What should I do if the dough doesn't open? What can I do to fix the problem?

We all know that fermenting dough is a very important step in making pasta. Many people ferment dough at home to make delicious food. Fermenting dough requires certain skills and requirements. Some people always fail to ferment dough. What should they do? Let's take a closer look!

What should I do if the dough doesn't rise?

First point: the ratio of flour to yeast

There are many ways to ferment flour, including fermentation with old fat, yeast, and natural fermentation. But now in order to save time and ensure the success rate of flour fermentation, we basically use yeast to ferment flour. Using yeast to ferment flour not only has a fast fermentation time, but also has a good fermentation effect. And due to the special properties of yeast, the fermented flour does not need to be synthesized with edible alkali, and can be directly used to make fermented flour food.

When we use yeast to ferment flour, we must master the ratio of flour to yeast. At normal room temperature, the ratio of flour to yeast is 100:, that is, 100 grams of flour requires 1 gram of yeast, but if the amount of fermented flour is too much, we can reduce the amount of yeast used, for example: 5000 grams of flour needs to add 50 grams of yeast. Since the amount of fermented flour is relatively large, we can reduce the yeast to 40 grams, so that the flour can be fermented successfully.

Second point: When fermenting flour, the temperature of the water used

When we ferment flour, we must use warm water to ferment the dough, and the water temperature is preferably around 30 to 35 degrees, because yeast can grow and reproduce better at a temperature of around 35 degrees. If the water temperature is too low, it will affect the growth rate of the yeast, and if the water temperature is too high, the yeast will die, resulting in failure of fermenting flour. Therefore, when we ferment flour, we must control the temperature of the water used. Only by controlling the water temperature well, the fermentation effect of the flour will be better.

The third point: How to knead the flour when fermenting it

When we are fermenting flour, we must knead the flour evenly. If we knead the flour randomly into a ball, it will affect the fermentation effect of the flour. Only when the flour, yeast and water are fully kneaded evenly can the dough ferment faster and the fermentation and swelling effect be better. Therefore, when we knead the fermented dough, it is necessary to achieve three things: hand light, surface light, and basin light. This is the way to knead the fermented dough to a perfect state.

Fourth point: The temperature of the environment when fermenting flour

After kneading the flour, we must ensure that the temperature of the room where the fermented flour is stored is not too low. We have learned that the most suitable temperature for yeast growth is 30 to 35 degrees. Therefore, we must store the fermented dough in a room with a relatively high temperature. In the northern region, we usually put the fermented flour near the radiator, because there is no heating in the southern region. Therefore, in winter, the basin containing the fermented flour can be covered with a thicker insulation blanket, which can also make the flour ferment successfully. If the fermented flour is placed in the sun in summer, the flour can also ferment successfully.

What is better to add to the dough?

White sugar

The little thing we need to add to the dough is white sugar. White sugar can promote the activation of yeast, which can make the dough easier to expand and ferment. If the weather is hot, the fermentation speed will be faster, but if the weather is cold, it may be slower.

baking soda

In addition to sugar, there is another thing, that is baking soda. If you use old dough to ferment at home, you must add some baking soda after it is fermented to prevent the dough from being too sour. If you use yeast powder to ferment the dough, you don’t need to add baking soda. In fact, in addition to adding baking soda to flour, you can actually use it for other purposes, such as cleaning or whitening teeth, which is a good choice.

How to knead dough

Add 2.5-3 grams of baking powder to 500 grams of flour (if you add eggs, add 2.5 grams of baking powder; if you don’t add eggs, add 3 grams of baking powder), stir evenly with chopsticks, then use warm water or warm milk (touch it with your hand and it should feel warm) to stir it into flocs, then knead it into dough with your hands (just knead it into a ball, and make it slightly softer).

How to proof the dough

1. Put the kneaded dough into a container and cover it with something (a pot lid, plastic wrap, or gauze will do). Let it ferment naturally in summer and put it in a warm place to ferment for 2-4 hours in winter.

2. Let the dough ferment until it doubles in size or has many pores. In winter, to promote fermentation, add water to a pot, boil it, turn off the heat, put the container in the pot, cover it, and take it out after 40 minutes. The dough will be ready.

3. After the dough is deflated, cut it into small pieces and make it into steamed buns, dumplings, etc. Cover it and let it rise for 30 minutes (about 15 minutes in summer). Take out the dumplings and steam them when they become light.

4. Do not open the pot immediately after steaming the buns. Let them simmer for a few minutes before opening the pot. The buns will expand and become soft, and will not become hard even if left for a long time.