When baking bread or, for example, oliebollen, you will often come across the term ‘proofing’ in a recipe. But what exactly does proofing mean? Proofing is a process in which the dough increases in volume through the addition of a raising agent. During this process, small gas bubbles form in the dough, making the final bake lighter and airier.
What is a raising agent?
If you want dough to rise, it needs to contain a raising agent. A raising agent allows the batter or dough to rise, making it lighter in texture. Raising agents that are often used in bread dough include sourdough and yeast. When baking a cake, you also want the cake to rise. For cakes, baking powder is commonly used. For baking powder to work, moisture or an acid needs to be present in the batter. If this is not the case, the baking powder will not work properly and the bake will not rise.
Proofing bread
If you take a look at a bread recipe, you might be surprised by the preparation and waiting time. However, the time you are actually working on the bread is usually quite limited. Most of the time is spent waiting for the bread to rise. Bread dough goes through several proofing stages. Below we explain them all:
The bulk fermentation
After kneading all the ingredients together and forming a well-kneaded dough, the dough goes into bulk fermentation. Some people also refer to this as the first rise. The name ‘bulk’ already suggests a large quantity. During bulk fermentation, if you are making several loaves, the dough for two or more loaves rises together in one bowl. After the bulk rise, you divide the dough into the desired portions and shape it into balls. Sometimes the bulk rise is preceded by a short resting stage such as autolyse. This happens before yeast is added and is therefore not considered part of the rising process itself.
Cover the dough during this stage
Now that you know a little more about proofing and the temperature at which bread dough rises best, it is useful to know where the dough should rise. During the bulk fermentation, it is best to let the dough rise in a bowl. Cover the bowl with cling film or a clean tea towel and place it in a draught-free spot. If the dough is placed in a location with a lot of draught, you may notice that the dough does not develop properly.
How long does bread need to rise?
Once the dough is properly covered and placed in a draught-free spot, it will begin to rise. How long this takes depends on the type of bread. The rising time depends not only on the amount of yeast used, but also on the temperature of the dough and the surrounding environment. Dough with more yeast often rises faster than dough with less yeast. Likewise, dough in a warm environment will rise faster than dough in a cooler environment. During proofing, it is therefore important to pay attention to how the dough looks and feels. Has the dough increased significantly in volume during the bulk fermentation? Then you can continue shaping it. The rising times mentioned in recipes are therefore only guidelines.
The second rise
After the bread has completed the bulk fermentation or first rise, the dough is shaped into balls. If you allow the dough to rest or rise again briefly after shaping, this is called the second rise.
The final proof
After the bread has been shaped and placed in the loaf tin, it goes into the final proof. This stage is generally the longest and allows the dough to rise nicely in the tin.
The oven spring
When the bread has risen well, it is ready to be baked. The bread, still in the tin, is placed in the oven. In the oven, the bread continues to rise for about another 10 minutes. This stage is known as the oven spring.
At what temperature should dough rise?
Bread dough can be left to rise in different ways. For most home bakers, the easiest method is to let the dough rise at least at room temperature. By room temperature, we simply mean the temperature in your home at that moment. For example, if your home is 21°C, it is important that all the ingredients you use are also at 21°C.
Why isn’t my dough rising?
Sometimes dough simply refuses to rise. This can have several causes. The environment may be too cold, the dough may not have been kneaded sufficiently, or the yeast may no longer be active. Always check the freshness of the yeast before you start, and make sure the water is not too hot when mixing the ingredients, as this can kill the yeast.
