour |
Bread flour typically has higher gluten concentration than all-purpose flour. Using bread flour with will produce loaves with better volume and structure. Bread flour should be used for all baking courses. |
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Cornmeal and Oatmeal |
Cornmeal and oatmeal come from coarsely ground white or yellow corn and from rolled or steel-cut oats. They are used primarily to enhance flavor and texture of bread. |
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Cracked Wheat |
Cracked wheat has very coarse texture. It comes from wheat kernels cut into angular fragments. It gives whole grain breads a nutty flavor and crunchy texture. |
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Rye Flour |
Rye flour must always be mixed with high proportion of bread flour, as it does not contain enough gluten to develop structure for high, even-grained loaf. |
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Self-Rising Flour |
Self-Rising Flour is NOT RECOMMENDED for use with your bread maker. Self-rising flour contains leavening ingredients that will interfere with bread and cake making. |
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7 Grain Cereal Blend |
7 grain cereal blend is blend of cracked wheat, oats, bran, rye, cornmeal, flax seeds and hulled millet. It is used primarily to enhance flavor and texture of bread. |
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Vital Wheat Gluten |
Gluten is manufactured from wheat flour that has been treated to remove nearly all of the starch to leave a very high protein content. (Gluten is the protein in wheat that makes dough elastic.) Gluten is available at most health food stores. It can be used in small portions to increase volume and lighten texture. |
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Whole Wheat Flour |
Whole wheat flour is milled from the entire wheat kernel, which contains the bran and germ. This high fiber flour is richer in nutrients than all-purpose or bread flour. Breads made with this flour are usually smaller and heavier than white loaves. Many recipes mix whole wheat flour with bread flour or vital wheat gluten to produce high, light-textured bread. |
Yeast
Active yeast, through a fermentation process, produces carbon dioxide gas necessary to make bread rise. Yeast feeds on carbohydrates in sugar and flour to produce this gas. Three different types of yeast are available: fresh (cake), active dry and quick-acting. Quick, rapid rise and bread maker yeasts are quick-acting. Fresh (cake) yeast is NOT RECOMMENDED for use with your bread maker.
Tips on Yeast
Ensure your yeast is fresh by checking its expiration date. Ideally, yeast should be used several months before the expiration date. Once a package or jar of yeast is opened, it is important that the remaining contents be immediately resealed and refrigerated or frozen for future use. Often dough that fails to rise is due to stale yeast.
On this website and in our Breadman Use & Care manual, all basic bread and dough recipes were developed using active dry yeast. You may use chart below to substitute any quick-acting yeast (quick rise, fast rise or bread maker yeast) for active dry yeast.
Conversion Chart for Quick Rise Yeast
¾ tsp. active dry yeast = ½ tsp. quick-acting yeast
1 tsp. active dry yeast = ¾ tsp. quick-acting yeast
1½ tsp. active dry yeast = 1 tsp. quick-acting yeast
2¼ tsp. active dry yeast = 1½ tsp. quick-acting yeast
1 tbsp. active dry yeast = 2 tsp. quick-acting yeast
Rapid Course Yeast
Rapid course settings for White, French, Whole Wheat and Sweet decrease time for making your favorite bread by approximately 1 hour. Choose recipe, then add an additional ½ tsp. of active dry or quick-acting yeast to the recipe. The bread may be shorter and denser.
Other Common Ingredients
The below chart provides a look at other common ingredients used in your bread maker. Remember that measuring ingredients exactly is one of the keys to good baking and perfect bread. For information on how to measure ingredients correctly, visit the Measuring Ingredients section in this part of the website.
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Baking Powder |
Double acting baking powder is leavening agent used in quick breads and cakes. This type of leavening agent does not require rising time before baking, as chemical reaction works when liquid ingredients are added and again during baking process. |
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Baking Soda |
Baking soda is another leavening agent, not to be confused or substituted for baking powder. It also does not require rising time before baking, as chemical reaction works during baking process. |
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Eggs |
Eggs add richness and velvety texture to bread dough and cakes. When recipe calls for egg(s) at room temperature, large egg(s) should be used. |
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Fats |
Shortening, butter and oil shorten, or tenderize, the texture of yeast breads. French bread gets unique crust and texture from the lack of fat added. However, breads that call for fat stay fresh longer. If butter is used directly from refrigerator, it should be cut into small pieces for easier blending during kneading process. |
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Liquids |
All liquids should be warm 80ºF/27ºC to 90°F/32°C for all recipes. Liquids, such as milk, water or a combination of powdered milk and water, can be used when making bread. Milk will improve flavor, provide velvety texture and soften the crust, while water alone will produce a crispier crust. Vegetable or fruit juices and potato water may be used for flavor variety. |
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Salt |
Salt is necessary to balance flavor in breads and cakes; it also limits growth of yeast. Do not increase or decrease amount of salt shown in recipes. |
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Sugar |
Sugar is important for color and flavor of breads. It also serves as food for yeast since it the supports fermentation process. Recipes in this book that call for sugar require granulated sugar. |
Altitude & Climate Affects
High-Altitude Baking
In high-altitude areas (over 3,000 feet) dough tends to rise faster, as there is less air pressure. Therefore, less yeast is necessary. For more information on High Altitude Baking guides contact:
Colorado Cooperative Extension Resource Center
Toll free: (877) 692-9358
Website: http://www.gunnison.colostate.edu/hh/hh_docs/highaltfdprep.pdf
Climate Variation
In dry climates, flour is drier and requires slightly more liquid. In humid climates, flour is wetter and will absorb less liquid, so less liquid is required. If you live in an extremely dry or extremely humid area, you may need to experiment with your liquid ingredient measures to achieve the exact results you want.