Bread is a popular food in the West and most other societies. East Asian societies typically prefer wheat noodles, steamed bread, or rice. Bread is often made from a wheat-flour dough that is cultured with yeast, allowed to rise, and finally baked in an oval. Owing to its high levels of gluten (which give the dough sponginess and elasticity), common wheat (also known as bread wheat) is the most common grain used for the preparation of bread, but bread is also made from the flour of other wheat species (including durum, spelt and emmer), rye, barley, maize (or corn), and oats, usually, but not always, in combination with wheat flour. Although common wheat is best suited for making highly-risen white bread, other wheat species are capable of giving good black bread. Spelt bread (Dinkelbrot) continues to be widely consumed in Germany, and emmer bread was a staple food in ancient Egypt. Canadian bread is known for its heartier consistency due to high protein levels in Canadian flour.

White bread is made from flour containing only the central core of the grain (endosperm). Brown bread is made with endosperm and 10% bran. It can also refer to white bread with added colouring (often caramel colouring) to make it 'brown'; commonly labeled in America as "Wheat" bread (as opposed to "Whole Wheat" bread.)

Wholemeal bread contains the whole of the wheat grain (endosperm and bran). It is also referred to as 'whole grain' or 'whole wheat' bread, especially in North America.

Wheat germ bread has added wheat germ for flavoring.

Whole grain bread can refer to the same as 'wholemeal bread', or to white bread with added whole grains to increase its fibre content (i.e. as in "60% whole grain bread").

Roti is a whole wheat based bread eaten in South Asia. Naan is also a variant of Roti.

Granary bread is bread made from granary flour. Trademarked to Hovis, it is made from malted white or brown flour, wheat germ and whole grains.

Rye bread is made with flour from rye grain of variable levels. It is higher in fiber than many common types of bread and is often darker in color and stronger in flavor. In Scandinavia, Germany, Finland, the Baltic States, and Russia, rye is a popular type of bread.

Formulation:
The amount of flour is the most significant measurement in a bread recipe, as it affects texture and crumb the most. Professional bakers use a system of percentages known as Bakers' Percentage in their recipe formulations, and measure ingredients by weight instead of by volume. Measurement by weight is much more accurate and consistent than measurement by volume, especially for the dry ingredients.

Flour is always stated as 100%, and the rest of the ingredients are a percent of that amount by weight. Common table bread in the U.S. uses approximately 50% water, resulting in a finely-textured, light, bread. Most artisan bread formulas contain anywhere from 60 to 75% water. In yeast breads, the higher water percentages result in more CO2 bubbles, and a coarser bread crumb. One pound (~ 450 g) of flour will yield a standard loaf of bread, or two French loaves.

Calcium propionate is commonly added by commercial bakeries to retard the growth of molds.

Flour
Flour is a product made from grain that has been ground into a powdery consistency. It is flour that provides the primary structure to the final baked bread. Commonly available flours are made from rye, barley, maize, and other grains, but it is wheat flour that is most commonly used for breads. Each of these grains provides the starch and protein necessary for the production of bread.

The quantity of the proteins contained in the flour serve as the best indicator of the quality of the bread dough and the finished bread. While bread can be made from all-purpose wheat flour, for quality bread a specialty bread flour, containing more protein, is recommended. If one uses a flour with a lower (9-11%) protein content to produce bread, a longer mixing time will be required to develop gluten strength properly. This extended mixing time leads to oxidization of the dough, which gives the finished product a whiter crumb, instead of the cream color preferred by most artisan bakers.

Wheat flour in addition to its starch contains three water-soluble protein groups, albumin, globulin, proteoses, and two non-water soluble protein groups, glutenin and gliadin. When flour is mixed with water the water-soluble proteins dissolve, leaving the glutenin and gliadin to form the structure of the resulting dough. When worked by kneading, the glutenin forms strands of long thin chainlike molecules while the shorter gliadin forms bridges between the strands of glutenin. The resulting networks of strands produced by these two proteins are known as gluten. Gluten development improves if the dough is allowed to autolyse.

Liquids
Water, or some other liquid, is used to form the flour into a paste or dough. The volume of liquid required varies between recipes, but a ratio of 1 part liquid to 3 parts flour is common for yeast breads while recipes that use steam as the primary leavening method may have a liquid content in excess of one part liquid to one part flour by volume. In addition to water, other types of liquids that may be used include dairy products, fruit juices, or beer. In addition to the water in each of these they also bring additional sweeteners, fats, and/or leavening components.

Leavening
Leavening is the process of adding gas to a dough before or during baking to produce a lighter, more easily chewed bread. Most bread consumed in the West is leavened. However, unleavened breads have symbolic importance in Judaism and Christianity. Jews consume unleavened bread called Matza during Passover. They are also used in the Roman Catholic Christian liturgy when they celebrate the Eucharist, a rite derived from the narrative of the Last Supper when Jesus broke bread with his disciples, perhaps during a Passover Seder. On the other hand, the Orthodox Church always uses leavened bread.

