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» » I’ve Baked Countless Loaves Of Bread Since The Pandemic—Here’s Every Tool I Use (And Two I Don’t) - Forbes

I’ve Baked Countless Loaves Of Bread Since The Pandemic—Here’s Every Tool I Use (And Two I Don’t) - Forbes

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As a professionally trained baker, I can pretty much make anything from chocolate chip cookies to tiered wedding cakes. I have quite the sweet tooth, as do most of my friends and clients, so I’ve naturally focused on desserts for most of my career. But like so many since the early lockdown of 2020, I found myself comforted by baking bread more than I ever had before. Countless loaves later, I have no plans to stop.

What I once thought of as a daunting task (which I know sounds strange since I make wedding cakes) turned into a truly joyful process. The quality of bread that’s possible to make at home is incredible, from fluffy, rich brioche to chewy, crusty sourdough. I just had to have a little patience and of course, the right tools. Luckily, most of what I consider the essentials for bread baking are multitaskers for baking and cooking in general. So whether you strictly bake bread or branch out into other kitchen projects, you’ll be ready to rise to the occasion with these handy tools in your arsenal.

Best Bread Making Tools:

A Powerhouse Stand Mixer

If you have poor hand strength, weak wrists or just make a lot of bread, kneading dough can be a daunting task. Investing in a quality stand mixer with a dough hook and a strong motor is the best investment you can make. It quite literally does that work for you. And when it comes to choosing a stand mixer, KitchenAid is the very best option. It’s sturdy, strong and the ultimate multitasker for sweet and savory cooking thanks to all the attachment options.

A Classic Dutch Oven

Perhaps the easiest yet impressive breads are no-knead, but a cast iron Dutch oven is essential to baking them correctly. You won’t get the proper rise or crust without something heavy that can handle the scorching hot temperatures. And if you take care of it, you’ll be making a lifetime’s worth of food, so it really is a worthy investment. The sweet-spot size for recipes is the 5.5-quart version, but a 3.5 or a 4.5-quart will work and are a little lighter if you fear the heft. Pro tip: Opt for a black Dutch oven so you the burn marks don’t ruin the look of your pricey cookware.

A Kitchen Scale That Delivers Precision

If you want consistency in baking, work with weighted measurements like the professionals. A compact digital scale will be accurate up to 11 pounds, which is more than enough for home recipes. Since most of the world uses metric-based recipes, a scale will give you the ability to switch from ounces to grams with the press of a button. Use it not only to measure ingredients, but also for separating the dough. With the help of a kitchen scale, you’ll be able to make all your challah dough strands or Parker House rolls consistently sized for even baking and impressive presentation.

A Set Of Sturdy Measuring Spoons

Small measurements are easier with measuring spoons than a scale. Even in pastry school, we used them for anything under a tablespoon. You need them for essentially all recipes (savory and sweet) anyway, so get yourself a sturdy stainless steel set that won’t crack, bend or rust even in the dishwasher. Best of all, the magnetic snap feature on this set ensures your spoons stick together and are easy to find in a cinch.

A Set of Mixing Bowls With Lids For Easy Storage

Good mixing bowls should be durable, easy to clean and should nest for easy storage. A stainless-steel set will provide all of that and having a rubber bottom helps them stay stable on a surface if you’re mixing a really thick batch of dough. If you can’t quite visualize what “double in bulk” looks like, get a set that has measurement markings and take away the guesswork.

An Accurate Kitchen Thermometer

An accurate kitchen thermometer will help at two critical stages in bread baking— testing the liquid for your yeast and testing for doneness after baking. A high-quality digital thermometer is lightning fast (we’re talking delivering reading within seconds!) and easy to read, which is very helpful if you need to pop the loaf back in the oven. No waiting for a manual thermometer, squinting to read the tiny numbers, or worse, guessing with no thermometer at all.

Skip The Spatula For A Bowl Scraper Set

Even the sturdiest of rubber spatulas can’t wrangle sticky or stiff dough out of a bowl like a plastic scraper can. It provides more surface area to push and lift the dough, and it bends around the slope of the bowl to help release it all in one big piece. Plus, flip it around and you’ve got a makeshift bench scraper to clear up any dough bits and flour stuck to your counter.

A Multitasking Knife To Make Your Loaves Instagram-Worthy

Scoring bread helps control the shape of a loaf. Plus, it just looks pretty! Skip the bread lame and use an X-ACTO knife instead. A fresh blade will be just as sharp to give you accurate cuts, and then you’re not stuck with a unitasker in your gadget drawer. You also use it for cake and pie decorations, and of course, other household projects (though I recommend changing the blade for any non-food related activities).

An Uncoated Aluminum Sheet Pan

You probably already own a sheet pan for a multitude of tasks, but it’s critical for bread baking. Uncoated aluminum heats evenly and can withstand high oven temperatures required for crispy crusts. It’s the perfect size for focaccia, large batches of dinner rolls and long braided loaves. Plus, it can mimic a pizza stone or steel. Just preheat it and flip it upside down to bake, and the bread just slides right off.

A Pastry Brush With Natural Bristles For Better Coverage

Many bread recipes require an egg or cream wash to encourage a brown crust or a basting of butter after baking. A pastry brush with natural bristles is more accurate and provides better coverage than a silicone version, so you won’t have as many drips or bald spots. It also doubles as a little broom for your dough and counter to brush off excess flour when dry, something silicone just can’t do.

A Set Of Lint-Free Dish Towels

A pack of lint-free dish towels can do more than just dry dishes and wipe down counters. They are the best option for covering the dough to proof, because they are heavy enough to keep the draft away but light enough that they won’t harm the shape or stick. Cotton is reusable, machine washable and dries fast. Plus, do what the pros do and double one up in place of an oven mitt.

A Bread Proofing Basket

A proofing basket not only gives loaves that lovely artisan swirl pattern, but it helps retain the round boule shape as it expands so you don’t have to stress if you aren’t adept at shaping. The natural fiber construction wicks moisture away from the surface, which helps with the crispy crust development once the bread hits the oven. And it doubles as a decorative basket to serve, too.

A Cooling Rack To Prevent Overcooking

Removing bread from a hot pan onto a cooling rack helps ensure it doesn’t overcook. It also circulates air around the whole loaf so it cools faster and you can eat faster. A grid pattern is more stable, so nothing will fall through the cracks. Also, get one that fits in your half sheet pan so it is large enough to hold whatever you were making, and then it will also double as a roasting tray for say, that crispy bacon you might crinkle inside a savory loaf.

A Nonstick Loaf Pan

A loaf pan is great for sandwich bread and is required for almost every quick bread recipe, like all that banana bread we can’t stop making. Some pans have rounded edges, but a straight sided one will give more professional even sided results. Make your life easier and get something nonstick so you don’t struggle to get it out of the pan. And now you have the perfect vessel for pound cakes, too!

And Now For Tools You Can Skip...

A Bulky Bread Box

To be perfectly honest, I never usually have bread leftover to store. But if I do, wrapping it in parchment or a paper bag for crusty breads and in a plastic bag for soft breads is perfectly sufficient. A bread box takes up precious countertop space and doesn’t seem worth the investment to use it only on occasion.

Unnecessary Food Storage Containers

Some bakers swear by containers to mix, store and proof. While perfectly fine and convenient if you have them, a good set of mixing bowls will serve the same purpose especially if they have the measurement markings on them. Plus, bowls are round, so you don’t face the struggle of dough or ingredients getting stuck in the corners.

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I’ve Baked Countless Loaves Of Bread Since The Pandemic—Here’s Every Tool I Use (And Two I Don’t) - Forbes
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