Bread is made by baking dough which has for its main ingredients wheat flour, water, yeast and salt. Other ingredients which may be added include flours of other cereals, milk and milk products, fruits, gluten, etc.
Bread making stages include mixing the ingredients, dough resting, dividing and shaping, proofing, and baking, with great variation in the intermediate stage depending on the type of product. During mixing, fermenting, and baking, dough is subjected to different shear and large extensional deformations (including fracture), which are largely affected by temperature and water hydration.
When these ingredients are mixed in correct proportions two processes commence: *The protein in flour begins to hydrate and forms a cohesive mass called as gluten *Evolution of carbon dioxide gas by action of the enzymes in the yeast upon the sugars.
Three main requirements in making bread from wheat flour are formation of gluten network, aeration of the mixture by incorporation of gas, and coagulation of the material by heating it in the oven.
Baked goods manufacturers are concerned with physical spoilage (staleness), chemical spoilage (rancidity), and microbiological spoilage (bacterial, yeast, and mold spoilage). Processors have taken on these challenges by utilizing several novel technologies including UV light treatments, infrared radiation, microwave heating, low dose irradiation, and high-pressure technologies before, during, and after packaging.
Breadmaking technology