Chemical leavening
A simple technique for leavening bread is the use of gas-producing chemicals. There are two common methods. The first is to use baking powder or a self-rising flour that includes baking powder. The second is to have an acidic ingredient such as buttermilk and add baking soda. The reaction of the acid with the soda produces gas. Chemically-leavened breads are called quick breads and soda breads. This technique is commonly used to make muffins, pancakes, American-style biscuits and sweet breads such as banana bread.

Yeast Leavening
Many breads are leavened by yeast. The yeast used for leavening bread is Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the same species used for brewing alcoholic beverages. This yeast ferments carbohydrates in the flour, including any sugar, producing carbon dioxide. Most bakers in the U.S. leaven their dough with commercially produced baker's yeast. Baker's yeast has the advantage of producing uniform, quick, and reliable results, because it is obtained from a pure culture. Many artisan bakers produce their own yeast by preparing a 'growth culture' which they then use in the making of bread. This culture kept in the right conditions will continue to grow and provide leavening for many years.

Both the baker's yeast and the sourdough method of baking bread follow the same pattern. Water is mixed with flour, salt and the leavening agent (baker's yeast or sourdough starter). Other additions (spices, herbs, fats, seeds, fruit, etc.) are not necessary to bake bread, but often used. The mixed dough is then allowed to rise one or more times (a longer rising time results in more flavor, so bakers often punch down the dough and let it rise again), then loaves are formed and (after an optional final rising time) the bread is baked in an oven.

Many breads are made from a straight dough, which means that all of the ingredients are combined in one step, and the dough baked after the rising time. Alternatively, dough can be made using a pre-ferment, when some of the flour, water, and the leavening are combined a day or so ahead of baking, and allowed to ferment overnight. On the day of the baking, the rest of the ingredients are added, and the rest of the process is the same as that for straight dough. This produces a more flavorful bread with better texture. Many bakers see the starter method as a compromise between the highly reliable results of baker's yeast, and the flavor/complexity of a longer fermentation. It also allows the baker to use only a minimal amount of baker's yeast, which was scarce and expensive when it first became available. Most yeasted preferments fall into one of three categories: poolish or pouliche, a loose-textured mixture composed of roughly equal amounts of flour and water (by weight); biga a stiff mixture with a higher proportion of flour; and pâte fermentée, which is simply a portion of dough reserved from a previous batch. Sourdough (also known as levain or "natural leaven") takes it a step further, creating a pre-ferment with flour and water that propagates naturally occurring yeast and bacteria (usually Saccharomyces exiguus, which is more acid-tolerant than S. cerevisiae, and various species of Lactobacillus.)

Sourdough 
The sour taste of sourdoughs actually comes not from the yeast, but from a lactobacillus, with which the yeast lives in symbiosis. The lactobacillus feeds on the byproducts of the yeast fermentation, and in turn makes the culture go sour by excreting lactic acid, which protects it from spoiling (since most microbes are unable to survive in an acid environment). All yeast-leavened breads used to be sourdoughs, and the leavening process was not understood until the 19th century, when with the advance of microscopes, scientists were able to discover the microbes that make the dough rise. Since then, strains of yeast have been selected and cultured mainly for reliability and quickness of fermentation. Billions of cells of these strains are then packaged and marketed as "Baker's Yeast". Bread made with baker's yeast is not sour because of the absence of the lactobacillus. Bakers around the world quickly embraced baker's yeast for it made baking simple and so allowed for more flexibility in the bakery's operations. It made baking quick as well, allowing bakeries to make fresh bread from scratch as often as three times a day. While European bakeries kept producing sourdough breads, in the U.S., sourdough baking was widely replaced by baker's yeast, and only recently has that country (or parts of it, at least) seen the rebirth of sour-vinegar dough in artisan bakeries. According to Alton Brown, host of Food Network's "Good Eats" television show, each region of the world has different strains of lactobacillus, hence the flavor of the bread made from home starters is unique. The San Francisco Bay Area is especially famous for its sourdough breads.

Sourdough breads are most often made with a sourdough starter (not to be confused with the starter method discussed above). A sourdough starter is a culture of yeast and lactobacillus. It is essentially a dough-like or pancake-like flour/water mixture in which the yeast and lactobacilli live. A starter can be maintained indefinitely by periodically discarding a part of it and refreshing it by adding fresh flour and water. (When refrigerated, a starter can go weeks without needing to be fed.) There are starters owned by bakeries and families that are several human generations old, much revered for creating a special taste or texture. Starters can be obtained by taking a piece of another starter and growing it, or they can be made from scratch. There are hobbyist groups on the web who will send their starter for a stamped, self-addressed envelope, and there are even mailorder companies that sell different starters from all over the world. An acquired starter has the advantage to be more proven and established (stable and reliable, resisting spoiling and behaving predictably) than from-scratch starters.

There are other ways of sourdough baking and culture maintenance. A more traditional one is the process that was followed by peasant families throughout Europe in past centuries. The family (usually the woman was in charge of breadmaking) would bake on a fixed schedule, perhaps once a week. The starter was saved from the previous week's dough. The starter was mixed with the new ingredients, the dough was left to rise, then a piece of it was saved (to be the starter for next week's bread). The rest was formed into loaves which were marked with the family sign (this is where today's decorative slashing of bread loaves originates from), and taken to the communal oven to bake. These communal ovens over time evolved into what are known today as bakeries, when certain people specialized in bread baking, and with time enhanced the process so far as to be able to mass produce cheap bread for everyone in the world.

