A question I am often asked is why does my loaf deflate when I put it in the oven?
Your loaf looks fabulous, you put it into the oven and when you fetch it out it has deflated and is half the size it was when it went in. This is a really disappointing thing to happen.
Don’t worry, this is an issue that is easy to solve.
The problem is that the loaf has overproofed.
Understanding the stages of making a loaf:
The stages of making a loaf are:
- Mixing
- Developing the dough (by using the stretch and fold method, or by kneading)
- Fermenting the dough, allowing it to rise and become filled with air
- Gently shaping the dough
- Proving the dough until it is ready for the oven
- Scoring (aka slashing) the loaf
- Baking and steaming the oven
- Cooling
It is at point 5 that the problem of a deflating loaf lies. When you are learning to make bread it can be really hard to judge when the loaf is ready for the oven.
What happens during fermentation?
During fermentation (stages 3 & 5 above) enzymes break the damaged starch molecules in the flour down into complex sugars and then into simple sugars (these are the enzymes that would do the same job if the grain was allowed to grow in the ground). The yeast then feasts on the simple sugars and expels carbon dioxide and ethanol. The carbon dioxide disperses through the dough and where it finds an air bubble it expands as a gas pushing against the gluten network that was developed and strengthened during the stretch and folds or the kneading of the dough. This creates pockets in the dough and rises the bread.
As bakers we learn to watch for the signs of fermentation. In the first round of fermentation when the dough is sat in a bowl this fermentation can go quite wild. The dough can double or even triple in size and as long as we haven’t added an excess of yeast or left the dough in a warm kitchen for far too long all is well. The dough still has some sugars left for the yeasts to continue to feast on.
Shaping the dough
We then shape the dough and leave it to ferment a second time. This is when we need to be more watchful.
If we have shaped the dough well, (take a look at this video for help with this), giving the loaf good structure and surface tension, then as the yeasts get to work the loaf starts to expand again, upwards rather than outwards.
When is a dough fully proofed?
The ideal point at which to bake a loaf is when it has risen (about 50% bigger than when shaped)but the dough still feels like it has some surface tension and that there is still potential for the loaf to grow some more. You can test the loaf by placing your hand gently on top and pressing slightly. It should feel uniformly airy all over. If it feels a little bit more dense in the centre of the loaf is needs a little bit longer to prove.
This video will help:
Overproofing the dough
If we leave the loaf too long in a warm kitchen at this point then the yeast can begin to exhaust the sugars in the dough and the carbon dioxide can begin to push the gluten beyond its structural limits. At this point the dough may look well risen in the pan and look as if ready to bake when in reality it should have been baked perhaps 10, 20 or 30 minutes earlier.
If we put the loaf in the oven when it looks the size we are expecting when it is baked then it is highly likely that it is over proofed. The loaf has already reached its limits and when we put it in the oven the loaf will just deflate. The slightest knock and the carbon dioxide pockets in the loaf will push against the pushed to the limit gluten structure and the whole thing will collapse. If the dough is over proofed oven spring can’t happen and the dough’s structure collapses rather than springs.
What happens in the oven?
When you put a loaf in the oven chemical reactions continue to take place and the most important of these is ‘oven spring‘.
The yeast has a last frenzied chance to eat some of the sugars as the dough reaches the yeast’s optimum temperature of 38 C and before it dies at 55C. This additional yeast activity is limited but it does have a slight contribution to the oven spring.
The most important contribution to oven spring is that the trapped carbon dioxide expands further in the heat pushing against the gluten network and rising the loaf further. A full explanation of oven spring is available here.
This is why it is important that the loaf hasn’t already achieved its optimum rising before you put it in the oven. If it looks like a perfectly risen loaf (the size that you were hoping it would get to), then the chances are you left it too long before you baked it.
You want the dough to still have a bit of energy left so that it can have that last rise in the oven.
How to solve the problem of the deflated loaf
Next time you bake a loaf try putting it in the oven 10 minutes before you normally would. In other words, put the loaf in before you think it is ready to go in. Keep experimenting until you are confident that you know what to look for in a properly proofed loaf.
If your loaf is over proofed it can be rescued by re-shaping it and leaving it to prove again for 10-15 minutes and then baking. Alternatively, make it into a focaccia. Oil a baking tray generously with olive oil and tip your dough into it. Sprinkle olive oil over the top and push your fingers into the dough to make holes all over the top. Sprinkle sea salt crystals and rosemary over the top and bake straight away for about 20-25 minutes.
Bread Made Easy Online Masterclass
If you would like to transform from a novice to a confident bread maker I can help you with my online Bread Made Easy Masterclass.
