Homemade Bread Recipe from Jamie Oliver (2024)

FAQs

How does Jamie Oliver make bread? ›

Method. Pile the flour on to a clean surface and make a large well in the centre. Pour half your water into the well, then add your yeast, sugar and salt and stir with a fork. Slowly, but confidently, bring in the flour from the inside of the well.

In a nutshell, if you're buying basic, cheap sandwich bread, it's probably cheaper than you can make it at home. But if you compare two loaves similar to what you could make at home — one made with high-quality ingredients as opposed to one made with lesser quality ingredients — home baking becomes much cheaper.

If you're looking to ramp up the taste of your favorite bread recipe, we recommend adding a bit of fat. A fat like butter, olive oil or coconut oil in small quantities will help your bread achieve a higher rise and it will also boost its flavor by tenfold.

While bread flour is the best option, it can sometimes be used if you don't have bread flour. “Check the protein content,” advises Chef Jürgen, since it can vary from brand to brand, and an all-purpose flour that contains protein on the higher end of the range, 12 to 13 percent, will produce a better outcome.

Does Rising Bread Affect Its Texture? For a fluffy bread texture, the key is to let the bread rise long enough.

Yeast feed on sugar and it's the gasses produced by yeast that causes the dough to expand and “rise”. More accurately stated though, it's the yeast that has the effect but it's a symbiotic relationship. Too little sugar will impede the rise by not having sufficient nutrient for the yeast.

There may be several reasons for a dense, cake like texture in bread. It may indicate the kneading wasn't enough for the gluten to develop properly, or the dough was proved for too short a time or the dough may have been too dry. It is also worth checking the flour you used.

Johanna Hartzheim, co-founder and head of product at Wildgrain, a bread and pasta delivery service, recommends eating homemade bread within three days but says it will last up to a week. "The bread will start to dry up and become a bit harder over time, but it takes much longer until it becomes moldy," she says.

That said, most homemade breads are likely healthier than store-bought breads, which are often high in sugar and preservatives. One benefit of making your own bread is that you can control the ingredients. For example, you can use whole wheat flour instead of white flour, or add healthy toppings like nuts and seeds.

Why does my homemade bread taste weird? ›

If the area is too warm, bread will rise too fast and begin cooking before the yeast has finished acting. This will impart a "yeasty" taste to the dough that will be transferred to the finished baked loaf. Using old ingredients (rancid nuts, "old" shortening) will cause yeast breads to taste old or have an "off" taste.

The secret to the wonderful taste and aroma of freshly baked bread is the Maillard reaction. It's a chemical reaction between proteins, certain carbohydrates and some of the fatty acids that occur when bread is baked in the oven, which gives it a delicious flavour and fine colour.

Paper bags are more breathable than plastic, which is great for brioche rolls, soft buns, and other breads with added fat. But too much air will make the bread go stale quickly. Consider keeping these bags airtight as best you can. Then there's the bread box: it balances moisture and air circulation.

It adds nutritional value to baked goods. Mainly protein, calcium, and vitamin B12 which are all necessary for a heathy diet. But we don't only look for the nutritional benefits when using milk in our bread dough. The fat and lactose in milk help with tenderizing the crumb of the bread making it softer and sweeter.

Introduction. Look, the name is meant to be a bit of a joke, but what I'm talking about is a pitta-like bread, glazed golden with beaten egg and sprinkled with nigella seeds. This is what I make when I'm in mezze-mode.