Culinaria: bread

Making bread is fundamental to human culture. Since early nomads first ground maize and other wild grains to make flour, bread has played an integral role in the diets of countless societies. Bread also plays a major part in many religions and appears in many common phrases in everyday language.

To make bread, you only need four ingredients: flour, water, salt, yeast. Supermarket bread has more than 22 ingredients.

While we think of cooking only happening in the oven, bread starts to cook the minute the water and yeast is added to the flour. This is why it is important to allow the bread sufficient time to rest and prove. It is also important to allow the bread to rest enough so as it can firm up.

To make a simple bread loaf, mix 450g of white flour, 50g of rye flour, and a 1 tsp of linseeds. Mix 15g of fresh yeast with 15g of sugar until it turns into a smooth paste. Add 15g of salt into the flour and mix. Fold your yeast/sugar mix into the flour. You can use beer instead of water to make bread. I like to use Galway Hooker beer in the rye bread we make in our gastropub Eat.

For 500g of flour, you will need approximately 300ml of beer. Add the beer slowly. You’re done when you have a clean bowl and a large dough ball. Now comes the hard part. Set a timer for five minutes and knead the bread for that duration (no cheating). This process helps to make your bread light and smooth. When you’re done, pop your dough back in the bowl and let it rest for 30 minutes.

Now you need to shape the dough into a loaf. Place it on a lightly floured tray and make three incisions with a knife over the top. Allow the bread to prove for another 25 minutes, then place in a preheated 180-degree oven for 20 minutes or until the bread is brown. Make sure you allow the bread to cool before cutting. Serve with some artisan butter, such as Cuinneog. JP McMahon