I just started baking bread a few months ago and after starting with overnight no-knead boules, I decided I also wanted to make sandwich bread. So I looked up some recipes and made them a bunch of times and got to where I can make a pretty good loaf of sandwich bread.
The thing is, I was feeling pretty overwhelmed when I started with the sandwich bread recipes, which need to be kneaded as the total rise time is under 3 hours. So I didn’t look up any technique, and I knead by just picking up the ball of dough and kneading it with my fingers sort of like how a cat makes biscuits. Typically I do this for 10 minutes.
I saw a video later with a very different kneading technique. But mine seems to produce a bread that holds together fairly well and has reasonably uniform bubbles throughout, though a little denser at the bottom than the top.
Thoughts? Am I a heretic who should renounce my wildcat ways, or is this fine?
Kneading isn’t as much about how as how long. Damn near any method is going to get gluten all gluteny. It’s just that some take longer than others.
You’re fine with how you were doing it since you got an even crumb
10 minutes seems to do the trick, and isn’t so long as to be annoying. hopefully I will tone up my forearms a bit 😄
Oh, your forearms and grip strength will surge if you make bread regularly. I started out having been a lifter years ago, and it still upped both size and strength of my forearms. It really amazed me how bloody hard it can be to knead bread by hand.
Mind you, my arthritis got worse, so I had to switch to a mixer, but it definitely is a workout.