What is the secret to fluffy challos

Log in / Sign Up

List of Forums + New Post Recipe Box Usergroups Following My Posts Bookmarks

Private Messages Advanced Search Rules New User Guide FAQ Advertise Contact Us

Forum -> Recipe Collection -> Challah and Breads

Previous 1 2

View latest: 24h 48h 72h

Lushken

Mon, Sep 16 2019, 2:53 pm

I heard that being ba'simcha while making your challos brings great results.

Lizzie4

Mon, Sep 16 2019, 3:21 pm

Random factoid: studies have shown that if a woman is menstruating, her dough does not rise as well

Lushken

Mon, Sep 16 2019, 3:29 pm

Lizzie4 wrote:

Random factoid: studies have shown that if a woman is menstruating, her dough does not rise as well

Winterb

Wed, Sep 18 2019, 11:43 am

Hashem_Yaazor wrote:

So you like stretchy gluten strands. Using a high gluten flour or adding vital wheat gluten should help as well as long kneading time that helps form the gluten strands. I do an initial mix in the mixer till combined, wait 10 minutes, then turn on the mixer again and let knead for several minutes.

I’m already using high gluten flour. I feel like it is my kneading time that’s off so tomorrow I’m going to try it your way. Thank you!
But I always worry about overworking the dough. Any idea when it goes from well kneaded to over worked?

Learning

Wed, Sep 18 2019, 12:11 pm

My family doesn’t like when the challa is too fluffy. When it’s too Duffy the taste is not so intense and it’s kind of tasteless (like most store bought challahs). I think if I let it rise too long it becomes too fluffy. I use the Bais Yaakov cook book recipe the recipe in the beginning of the book. It usually comes out great.

lkwdlady

Wed, Sep 18 2019, 1:34 pm

Lizzie4 wrote:

Random factoid: studies have shown that if a woman is menstruating, her dough does not rise as well

That is an Italian myth which is completely untrue as you will see when you bake challah for shabbos each week.

Hashem_Yaazor

Wed, Sep 18 2019, 9:41 pm

Winterb wrote:

Let it rest after it's just combined for 10 minutes.
Then mix again for about 4 or so minutes (Tamar Ansch's method in her challah book).

nylon

Wed, Sep 18 2019, 9:49 pm

I rise twice before shaping (then a final rise before sticking them in the oven) and my challos are high and beautiful. If you make a richer dough, you cannot rush the rising--it takes longer and that's just how it is.

I also finish off kneading by hand after taking it out of the mixer. I don't do that for all doughs, but it seems to be the trick for challah. You've added the right amount of flour (I always hold some back and add it as needed when the mixer is going, since egg sizes vary, flour varies, etc) when the dough is still slightly tacky (not dry feeling) but doesn't stick to your fingers when you poke it. When the dough is stretchy and almost smooth, take it out and knead it for a moment with your hands. You can feel the dough smoothing out. Then put it in your greased bowl or container and let it rest.

I actually use half King Arthur All Purpose and half bread flour--bread made with unbleached all purpose comes out softer and more tender.

cbsp

Wed, Sep 18 2019, 9:56 pm

lkwdlady wrote:

That is an Italian myth which is completely untrue as you will see when you bake challah for shabbos each week.

I thought the source was Sarah Imainu.

goodmorning

Wed, Sep 18 2019, 10:06 pm

The dough that Sarah prepared wasn't served because Avraham was machmir to eat chullin b'tahara (I.e., he was careful not to allow regular food become tamei just as one would be careful about trumah or kodshim). It had nothing to do with the dough not rising or tasting good.

cbsp

Wed, Sep 18 2019, 10:10 pm

goodmorning wrote:

I know. I just couldn't resist.

(It was also Pesach so I don't think the dough was supposed to rise anyway.)

(completely off topic but I always wondered how "everyone" knew she didn't have a womb if she did have the capacity to become a niddah.)

goodmorning

Wed, Sep 18 2019, 10:41 pm

(The source for Sarah not having a womb is Yevamos 64b: ותהי שרי עקרה אין לה ולד אפי' בית ולד אין לה, and it is one of several possibilities in explaining Sarah's infertility. Another one is that Avraham and Sarah were both tumtums, and s-xual organs were fashioned for them [in Rashi's words: נעשה לו זכרות, נעשה לה נקבות]. You can make a similar argument about Sarah's womb developing the capacity for menstruation, or you can say that the two medrashim don't align, as it often happens. Though care needs to be taken to explain the passuk חָדַל֙ לִהְי֣וֹת לְשָׂרָ֔ה אֹ֖רַח כַּנָּשִֽׁים, which implies that she once had the capacity to menstruate and then it stopped.)

Page 2 of 2

Previous 1 2