I'm hoping some of the bread wizards here can give me some feedback on what I might be doing wrong or what I need to make sure I do with my donuts. I've only made then once where they had a nice light ring around the middle and didn't fall to some extent as they were transferred to the oil and I've been trying to recreate that ever since. Unfortunately I have very little experience with yeast dough beyond this recipe and pizza dough so I don't completely understand the science of why they get so delicate. Since they're falling I'm assuming they're over proofing but I don't know.
Raised Donuts
- 211-264 g Ap flour
- 2/3 cup (90 g) Milk
- 2 tsp (6.6 g) Yeast
- 1 egg
- 1/4 tsp Vanilla
- 20 g Sugar
- 20 g Butter
- 1/4 tsp Salt
I typically mix everything in my Bosch mixer, let it rise, shape, rise again and fry. Sometimes I chill in the fridge after the first rise. I typically put the dough in the oven to rise with a pot of hot water as a make shift proof box so the dough doesn't skin over.
Thanks for the reply. I've done it both ways and it doesn't seem to make much difference in the result.
...In my experience recipes often veer towards absolute adherence to timings rather than judging when a dough is ready.
There's nothing at all odd about your ingredients or their quantities so perhaps it simply comes down to proofing them a little too long. At a room temp of 68-72F (20-22℃) and a dough temp. of 23-24℃, I let mine proof for only thirty minutes or so, sixty if the air temp. is lower and less if it is higher. As Mini suggests, you don't need to let them double in size because the spring you get from the deep frying ensures a good size, so experimenting with proofing times might be worth exploring. They just need to be a little puffy and they're usually ready. Steaming them whilst proofing is a little unusual. Might it be simpler to cover them with a damp tea towel, floured plastic wrap or similar?
What kind of deep fryer do you have? When you bake donuts in a commercial setting generally you have a deep fryer that has a large surface area but is also about 8 inches deep. This gives gives it a lot of stored heat so when the donuts are added the temperature does not drop too much. When loading the fryer the donuts are on a screen that you lower into the fryer and hold the screen just barely submerged for 5 to 10 seconds which allows the donuts to float off the screen without being pulled under the oil. The donuts are also proofed on the screen and you have to make the dough firm enough that the donuts don't sink into the screen while proofing. Generally when donuts are over proofed they get no white line and absorb a lot of oil, when under proofed you tend to get a large air pocket between the top crust and the crumb of the donuts. Good luck and keep experimenting.
Gerhard
Thank you both for the additional feedback. I think you're right that some more experimenting with proofing is in order because I just haven't done it enough to know what I'm looking for.
Just to clarify, the pot of water just provides enough moisture in the air so they don't skin over. We have a relatively dry climate here in Colorado and the dough can skin pretty fast unless it's tightly covered.
I just fry on my stove top in a pot with a digital temp probe. I only drop two at a time and I'm typically able to modulate the heat as I'm going so it doesn't drop too much.
I've seen how they lower whole screens of donuts into fryers and I was considering trying to proof the shaped donuts on parchment squares to help transfer them without deflating them but I didn't want that to be a bandaid to a more fundamental problem.
...so I'm sure you're right to take extra precautions.
You're also at altitude (unless you're a long way south in the Raton), and that can have quite a startling influence on dough. Maybe the next time you pass a small bakery it might be worth popping in to see if they have any advice on the subject (or do a search here on TFL for discussions on baking at altitude-I vaguely recall there have been quite a few posts about it).
Not to be too much of a pessimist but I hope you have fire extinguisher near the stove, that is pretty good way to set your house on fire.
Gerhard
you're most likely over proofing....
"... help transfer them without deflating them..."
If they are that delicate, they are over proofed. I think altitude will also make them rise higher and faster, might cut back on the yeast a little bit if you find the dough rising too fast for you to handle.
That makes sense. I'll give that a try.
We do have a great little bakery near by so I'll ask the baker about the altitude.