# Loaf of bread deflated :(



## joujoudoll (Aug 29, 2007)

I was making bread yesterday and the recipe made 3 loaves and I decided to freeze 2 of the loaves... Well, my dad ended up wanting some more bread, so I took one loaf out last night and put it in the refrigerator over night and let it rise today... When I checked on the loaf an hour and a half into rising, it looked like it could go a little longer, so I went back half an hour later and it was deflated! It had sunken down a little bit. What could have caused that? 

.<3
Stephanie


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## luc_h (Jun 6, 2007)

Hi Joujoudoll,

I know elsewhere in this forum some have been able to freeze bread yeast doughs and revive them. It never worked for me or at best my successful attempts were unpredictable.

My guess on what happened in your case is this:
A good portion of the yeast had died when frozen, the ones still alive were localized in the middle of the dough and overinflated. The dough ruptured and the trapped gas escaped.

The reason I think frozen doughs made at home don't work properly is because:
the freezing process is too slow creating icicles that rupture the yeast cells.
Gluten does not freeze then thaw well loosing its capacity to stay elastic.
The rising process is difficult to control because thawing is always inconsistent. Thawing in the refrigerator takes too long but will preserve the yeast better. Thawing on the counter is inconsistent because the outside dough can start to rise while the center is still frozen making an uneven risen dough. Bake/thaw in the oven makes the interior of the dough rise before cooking but little expansion is achieved on the outside.

Bread made from frozen dough makes a heavy and disappointing bread. 
Industrial manufacturers add dough conditioner additives, special yeast strains, add unhydrated coated dry yeast and even chemical leavening agents to help the thawed dough to rise. The final bread is still mediocre at best.

I suggest: to rise and bake all your dough and freeze the finish bread. Double wrap the completely cooled bread in resealable plastic bags (press air out of bag). Freeze in a chest freezer. Baked bread freezes better then dough. If after thawing the bread feels stale, rub the whole crust with wet hands and bake unwrapped in a 400F oven for 10 min. The crust gets crackly again and the interior, moist.

I hope this helps,

Luc H


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## free rider (May 23, 2006)

I have a lot of success with frozen bread that has been warmed in an oven. As Luc says, I let the bread thaw and then give it about a ten minute warm-up in a coolish oven to revive it. I don't rub with wet hands though. I might give that a try on the next loaf. I've never tried freezing the loaf, but the freezing of the finished bread has been so successful that I've never felt the need.


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## joujoudoll (Aug 29, 2007)

Thank you very much for that information... I appreciate it. I have another loaf of dough that is unbaked in the freezer, but the next time I bake my bread, I will bake all of the loaves and freeze the unused loafs in the freezer. I suppose it's all trial and error and I've learned from my foolish mistake, I should have researched it before I did it, but thankfully even though my loaf deflated a little, it was still very moist and had good texture. I just hope the other loaf will turn out alright without it turning dense and tough. Thanks again for the very useful information! 

.<3
Stephanie


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## andyg (Aug 27, 2007)

Deflated loaf--maybe a cat sat on it?  But Luc H is usually right on the mark.


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## canadiangirl (Jul 16, 2007)

Wow! Wetting the bread with H2O was always my little secret!!!! Sometimes even a little EVOO. It always works as long as the bread isn't too stale.
canadiangirl:smiles:


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## tanpohkee (Jul 20, 2007)

I don't freeze the dough but I do refrigerate them overnight and then thaw it on the counter for an hour. I also notice that the rise is not as high as it would be if I had proofed them without refrigeration. However, the oven spring is higher than normal so that makes up for the low rise during proofing. You may want to bake it without waiting for it to rise to it's normal height. The oven spring will compensate. 

Hope this works for you too.

Tan Poh Kee


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