Dough again!

Nature Boy · November 2004

First, thanks everyone for your thoughts on frozen dough. This forum is incredible.[p]Yesterday I set the second chilled doughball on the counter. This one had thawed, then been in the fridge overnight. After 3 or 4 hours (yesterday mornin) it was just sitting there doing nothing, and Katman mentioned it was probably no good. [p]Well, for the heck of it, I left it in the ziplock on the counter all day, and by bedtime last night, the thing had started rising again. Now it has doubled, but it has been at room temp for 30 hours or so! I smelled it, and it smells like dough with a slight alcohol undertone. [p]This thing still worthless? Or might it make the best pizza I have ever had?
Chris

mad max beyond eggdome · November 2004

Nature Boy,
i say go for it. . .but just to be safe, test it on the kids first. ..

Unknown · November 2004

Nature Boy,
Are you sure that undertone wasn't your breath?
I freeze pizza dough and have good luck with it when it thaws. I buy about six dough balls before a contest from Publix and freeze what is left over.
It is better when not frozen and will need extra work.[p]Doug

Nature Boy · November 2004

Good one Doug. LOL.[p]How do you thaw your dough? You let it rise again, right? Ever cook some after it rose slowly on the counter for a day and a half?[p]Man....still laughing about the breath remark. Between you and Max, I got me some good mid day chuckles!
Jack toya.
Chris

The Naked Whiz · November 2004

Nature Boy,
I just read an article about freezing pizza dough. There are two problems with freezing bread dough. The first is the obvious interruption of the biological process, i.e., the yeast digesting the sugar and producing carbon dioxide and all that stuff. This can be taken care of by letting it warm back up and get going again.[p]The second problem is that ice crystals form which break up the strands of gluten and make them incapable of trapping the carbon dioxide.[p]The article said that the commercial solution to problem 2 was flash freezing, which freezes the dough before ice crystals can form. It also talked about frozen commercial bread dough which has several chemicals/compounds added to allow the dough to freeze without ice crystals forming.[p]So where does this leave you? Dunno, but I thought it might be interesting.... I wonder if the Publix dough is formulated to allow freezing.[p]TNW

katman · November 2004

Nature Boy,
A slight alchohol smell could mean the dough recipe included little or no added sugar, which could also explain why it took so long for yeast to get active after being in the frig. So, by now your yeasties are probably getting a bit tired. You should probably cook a pizza. Probably won't have a lot of spring in the oven and will be a bit dense, but ain't gonna hurt you.

Nature Boy · November 2004

katman,
Thanks man. Yeah, unfortunately the dough was from a restaurant, so no idea on the sugar.[p]I am wondering though, is the day and a half rise gonna make it better that the same dough I used the other night that simply thawed? That was really bad. [p]Thanks again, yall. I have learned a lot with this little exercise, and hope others have learned from following along![p]Cheers
Chris

Chef Wil · November 2004

Nature Boy,
ever tried taking your pizza dough and partially pre cooking it before freezing? That would take care of the yeast and sugar process and cut down on prep time for your pizza cook. Pizza dough as with all breads become more of a science project if your gonna try and keep the sugars, salt, and yeast factors active and usable.

sprinter · November 2004

Nature Boy,[p]I make sourdough bread quite a bit and I refrigerate the dough about half way through the rise, sometimes for a day or two or more, and let it ferment awhile to get a good bite in the final product. Part of the rise process, or a byproduct of it, is alcohol, or an alcohol type byproduct, thats what you are smelling. Hope all of the chemists dont jump on me for this one.[p]Anyway, I would say that you are in for some great dough. My guess is that it will have a pretty heavy grain to it, like a sourdough, and be fairly heavy.[p]Let us know how it comes out. Bottom line is that there is, or shouldnt be anything to worry about as far as bacteria goes, you will cook it hot enough to kill anything that may be there.[p]Troy

katman · November 2004

Nature Boy,
Usually retarding the rise by putting freshly made dough in the frig, and doing multiple rises, improves crust structure. The slow fermentation process also can improve flavor. However, if this stuff was really bad the other night any improvement achieved is probably going to be marginal.[p]It is pretty nice outside, though. Maybe a coating of olive oil, some garlic, a liberal amount of a good grated cheeseand several cold ones would make for a worthwhile experiment.[p]man, ya got me thinkin about it now, too!

Nature Boy · November 2004

Hey Wil. Hope you are well man.
Your words are thought provoking. Never tried that though. In fact, I have only frozen dough twice. Was not planning on a science project, but looks like I have ended up with one! LOL.[p]Beers!
Chris

Nature Boy · November 2004

sprinter,
Thanks man. I'm goin' in!![p]Gonna go fire up the egg now, and take a little break from this puter. The kids and I will hopefully have a nice snack when they get home from school![p]Beers mang
Chris

Nature Boy · November 2004

katman,
I'm only an hour or so from the truth. All this talk, and I just can't get myself to chuck it. [p]Will let ya know! Thanks for the help.
Chris

Nature Boy · November 2004

The Naked Whiz,
Very interesting. That is real complicated stuff for a right brainer though. [p]Hooter said his company had been working on freezing dough successfully for years. Several folks say they do it already successfully. Hmm.[p]The answer is out there. Yes it is.
Chris

usa doug · November 2004

Nature Boy,
After freezing the dough, I let it rise if it will. If not, I work the bubbles out while the dough is still rubbery and put it on a 15" screen. I am looking for a flat crispy crust, so I don't care if it rises.[p]

Dough again!

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