Reviews and Comments

The book starts with an introduction to the chemical reactions in bread baking on the molecular level (chapters 1 & 2). The book also outlines the history of bread science, e.g. how models of the gluten structure have developed, and which studies and experiments contributed to the progress.

The second half of the book dedicates a chapter for each step of baking: pre-fermentation, mixing (kneading), fermentation, shaping, proofing, and baking. The chapters explain what (roughly) happens during these steps and makes references back to the first half of the book. Thus, the book explains not only how to bake, but also why to do certain things.

I think I -- a beginner at baking -- learned a lot from this book. As an introduction to the science of bread making (and to baking in general), it is really accessible and sometimes even a bit funny (e.g. due to some hand-drawn illustrations and bread comics!). The only negative thing that I notices was the writing style. However, a new edition has been published recently, which apparently improved the style (but without other improvements).

There's more to explore though! For example, there's an entire science/art around sourdough and wholegrain breads. Most of the advice given in the book target breads with (a little) yeast and refined (not wholegrain) flour. For wholegrain bread, for example, it is not advisable to punch the bread, since less gas is developed and you should thus treat the little gas preciously. I'm looking forward to reading a book about sourdough wholegrain bread with a similar focus on theory and praxis.

The self-published book is aimed at hobbyist and professional bakers alike, who want to learn more about the chemical processes during every step of baking. Bread science is interesting on its own, but it can of course also be applied to baking better artisan bread (although a large part of bread research is probably aimed at industrial-scale production).

The book doesn't go into too much details (which is probably a good thing given the audience), but makes use of citations, so curious readers can dig further into research papers.

What I particularly found interesting so far is that the book often explains the history of various aspects of bread science. Like every science, bread science is a process. For example, models that explain how gluten is structured, and how dough captures gas, evolve over time. The still common myth (or oversimplification) that gluten traps gas like a balloon, for example, was long debunked.