Photo Courtesy of Briess Malt & InGredients Co.

Springiness, texture, crumb size, moisture and uniformity — it can be a dizzying prospect to consider the myriad of characteristics that define high quality baked foods. Uniformity equates with quality in most baking concerns. Machineability is a must to maintain proper production output and, subsequently, profit margins. As luck, or rather ingenuity, would have it, there is an ingredient type that can help in these areas.

Dough conditioners assist with most types of baked foods. Almost as many variations of dough conditioners exist as styles of baked products. They encompass a wide range of ingredients and blends designed to improve the processing characteristics of bakery foods at high-volume bakeries. Before highlighting some of the more common situations that could call for a dough conditioner, it is important to understand what a dough conditioner is and how it acts within the processing system.

Dough conditioners can be classified by their functions: oxidizing agents, reducing agents, emulsifiers and enzymes. These ingredients also fall into separate categories depending on whether a customer is seeking a natural or organic alternative. Within these categories multiple blends are available.

Gluten's story

Dough conditioners exist in environments that use gluten for structure. Gluten starts with the protein content of the flour. When flour is mixed with water the protein forms gluten. Generally speaking, the more protein in the flour, the more elastic the dough and the firmer the final product. Protein quality also is important because flour with high protein content, but of low quality, may not perform as well as flour with a slightly lower protein content, but high quality.

Malted barley flour with a low enzyme activity can improve the internal crumb and soften the texture of artisan breads.

Photo Courtesy of Briess Malt & InGredients Co.

The growing season, the wheat variety, weather and other environmental factors all help determine flour protein content and quality, which in turn affects the gluten. Gluten consists of very long, coiled protein molecules that provide springiness to dough and yeast bread.

Ingredients that tend to strengthen gluten are salt, milk and acids, such as vinegar or sour milk. Ingredients that tend to weaken it are fat, sugar, alkalis such as baking soda, and starch, such as rice or potato. Generally speaking, the greater the percentage of an ingredient in a formulation, the more it will affect the gluten.

While the primary function of dough conditioners is to strengthen the dough, they also may be formulated to soften the dough for improved and faster mixing; provide nutrients for the yeast to increase loaf volume or reduce staling; or to soften the texture and bite of sweetgoods, such as cake.

Fiber frustrations

High fiber breads pose a different challenge. In whole wheat or dark rye, for example, the bran in the flour cuts and damages the developing protein strands. High fiber breads also can be very dense and difficult to machine, according to Mike Beavan, Ph.D., manager of product development, Watson Inc., West Haven, Conn. “Any time you have a lot of dead weight in the dough, such as ingredients that don't add to the functionality of the product, it will pose a challenge,” Beavan says.

He uses an analogy that likens high fiber breads to building a house. “When you bulk up on fiber, you're replacing a lot of the bricks with mortar. There are only so many bricks you can replace and still keep the structural soundness. But it's important to be able to claim a bread as, for example, an ‘excellent’ source of fiber. Labels, process and price are always important considerations. In a high fiber bread, the baker might have to add extra dough conditioners, so the bakery has to weigh the label claims against the extra cost,” Beavan says.