Does your bread stick to the tea towel? When I let the bread do it's final rise the dough is sticking to the tea towel and making my loaves look so bad! Please help! Do I even need to cover it? Is this what our grandmothers used to do when the windows were opened and flies would have feasted on the dough?
I use a flour sack type towel and I get it wet with warm water and wring it out. It never sticks and the moisture keeps it from drying out. Also environmentally friendly since you are not throwing away any plastic.
Yes, you do need to cover your dough, or else it will dry out. But instead of using a tea towel, try plastic wrap sprayed with Pam, placed loosely over the pans. Or even better, get a really big, deep bowl and turn it over the pan. Make sure it is big enough to touch the counter and deep enough that the dough won't touch the bowl when it rises. You will have beautiful, blemish-free bread!
You don't need to cover it if you've completely coated the top with melted butter or margarine, oil, or Pam. Any one of those will prevent it from drying out. Enjoy!
I use my cake keeper cover to protect the rising bread.
Covering it helps keep it warm, and that aids in rising. Try this: when done kneading the 2nd time, form into a ball and roll it around in an oil-coated bowl, put into loaf pans, & cover with tea towel.
In culinary school I was taught to lightly oil the bowl and the top of the dough and cover with plastic wrap. But the plastic wrap needs to be right on top of the dough.
I spray my tea towel with "pam" spray and cover my bread dough bowl while it is rising. It prevents my tea towel from sticking to the dough - works well for me.
If you're talking about the final rise in the bread pans before placing in the oven, they don't need to be covered.
Hope all is well in Liberty! I was born and raised there, I miss it much! As for the bread, I usually use the plastic wrap and lay it over the bowl, making sure it does not "wrap", just covers it! I always put the dough in a greased bowl and turn over the dough to make sure the top is cover with oil and it never sticks to anything!
Just use a damp tea towel. Works every time
Here's a trick I learned from professionals. I use this for both times the dough rises. Take a large plastic bag, depending on the size of your bowl, or pans, and snap it open. Place the bowl or pan in the bag and then trap as much air as possible to form a dome over the pans or bowl. Now twist the end of the opening to make an air seal and tuck under so as to prevent this "balloon" from deflating and touching the dough. It isn't hard to do and the humidity entrapped keeps the dough moist and makes an atmosphere that beats all other techniques to keep it from drying out while rising.
I let mine sit in the microwave to rise. It's sealed so dough does not dry out. Just don't turn it on!
I cut new white glad kitchen catcher garbage bags open (side and bottom) which nicely cover my large baking trays or several loaves of bread. They get moisture from the oiled dough on them but I let them dry a bit before folding them up again to put them in a box to store with my pastry brush for next bake day. The box is then kept a bag on the door of my freezer to keep the bags fresh. One other time saver is just putting the mixed oiled dough on a Tupperware dough mat and covering it with the plastic sheet for the rising.
I put some oil on my dough I have not had a problem.
I agree with those who oil the top of the dough before covering, also, alternatively, you could use waxed paper or parchment paper sprayed with pam or lightly oiled. I am assuming that the dough is only on its first rise and still in the bowl. As was said, the second rise in the pans don't need to be covered.
I add a little dusting of flower on the loafs for it's second rise and then covered with wax paper.
The should be covered since the top of the dough will form a crust.
The wrap I have is too sticky I am going to try a plastic bag and see how that goes.