Fats or shortenings
Fats such as butter, vegetable oils, lard, or that contained in eggs affects the development of gluten in breads by coating and lubricating the individual strands of protein and also helping hold the structure together. If too much fat is included in a bread dough, the lubrication effect will cause the protein structures to divide. A fat content of approximately 3% by weight is the concentration that will produce the greatest leavening action. In addition to their effects on leavening, fats also serve to tenderize the breads they are used in and also help to keep the bread fresh longer after baking.

Bread improvers 
Bread improvers are frequently used in the production of commercial breads to reduce the time that the bread takes to rise, and to improve the texture and volume of bread. Chemical substances commonly used as bread improvers include ascorbic acid, hydrochloride, sodium metabisulfate, ammonium chloride, various phosphates, amylase, and protease.

Sodium/salt is one of the most common nonessential additives used in production. In addition to enhancing flavor, salt affects the crumb and the overall texture by stabilizing and strengthening[13] the gluten. Some artisan bakers are forgoing early addition of salt to the dough and are waiting until after the first 20 minute "rest." This is generally done with only whole grain flours.

Kneading

Kneading - develops the gluten in the flour to form a framework for holding the gases given off by the yeast. The KitchenAid mixer not only effortlessly tackles kneading but provides the constant rhythm necessary for best results. After all the flour has been added, continue to knead for approximately 2 minutes until the dough is smooth and satiny, not sticky. Shape the dough into a ball and place in an oiled bowl. Brush the top of the dough with additional oil to prevent a crust from forming while rising. Cover the bowl with a towel or plastic wrap and let rise in a warm (70 degrees F to 85 degrees F) place, free from drafts.

Rising - Let the dough rise until double in size. To test the dough, depress two fingers into the center and if the dent stays, it has doubled. Punch the dough down by pushing your fist into the center of the dough and pulling the edges over to the center. Turn the dough over. Letting the dough rise a second time before shaping will yield a finer textured loaf.

Shaping - There are many ways to shape a loaf. Specialty breads, such as braids or rolls, will generally include directions in the recipes. Two simple methods for shaping standard loaves are as follows:

Form the dough into an oval the size of the pan, stretching and turning ends of the dough under and pinching into a seam. Place in prepared pan, seam side down.

Roll the dough into a rectangle slightly longer than the size of the pan. Beginning with the shorter side, roll dough towards you. Seal long seam as well as ends with hands. Fold sealed ends under and place loaf, seam side down, into prepared pan.

Baking - Place loaves in the center of the oven, leaving space for the heat to surround the pans. To check for doneness, remove one loaf from its pan and tap the bottom. If it sounds hollow it is done. Turn loaves onto racks immediately after baking to prevent sogginess.

Always store flour in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. For long-term storage, store flour and yeast in refrigerator or freezer.

To measure flour, spoon it lightly into a dry measuring cup and level with a spatula.

Use the Grain Mill to grind whole wheat berries and other grains into flour. One cup of grain yields approximately 1-1/4 cups of flour, except for rolled oats which yields 7/8 cup of flour.

Always check liquid temperature with an accurate thermometer.

Allow bread to rise in a warm, draft-free place. Place bowl of dough on rack over pan of warm water. Or, set oven on lowest setting for 10 minutes. Turn oven off and place bowl of dough in oven.

For soft crusts and extra shine, brush finished bread with melted butter and cool uncovered.

For crispier crusts, brush loaves with a mixture of one egg white and one tablespoon of cold water before baking.

Inverting finished bread onto racks immediately from oven prevents a soggy loaf.

Some large recipes and soft doughs may climb over the collar of the dough hook. This indicates the dough needs more flour. The sooner all the flour is added, the less likely the dough is to climb the hook. Try starting with all but the last cup of flour in the initial mixing process. Then add the remaining flour as quickly as possible, never exceeding the total amount given in the recipe.

Dough made with whole grain flour may not form a ball on the dough hook during kneading. However, as long as there is contact between the hook and the dough, kneading will be accomplished.

Allow bread to cool completely before slicing.

Baked yeast breads may be stored in the freezer for up to six months. Wrap securely in plastic wrap or aluminum foil. To thaw, let stand at room temperature for 3 hours.

Beer bread
Biscuit
Bread roll
Brioche
Broa
Bun
Bush bread
Canadian White
Cardamom bread
Challah
Chapati
Cornbread
Cottage loaf
Damper
Flatbread
Focaccia
Indian bread
Lavash
Matzo
Mantou
Melonpan
Naan
Pandoro
Paratha
Pita
Portuguese sweet bread
Potato bread
Pumpernickel
Puri
Roti
Rye bread
Texas toast
Tiger bread
Tortilla
White bread
Zopf

Hope this helps! ~~C[__]D HAPPY BAKING!