Adoro pão fresquinho! Quem não gosta? Às vezes, penso como fui feliz por ter crescido no Brasil onde tem uma padaria em cada esquina e de ter desenvolvido o hábito de comer pão fresco, assado no mesmo dia., de casca crocante e miolo fofinho!
Quando passei uns meses na Alemanha, muuuuitos anos atrás, uma das coisas reconfortantes para aliviar a saudade era comer pão. Lá também tem fartura de padarias que, como no Brasil, têm uma longa lista de opções de pães e doces.
Os anos vividos em Cingapura não foram assim tão reconfortantes em termos 'panificadores'. O que normalmente se encontrava em oferta era produto industrializado, embalado em saco plástico selado à vácuo. Havia somente algumas padarias 'gourmet' no centro da cidade, com poucas opções de produtos. Isso foi há uns seis anos. No mês passado, estive lá, a passeio, e visitei uma padaria artesanal - Bread & Hearth - que abriu recentemente e tem vários tipos de pães tradicionais e assados no dia. Aparentemente, é uma tendência nova na cidade, o que é ótimo!
Aqui, na Austrália, há muitas padarias também. Algumas muito boas e algumas nem tanto. Frustrante mesmo é o pão 'fresco' vendido nos hipermercados daqui. Alguns produtos ditos 'assado no dia', na verdade, vêm congelados da Irlanda!, como noticiado recentemente e obrigando o relações públicas do estabelecimento a se desculpar pela propaganda enganosa.
Eu sou técnica em alimentos e aprendi a tecnologia por trás da fabricação, caseira e industrial, de pães. E mesmo assim, sempre tive receio de fazer pão em casa. Até tentei algumas vezes, mas sem sucesso. Deixei pra lá.
Mas, nos últimos anos, essa vida de dona-de-casa me presenteou com um sentimento de culpa por continuar a comprar comida no mercado que, eu sabia, poderia ser feita em casa. Então, passei a empregar parte da minha energia em projetos culinários nunca tentados fora da escola estadual de tecnologia. Alguns desses projetos estão publicados aqui neste blog.
O meu mais recente projeto - e um dos mais longos - é exatamente a panificação! Venho 'abusando' do forno ultimamente, assando algo todos os dias: bolos variados, biscoitos, tortas, pizzas e pães. Pão é, de longe, o mais difícil de todos. Há que se levar em consideração vários fatores que, se não forem seguidos à risca, o resultado pode até ser comestível, mas, não é bom: queimado por fora e cru por dentro, queimado inteiro, cru inteiro, sem sal, muito denso, achatado, borrachudo, duro-que-nem-pau, gosto de fermento e por aí vai...
Então, depois de anos pesquisando e praticando - o livro de cabeceira, no momento, é All About Bread (Tudo Sobre Pão) - eu, finalmente, me tornei capaz de produzir todo tipo pão que consumimos aqui em casa.
O pão da foto acima foi feito ontem à tarde. Faço um desses a cada 3-4 dias. Às vezes, faço dois e congelo um, pra ser usado em emergências. São só cinco ingredientes e leva três horas pra ficar pronto:
1 envelope de fermento biológico seco (7g)
2 colheres de chá de açúcar
2 xícaras de água
1 colher de chá de sal (nas próximas vezes, você decide se acrescenta mais ou menos)
4-5 xícaras de farinha de trigo branca (pode substituir duas xícaras por farinha de trigo integral)
Dissolva o fermento e o açúcar na água e deixe descansar por uns dez minutos. Adicione o sal e dissolva completamente - não adicione o sal junto com o açúcar porque estraga o fermento. Adicione 4 xícaras de farinha, misture e amasse com as mãos até ter uma massa homogênea e não muito grudenta. Adicione mais farinha, se necessário. Não amasse por muito tempo! Deixar descansar numa vasilha coberta com um pano por uma hora.
Depois de uma hora, a bola de massa deverá quase ter dobrado de tamanho. Amasse com as mãos por uns 3 minutos. De novo, não amasse demais! Salpique um pouco de farinha numa assadeira, molde o pão no formato que quiser - faça um corte ou mais no topo com uma faca - e posicione o pão no meio da assadeira. Cubra com um pano e deixe descansar por mais uma hora. Vai crescer mais um pouco.
Aqueça o forno (alto: 200-220°C). Se não tiver um termômetro no forno, deixe aquecer por, pelo menos, 20 minutos pra ter certeza que está bem quente. Coloque uma outra assadeira com água fervente (tem que estar saindo vapor) no fundo do forno, feche a porta e deixe por uns 3 minutos. Coloque o pão no forno - melhor na grelha central - e feche a porta. Conte até dez, pausadamente, e tire a assadeira com água. Se a água ficar no forno por muito tempo, o pão fica murcho e não cria casca crocante. Se não colocar a água, também o pão não cria a casca crocante.
