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How Bread Is Made
Bread is one of the oldest foods in the world. People in many countries eat it every day, but how is it made? For simple bread, you only need four things: flour, water, salt and yeast.
Yeast is very small, and it is a living thing. When you mix it with flour and warm water, it starts to eat the sugars in the flour. As it eats, it makes a gas. The gas makes lots of little bubbles in the dough, and the dough gets bigger. This is called rising.
First, the baker mixes the flour, water, salt and yeast in a big bowl. Then he or she kneads the dough. Kneading means pushing and folding the dough with your hands, often for about ten minutes. This makes the dough soft and easy to pull.
Next, the dough rests in a warm place for one or two hours. During this time it rises, and it often becomes twice as big. After that, the baker makes it into loaves or small rolls and leaves them to rise again for a short time.
Finally, the bread goes into a very hot oven. The outside becomes brown and crispy, and the kitchen smells wonderful. Many bakers start work very early, before most people wake up, so there is fresh bread in the shops in the morning.
Making bread at home is not difficult, but it takes time. Many people say that it is relaxing. And there is nothing better than warm bread that you made yourself.