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| bred:breadmaking [2025/12/05 16:02] – Dave Darby | bred:breadmaking [2026/03/26 18:33] (current) – external edit 127.0.0.1 |
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| # Breadmaking | This topic is part of [[gt:food|Food & drink]]. |
| | ====== Breadmaking ====== |
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| ## What is it breadmaking? | ===== What is it breadmaking? ===== |
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| It's making bread with your own hands, with flour, water, salt and (if you're making leavened bread) some kind of raising agent. The other essential ingredient is time. | It's making bread with your own hands, with flour, water, salt and (if you're making leavened bread) some kind of raising agent. The other essential ingredient is time. |
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| <caption> | <caption> |
| Fresh sourdough loaves. | _Fresh sourdough loaves._ |
| </caption> | </caption> |
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| <caption> | <caption> |
| Just about the best flour you can get – locally-grown, wholemeal, stoneground & organic. | _Just about the best flour you can get – locally-grown, wholemeal, stoneground & organic._ |
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| </caption> | </caption> |
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| ## What are the benefits of breadmaking? | ===== What are the benefits of breadmaking? ===== |
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| After the war, large commercial bakers developed the Chorleywood breadmaking process, that uses flour, water, enzymes, chemical oxidisers and emulsifiers, vast quantities of yeast and very little time. The ingredients are blended at high speed, left for 45 minutes and baked for 20 before cooling and packaging. Speed is of the essence, and the result is something pretty indigestible. | After the war, large commercial bakers developed the Chorleywood breadmaking process, that uses flour, water, enzymes, chemical oxidisers and emulsifiers, vast quantities of yeast and very little time. The ingredients are blended at high speed, left for 45 minutes and baked for 20 before cooling and packaging. Speed is of the essence, and the result is something pretty indigestible. |
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| <caption> | <caption> |
| White bloomers coming out of a wood-fired oven. | _White bloomers coming out of a wood-fired oven._ |
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| </caption> | </caption> |
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| <caption> | <caption> |
| Proving baskets for sourdough bread. | _Proving baskets for sourdough bread._ |
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| </caption> | </caption> |
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| <caption> | <caption> |
| Kneading the dough. | _Kneading the dough._ |
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| </caption> | </caption> |
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| <caption> | <caption> |
| German ‘Stollen’ bread – for xmas, with marzipan, dried fruit and icing. | _German ‘Stollen’ bread – for xmas, with marzipan, dried fruit and icing._ |
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| </caption> | </caption> |
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| ## What can I do? | ===== What can I do? ===== |
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| Artisan bread is more expensive than commercial bread (not surprisingly, as it contains things like flavour and nutrients, as well as requiring more time and skill). Look out for small artisan bakers, or check the [Real Bread Finder](http://www.sustainweb.org/realbread/bakery_finder/) on the website of the [Real Bread Campaign](http://www.sustainweb.org/realbread/). Or you can save money by making your own. To get a really good, nutritious, tasty bread you have to nurture it. It takes time, but you don't have to attend to it for the whole time - it can be left to do its own thing. | Artisan bread is more expensive than commercial bread (not surprisingly, as it contains things like flavour and nutrients, as well as requiring more time and skill). Look out for small artisan bakers, or check the [Real Bread Finder](http://www.sustainweb.org/realbread/bakery_finder/) on the website of the [Real Bread Campaign](http://www.sustainweb.org/realbread/). Or you can save money by making your own. To get a really good, nutritious, tasty bread you have to nurture it. It takes time, but you don't have to attend to it for the whole time - it can be left to do its own thing. |
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| <caption> | <caption> |
| Bucket containing sourdough starter culture – think of it as pet yeast. | _Bucket containing sourdough starter culture – think of it as pet yeast._ |
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| </caption> | </caption> |
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| <caption> | <caption> |
| [Here’s a list](https://tcmg.org.uk/) of the working wind and watermills in the UK. Image: [Doris Antony](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:DorisAntony), [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) | _[Here’s a list](https://tcmg.org.uk/) of the working wind and watermills in the UK. Image: [Doris Antony](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:DorisAntony), [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)_ |
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| </caption> | </caption> |
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| ## Further resources | ===== Forum ===== |
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| | This topic belongs to the section [[gt:food|Food & drink]]. You can ask questions or add information on the corresponding [Forum section](https://forum.growingthecommons.org/t/food). |
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| | ===== Further resources ===== |
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| - [Craft Bakers Association](https://www.craftbakersassociation.co.uk/) | - [Craft Bakers Association](https://www.craftbakersassociation.co.uk/) |
| - [Breadtopia](https://breadtopia.com/) - artisan home bread baking | - [Breadtopia](https://breadtopia.com/) - artisan home bread baking |
| - [Food Timeline](https://www.foodtimeline.org/foodbreads.html) - huge resource on the history of bread | - [Food Timeline](https://www.foodtimeline.org/foodbreads.html) - huge resource on the history of bread |
| - [Traditional Cornmillers Guild](https://tcmg.org.uk/) | - [Traditional Cornmillers Guild](https://tcmg.org.uk/) |
| - [International Molinological Society](https://www.molinology.org/) - windmills | - [International Molinological Society](https://www.molinology.org/) - windmills |
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| ## Specialists | |
| | ===== Related topics ===== |
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| | - [Low-impact food & drink](lifo:food) |
| | - [Solar cookers](solr:solar_cookers) |
| | - [Earth ovens](eaov:earth_ovens) |
| | - [Cheesemaking](chee:cheesemaking) |
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| | ===== Specialist curators of this topic ===== |
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