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    Bread Storage Tips


    Source of Recipe


    Marla

    List of Ingredients




    Storage Tips

    Recipe




    Bread usually tastes best just after it cools down completely. It is at this point that the flavor-baffling warmth is gone, the moisture has evaporated, thus intensifying flavor, and the bread is still fresh so that it is soft and creamy on the palate. It is never difficult to advise people what to do with fresh bread: eat it and enjoy it. However, it becomes more problematic to advise what to do with the bread that is in excess of what can be enjoyed after that perfect bread moment passes.

    Bread Storage Do’s
    Lean, crusty breads are stored differently than soft, enriched breads. If you want to preserve the crustiness in lean breads, store them in paper, but they will become stale within a day and are best eaten on the same day they are made. If you want to preserve them for more than a day, cater wrap the loaves in plastic wrap (this means wrap them completely in both directions to prevent any air from getting to them). Then, either freeze or place them in a cool, dark place. You can also use zipper-style plastic bags, squeezing out all the air before sealing. When freezing, it is acceptable to pre-slice the loaf so that you can remove only what you need without defrosting the entire loaf. Snack-sized zippered bags are useful for individual slices.

    Soft, enriched bread, such as sandwich bread, is always best stored in plastic and either frozen or kept in a cool, dark place (exposure to sunlight causes the loaf to sweat, creating condensation in the wrapper and, eventually, mold on the loaf). Pre-sliced sandwich loaves are best for freezing, allowing the removal of only the slices you are planning to use (and they thaw much more quickly than whole loaves).

    If you have a frozen unsliced loaf and want to thaw it, pull it from the freezer at least 2 hours before you need to use it. Do not try to accelerate the thawing by putting it into the oven or microwave. This will only dry it out. Of course, in an emergency, when you have to get bread on the table and have forgotten to thaw it in advance, you can quickly thaw it in the microwave or in a hot oven. The best way to prevent it from drying out is to place it under a wet towel. Heat the oven to 400°F, place the bread in a pan, and cover the pan with a towel that has been soaked in warm water and then wrung out. Check on the towel every 10 minutes to see if it needs rewetting. It should take 20 to 30 minutes to thaw out a standard-sized loaf, 10 to 20 minutes for a baguette. If you want to restore a crackly crust to the bread, remove the towel for the final few minutes and turn the oven up to 450°F.

    Bread Storage Dont’s
    Don’t store bread in the refrigerator. It dries out, even when packaged in sealed plastic bags.

    Don’t store crusty breads in plastic bags or in plastic wrap unless you plan to re-crisp the crust in the oven.

    Don’t store soft, enriched breads in paper bags unless you intend to dry them out for bread crumbs or croutons.

    Don’t store any bread that you intend to dry for crumbs in plastic bags or plastic wrap. If the moisture cannot escape, the bread will eventually mold.

    Don’t store warm bread in plastic bags or plastic wrap. Wait until it has completely cooled down (no warmth at all), to prevent condensation from forming in the bag and thus accelerating mold development.

    Source is Mai

 

 

 


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