Kept making rock-hard dinner rolls for years until my grandma watched me knead one day

I always thought you had to pound dough into submission to get a good crumb, so I would knead for a solid 10 minutes like I was angry at it. She just laughed and showed me a light stretch and fold method that took maybe 3 minutes total, and my rolls came out pillow soft for the first time. What baking habit did you hold onto forever that turned out to be totally backwards?

2 comments

2 Comments

noahchen4d ago

Same here, I was basically fighting my dough for years.

the_kelly4d ago

Oh man, the angry kneading is such a trap! I did the same thing for way too long. Thought I had to use all my arm strength to get the gluten right. Turns out dough responds way better to gentle, patient handling. It's almost like it has feelings or something, haha.