Hand Knead Wholemeal Toast Bread Recipe

How to make it

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• TANGZHONG (WATER ROUX STARTER) MAKING METHOD::
• Basic Formula:
• The ratio of flour to water is 1:5
• This means mix up 1 part of High grade flour (Bread flour) with 5 parts of water (by weight) at 65°C to form runny dough with traces. By traces means you can forms impressions by stirring the paste.
• DIRECTION:
• Dissolve high grade flour in a bowl with water, bring to stove and heat up the mixture.
• Continue to stir to combine the mixture until form traces.
• Remove from heat and let it cool at room temperature (few hours) before use or
• Wrap mixture with plastic wrap and leave in refrigerator overnight.
• Notes:
• This Tangzhong starter can be kept for 1-2 days in refrigerator. However, discard once the mixture turns grayish.
• DOUGH MAKING METHOD: (HAND KNEADING METHOD)
• Pour flour into mixing bowl; add in the rest of ingredients A. However, avoid having the salt come in direct contact with the yeast which might dehydrate and kill the yeast.
• Add in ingredients B and use spatula to mix the dough until the dough was too sticky to move then start using hands to knead the dough in the mixing bowl.
• Initially, you will experience very gluey dough, just continue to mangling with the dough, after 10 minutes it will gradually firm up.
• Once the dough firm up, you can start to knead the dough on a clean, smooth surface that's at a comfortable height. I did not flour the surface, the more I knead the dough the less sticky the dough became.
• It took me at least another 10-15 minutes to knead to transform the initial glob of gooey dough into smooth dough which ready for the final ingredient C.
• Check to evaluate on the gluten development of the dough before adding in butter. The dough should be stretchy.
• Place the dough back into mixing bowl and pour in melted butter, knead to combine.
• Be prepared to deal with oily dough for another 10 minutes before the butter totally blend in.
• Once the dough was not so oily, move back to kneading surface and continues to knead until forming smooth and elastic dough. (It took me about 15-20 minutes)
• Test by pulling the dough. Dough with wholemeal flour will be harder to reach the stage of thin sheet. Hence, as long as the dough is stretchable and not easily breaks off, the dough is ready for its first rises.
• Once the dough double in size (Finger test – Poke finger into center of the dough and depression not rise up, dough fully proof ) punch it a few times to deflate it (using hand knuckles)
• Divide dough into 3 equal portions and shape them into balls. Covered and leave them to rest 15 minutes.
• Shape each into an oval shape. Place them into a greased loaf pan, covered with greased plastic wrap and leave dough to proof for 2nd time.
• Preheat oven 180°C and bake for 30 minutes. Instead of using egg wash, I spray the bread dough with water before I place the loaf pan into the center of the oven.
• To avoid over burnt crust, after 15-20 minutes of baking, I use foil lightly cover the bread and continue to bake until the required time.