Deixe assar, sem abrir a porta, por, pelo menos, 40 minutos. Se o pão estiver bem corado (como o da foto), cabe a você decidir como quer o seu pão: se quiser mais escuro, deixe mais uns 10 minutos.
Quando decidir tirar do forno, usando luva térmica ou um pano, segure o pão de ponta-cabeça e dê umas batidas na parte de baixo e o som produzido deverá ser de algo oco e não maciço, pesado. Deixe o pão esfriar completamente numa grelha antes de cortar. Ok, eu sei que é tortura sentir o cheirinho de pão fresco e não poder comer, mas, é preciso deixar o pão estabilizar antes de cortar senão ele vai quebrar e se desfazer. Então, seja forte e só corte quando estiver morno.
Daí, é só escolher o que passar por cima: manteiga, geléia, ioio cream, mel...
Também dá pra moldar em formato de filãozinho ou de pão de hamburguer pra fazer sanduíches. Fica excelente! Mas, pra pães pequenos, lembre-se de reduzir a temperatura do forno pra 180-200°C.
Pronto pra arregaçar as mangas e pôr, literalmente, a mão na massa? :-)
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I love freshly baked bread! Who doesn't? Sometimes I think about how fortunate I was to have grown up in Brazil where there's a bakery on every corner and for having developed the habit of eating fresh bread, baked on the same day, with a crunchy crust and a fluffy crumb!
When I spent a few months in Germany, maaaaany years ago, one of the comforting things, to ease the homesickness was eating bread. In Germany, there are heaps of bakeries and, as in Brazil, they have a long list of options of breads and pastries.
When I spent a few months in Germany, maaaaany years ago, one of the comforting things, to ease the homesickness was eating bread. In Germany, there are heaps of bakeries and, as in Brazil, they have a long list of options of breads and pastries.
The years lived in Singapore were not so comforting in terms of 'bakery'. What was usually on offer was manufactured products, sealed in plastic bags. There were only a few 'gourmet' bakeries in the downtown, with few options of products. That was about six years ago. Last month, I was there for holidays, and visited an artisan bakery - Bread & Hearth - that opened recently and offers several types of traditional and freshly baked breads. Apparently it is a new trend in town, which is great!
Here in Australia, there are also many bakeries. Some very good and some not so much. Frustrating is the 'fresh' bread sold in supermarkets here. Some products so called 'baked on the same day' actually come frozen from Ireland!, as recently reported and forcing the public relations of the establishment to apologize for misleading advertising.
I'm a food technician and learned the technology behind the manufacturing of home and industrial breads. And even then, I've always been afraid of making bread at home. I tried a few times without much success. So, I forgot about it.
But, lately, this 'housewife life' presented me with a feeling of guilt for keeping on buying food at the market, I knew, could be made at home. So I started to direct part of my energy on cooking projects never attempted outside the school of food technology. Some of these projects were posted here on this blog.
My latest project - and one of the longest - is exactly baking! I've been 'abusing' the oven lately, baking every day: cakes, cookies, pies and tarts, pizzas and breads. Bread is by far the most difficult of all. You must take into consideration several factors that if not followed strictly, the result may even be edible, but not good: burned on the outside and raw on the inside, fully burned, fully raw, unsalted, dense, flat, chewy, hard-like-a-rock, yeasty and so on...
So after years researching and practicing - the current bedside book is All About Bread - I finally became able to produce all bread we eat at home.
The bread in the photo above was made yesterday. I make one of these every three or four days. Sometimes, I make two and freeze one, to be used in an emergency. It's only five ingredients and it takes three hours to make:
1 envelope active dry yeast (7g)
2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt (next time you decide to add more or less)
4-5 cups white flour (can substitute two cups of wholemeal flour)
Dissolve yeast and sugar in water and let it sit for about ten minutes. Add salt and dissolve completely - do not add salt along with sugar because it spoils the yeast. Add 4 cups of flour, mix and knead it with your hands until you have a smooth and not too sticky dough. Add more flour if necessary. Do not knead it for too long! Let it stand covered with a cloth for an hour.
After one hour, the ball of dough will have nearly doubled in size. Knead it with your hands for about 3 minutes. Again, not for too long! Sprinkle a little flour on a baking sheet, mold the loaf in the shape you want - make a cut or more on the top with a knife - and place the loaf in the middle of the baking sheet. Cover with a cloth and let it rest for another hour. It will rise a little more.
