Up until now, I’ve mostly been making a very lean loaf: just flour, water, salt, and yeast. I bake at 400°F until it hits ~195°F internally (20–25 min). The bread tasted fine, but the crust never really browned, which was frustrating.
This time, I tested three tweaks:
- Sugar & Oil
- Egg Yolk
- Yudane Method (25% of flour mixed with boiling water at a 1:1.4 ratio)
Here’s what I learned:
- Sugar & Oil: Even a small amount made a huge difference. The crust browned beautifully, the crumb was softer, and the loaf stayed fresh longer. This will be my new “default” formula. I didn’t bake a lean loaf alongside for comparison this time, but I’ve made enough to know the difference.
- Egg Yolk: Inspired by ChainBaker’s video, I added an egg yolk. Honestly, I couldn’t detect much difference in flavor or texture. It did make the dough much sticker than the Basic.
- Yudane + Egg Yolk: Slightly softer, but not enough to justify the extra step or ingredients. I expected more given the higher hydration, but my family and I barely noticed a change.
Formula Breakdown:
| Flour | Water | Salt | Yeast | Sugar | Oil | Egg Yolk | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | 300g | 60% | 2% | 1% | 2% | 2% | N |
| W/Egg | 300g | 60% | 2% | 1% | 2% | 2% | Y |
| W/Egg Yudane | 300g | 70% | 2% | 1% | 2% | 2% | Y |
Takeaway:
The basic (sugar + oil, no egg) will be my go-to for everyday breads—rosemary loaves, garlic knots, white sandwich bread. It beats the lean loaf hands down. (For reference: I used AP flour and added 2% vital wheat gluten.)
For softer dinner rolls or sweet breads (think Texas Roadhouse rolls or cinnamon rolls), I’ll still bump up sugar, oil/butter, and add milk powder.
Extra note on the crust: In the pic, I brushed egg yolk only on the top half of each loaf. It was a touch shinier, but again—not really worth the effort.
Next up: experimenting with potato flour.
by br1125
6 Comments
Than you for your service bread science person
400° is low for a lean loaf. It’s probably why you weren’t getting enough browning.
Interesting, thanks for the research. But as others have said, 400F is a bit low. I run 475 covered Dutch oven for 20-25 mins, then uncovered at 450 to brown. Only 10-15 more mins if I recall
Interesting how 10% extra hydration is a lot but barely made a difference. If 60 works fine I’d stick to that but my ideal percentage is 67
Have you read The Food Lab by J Kenji yet? You’d love it.
How much sugar and oil did you add?