BREAD IMPROVERS

BREAD IMPROVERS:

if the quality of raw material is good and the chef is skilled, it is hardly necessary to use any bread improvers.

“Any added material which improves the strength and extensibility of gluten of flour is known as bread improvers”.

MYF (Mineral Yeast Food) is a general term used to describe a combination of inorganic salts, some of which affect the nature of gluten while others act as food for yeast.

List of bread improvers:

  • POTASSIUM BROMATE
  • AMMONIUM CHLORIDE
  • POTASSIUM IODATE
  • CALCIUM PEROXIDE

POTASSIUM BROMATE:

 It is one of the earliest known chemical used by baking industry to improve the quality of bread. It oxidizes the gluten, giving it more strength. It is harmless substances. The quantity of potassium bromated to be used ranges from 10 to 40 ppm (parts per million), depending on the strength of flour (maida).

POTASSIUM IODATE:

It is considered to be a faster acting oxidizing agent than potassium bromated and hence it is more suitable for short time dough. It is especially useful with such flours which tend to produce “bucky” dough as it improves the extensibility of gluten.

AMMONIUM CHLORIDE:

It acts as food for yeast. It has very beneficial effect on the growth of yeast cells. During its activity in the dough, the ammonia component becomes part of new yeast cells and chloride component forms hydrochloride acid in the dough.

CALCIUM PEROXIDE:

It has a drying effect on the skin of dough piece, and in highly mechanized bakeries, where it is necessary that dough pieces are not sticky during moulding, use of calcium peroxide is very beneficial.

Some of the combinations of different bread improvers are:

 

1.       Potassium bromated

10 gm

            Maida

49990 gm

            Total improver flour

5000 gm

2.       Potassium bromated

20 gm

           Ammonium chloride

600 gm

             Flour

9380 gm

             Total improver flour

10000 gm

3.       Potassium bromated

12 gm

           Potassium iodate

8 gm

           Ammonium chloride

600 gm

           Flour

9380 gm

          Total improver flour

 

10000 gm

4.       Calcium peroxide

10 gm

          Flour

9999 gm

          Total improver flour

10000 gm

All the above combinations can safely be used at the rate of 500 gm, per 100 kg maida. However this quantity can be increased gradually according to the requirement.

 

HOW TO JUDGE THE QUALITY OF BREAD

THERE ARE TWO FACTORS THROUGH WHICH WE CAN JUDGE THE QUALITY OF BREAD:

  1. EXTERNAL FACTORS/CHARACTERISTICS
  2. INTERNAL FACTORS/CHARACTERISTICS

EXTERNAL FACTORS:

  • VOLUME
  • SYMMETRY OF SHAPE: TRUNK (LOWER PART), DOME (UPPER PART)
  • BLOOM: SHINR OF BREAD
  • CRUST COLOR: PLEASING GOLDEN BROWN COLOR
  • EVENNESS OF BAKE
  • OVEN BREAK
  • CLEANLINESS

INTERNAL FACTORS:

  • COLOR
  • STRUCTURE
  • TEXTURE AND SHEEN
  • FLAOUR AND AROMA
  • CRUMB CLARITY AND ELASTICITY
  • MOISTNESS
  • CLEANLINESS