Pre-heat the oven (high: 200-220°C). If you don't have a thermometer in the oven, let it heat up for at least 20 minutes to make sure it is piping hot. Put a tray with boiling water (it must be steaming) at the bottom of he oven, close the door and leave it for about 3 minutes. Put the bread in the oven - best on the middle grid - and close the door. Count to ten, slowly, and take the tray with water out. If the water remains in the oven for too long, the bread doesn't develop a nice crust. If you don't put the boiling water tray, the bread doesn't develop a nice crust either.
Bake it, without opening the door, for at least 40 minutes. If the bread has a nice golden brown color (like the one in the photo), it's up to you to decide how dark you want your bread: if you want it darker, leave it for 10 minutes more.
When you decide to take the bread out of the oven, using a mitt or a cloth, hold the bread upside down and tap it on the bottom and the sound produced should be like something hollow and not solid, heavy. Let the bread cool completely on a grid before cutting. Ok, I know it's a torture to smell fresh bread and not being allowed to eat it, but you must let the bread set before cutting otherwise it will break down. So be strong and cut it only when it's cooled down to lukewarm.
Then simply pick your favorite to go on it: butter, jam, peanut butter, honey...
You can also shape it into rolls or buns to make sandwiches. But to bake small loaves, remember to reduce the temperature of the oven to 180-200°C.
Ready to roll up your sleeves and get hands-on? :-)
Here in Australia, there are also many bakeries. Some very good and some not so much. Frustrating is the 'fresh' bread sold in supermarkets here. Some products so called 'baked on the same day' actually come frozen from Ireland!, as recently reported and forcing the public relations of the establishment to apologize for misleading advertising.
I'm a food technician and learned the technology behind the manufacturing of home and industrial breads. And even then, I've always been afraid of making bread at home. I tried a few times without much success. So, I forgot about it.
But, lately, this 'housewife life' presented me with a feeling of guilt for keeping on buying food at the market, I knew, could be made at home. So I started to direct part of my energy on cooking projects never attempted outside the school of food technology. Some of these projects were posted here on this blog.
My latest project - and one of the longest - is exactly baking! I've been 'abusing' the oven lately, baking every day: cakes, cookies, pies and tarts, pizzas and breads. Bread is by far the most difficult of all. You must take into consideration several factors that if not followed strictly, the result may even be edible, but not good: burned on the outside and raw on the inside, fully burned, fully raw, unsalted, dense, flat, chewy, hard-like-a-rock, yeasty and so on...
So after years researching and practicing - the current bedside book is All About Bread - I finally became able to produce all bread we eat at home.
The bread in the photo above was made yesterday. I make one of these every three or four days. Sometimes, I make two and freeze one, to be used in an emergency. It's only five ingredients and it takes three hours to make:
1 envelope active dry yeast (7g)
2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt (next time you decide to add more or less)
4-5 cups white flour (can substitute two cups of wholemeal flour)
Dissolve yeast and sugar in water and let it sit for about ten minutes. Add salt and dissolve completely - do not add salt along with sugar because it spoils the yeast. Add 4 cups of flour, mix and knead it with your hands until you have a smooth and not too sticky dough. Add more flour if necessary. Do not knead it for too long! Let it stand covered with a cloth for an hour.
After one hour, the ball of dough will have nearly doubled in size. Knead it with your hands for about 3 minutes. Again, not for too long! Sprinkle a little flour on a baking sheet, mold the loaf in the shape you want - make a cut or more on the top with a knife - and place the loaf in the middle of the baking sheet. Cover with a cloth and let it rest for another hour. It will rise a little more.
Pre-heat the oven (high: 200-220°C). If you don't have a thermometer in the oven, let it heat up for at least 20 minutes to make sure it is piping hot. Put a tray with boiling water (it must be steaming) at the bottom of he oven, close the door and leave it for about 3 minutes. Put the bread in the oven - best on the middle grid - and close the door. Count to ten, slowly, and take the tray with water out. If the water remains in the oven for too long, the bread doesn't develop a nice crust. If you don't put the boiling water tray, the bread doesn't develop a nice crust either.
Bake it, without opening the door, for at least 40 minutes. If the bread has a nice golden brown color (like the one in the photo), it's up to you to decide how dark you want your bread: if you want it darker, leave it for 10 minutes more.
When you decide to take the bread out of the oven, using a mitt or a cloth, hold the bread upside down and tap it on the bottom and the sound produced should be like something hollow and not solid, heavy. Let the bread cool completely on a grid before cutting. Ok, I know it's a torture to smell fresh bread and not being allowed to eat it, but you must let the bread set before cutting otherwise it will break down. So be strong and cut it only when it's cooled down to lukewarm.
Then simply pick your favorite to go on it: butter, jam, peanut butter, honey...
You can also shape it into rolls or buns to make sandwiches. But to bake small loaves, remember to reduce the temperature of the oven to 180-200°C.
Ready to roll up your sleeves and get hands-on? :-)
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