I finally tried my grandma's trick for fixing dense bread dough

She always said if your dough feels too tight just add a tablespoon of water and let it rest 10 minutes before kneading again. I never believed her until last month when I had a batch of rye that was practically a brick. Added the water like she told me and waited, and it softened up perfectly. Has anyone else had an old family tip that seemed too simple to work but actually saved a bake?

2 comments

2 Comments

park.abby2d ago

Totally, my mom had this thing for tough cookie dough. She'd say if it's too dry and crumbly, just press a wet paper towel over the surface and let it sit for 15 minutes. I used to roll my eyes so hard. Then one time I was making a batch of ginger snaps that were just falling apart. Did her trick, came back, and the dough was perfectly workable. It's the little things that are honestly the most annoying because they feel like magic.

the_ray2d ago

Same. My grandma always said to spritz warm water over crumbly dough with a spray bottle and work it in. Tried it once on a batch of sugar cookies that were basically sand and it fixed them right up. Still annoying that she was right all along.