The first rise, or proofing of bread is an important step that develops both flavor and texture.
Bread that rises is known as leavened bread.
The rising agent is typically yeast, an ingredient that greatly influences flavor.
If you want the best bread at home, you need to follow your recipes closely and don’t skip on the proofing that allows the bread to rise.
How long should you leave bread to rise? It depends on a few factors…
The Right Amount of Time to Proof Dough
Generally, dough will double in size when it has finished rising.
This can take anywhere from an hour or two, or even four hours depending on the ambient room temperature.
Yeast in the bread feeds on sugars, creating gas and helping to develop the gluten and protein strands.
The rise is what results in the volume and fluffiness of bread, so you don’t want to skip this step.
Understanding that the rise is based on yeast activity, it should come as no surprise that bread rises faster when it contains milk.
Full cream milk has around 4.7% sugar, so this will provide additional nutrition for the yeast.
As a side note, low-fat milk contains slightly more sugar than full-cream milk.
The sugar content increases as the fat is removed, but the difference is in small percentage points, with the lowest-fat milk having around 4.9% sugar content.
The temperature of your home will affect how long it takes bread to rise.
If you have low ambient temperatures, then bread will rise very slowly.
If your home is warmer, the dough will rise faster.
The ideal temperature for proofing bread dough is between 75°F and 80°F.
Helping Dough to Rise in Your Oven
Bread dough can rise faster and more consistently in the oven because you can create the ideal conditions for yeast fermentation.
You can let dough proof in an oven-safe mixing bowl, or even right in the bread pan that you plan to bake with.
If your home’s ambient temperatures are under the ideal range, you can consider using your oven to hasten the process.
This could turn four hours of dough rising into just one or one and a half hours.
- Moisture is important. You don’t want your dough to dry out. Add a pan of water to the bottom of your oven.
- Turn the oven on to the lowest temperature or use the proofing setting if it has one.
- Place an oven-safe bowl or bread pan in the oven with the dough and allow it to rise.
- You’ll know that the process is complete when the bread doubles in volume.
How Long Should Bread Rise the First Time?
The answer depends, but you can get it down to around an hour and a half if you use the oven proofing method.
You’ll get more consistent results, especially if you live in a colder climate.
When you take the time to let your bread dough proof well, it will come out tastier and more consistent.
