Consider Making Bread Dough In A Food Processor For Quicker Results

Homemade bread is one of life's great treats, and yet all the work that goes into it means people are far more likely to just grab something far less satisfying from the store. Kneading bread is the real sticking point, as it requires you to either go through a pretty touchy and laborious process that can take 15 minutes or more when done by hand, or resort to a stand mixer that will work faster, but is way more expensive. But there is a third option that won't break the bank, or you might have on hand already, that gives you even faster results than a stand mixer: a food processor.

More associated with chopping up vegetables or making sauce, a food processor might seem like too intense a tool for bread dough, but it's just that power that makes it work so well. The force a food processor's blade can apply is much stronger than a stand mixer, and provides enough pressure to develop and strengthen the gluten in your bread dough in just a few minutes. In fact depending on the recipe you are using, your ball of dough could be done in under a minute. That also means it can handle tougher, less hydrated doughs that often tax stand mixers. All your ingredients can be mixed right in the food processor and then quickly shaped into a ball before being left to rise. With a food processor, making bread goes from a project to a breeze.

To knead your bread in a food processor, pour in the dry ingredients, and then give it a few pulses to fully combine. Start running the processor on low and slowly pour in the wet ingredients through the ingredient tube. Everything will mix until it forms a rough dough, and then come together in a ball that should start to clear the sides of the processor. If it's still a bit messy, turn off the processor and use a spatula or wooden spoon to scrape the dough into a ball. Once the dough is together, switch to pulsing, and mix the dough for 20 to 30 seconds until it's smooth. Scrape your dough out and knead it for another 30 seconds by hand while shaping it into a ball, then let it rise and proceed according to the recipe.

While using a food processor to knead your bread dough is quick and easy there are still a few things you need to look out for. The power of the processor does make it easy to over-knead your bread, so only pulse it for short durations, and then check the dough before continuing. You also want to stick with the metal blades instead of the plastic dough blades, as despite being made for dough, they usually aren't very effective. But with just those few small checks, you can have bread faster than ever before.