Once bread has risen, can you delay baking?

[patlaw]

Making bread is something I seldom do, but I decided to make a loaf today for a very special dinner. It has risen earlier than I expected, and I wanted to take it out of the oven and serve it hot and aromatic. Can I wait for an hour or so?

[Jock]

You can put it in the refrigerator to slow the fermentaion process but if you leave it too long it can overproof and develop (some will say) an unpleasant yeasty flavor.

Also, the romantic notion of bread hot and fresh from the oven doesn't really hold up in real life. The cooking process is not complete until the bread cools down a bit so it is not advisable to eat it too soon. Also, the proteins won't set up properly until it cools down and when you want to cut it, it will tend to squish into a doughy lump.

If you had baked it when it was ready and let it cool for the hour you were saving the dough, it would have been perfect - still a bit warm but properly cooked through.

Jock

[KyleW]

I agree with Jock about letting bread cool. An hour after it has come out of the oven it will still be warm(ish) and the full flavor and texture will have been reached. One thing i will mention is that if your bread is shaped and you notice that it has risen too soon, it's unlikely that putting it in the fridge at that point will not likely help. It will take too long for the dough to cool to really stop the proofing process.

FYI, most comercially yeast breads will easily tolerate an additional, 'first' rise. Once the dough has fully risen, just fold it over on itself a few times and let it rise again. If you have already let the dough rise once, shaped it and let it rise too long in the pan, you can just take it out of the pan, gently degas the dough, reshape it and let it rise again in the pan.

[patlaw]

Thanks for the advice. I went ahead and baked it and it was just perfect when the guests arrived. I used to make bread often, but my life as a lawyer made it difficult in the last 15 years. I've settled for using the breadmaker, but I had a yearning for a freshly baked loaf of real bread. It was a real hit and wasn't that much trouble either. Thanks again.

[sancyr]

Also, if you want to get a warm loaf on the table, go ahead and bake and loaf and let it cool. Prior to serving, stick the whole loaf (unsliced) in the oven, wrapped in a single later of aluminum foil, and toast it until warm (about 10 minutes at 350 F).

No harm in that, I don't think .

Sara