Ive tried 3, 4 times to make croissants, still fails after changing multiple way of making it, in needs of some suggestion for my failed experience, my husband couldn't believe how hard it is, because every bakery sells them, so if they are really so hard to make, then crossants will be a delicacy can sell hundreds for one, which I refuse to believe!
This is the recipe for my dough
1kg flour
150g Sugar
20g salt
20g milk powder
100g butter
2 eggs
50g yeast
450g water/milk
The taste was okay but the layer is non-existence, it was so cakey and wet inside like the picture I posted, I have some questions for my process of making it
1. Dough
Should I knead the dough with a mixer? the first time I did it with a mixer and it turn out to be the most flaky of all the time I tried, the next couple of times I just use my hand and didn't knead it much, still came out horrible, what should I do?
2. Butter:
At the beginning I was using normal supermarket butter, and it creates a puddle around the croissant when in the oven, second time I got a better version butter but turn out the same, so the third time I managed to find a fat content 88% European butter, it works great when I bake it, the butter puddle is gone but the result was still really cakey and the taste was not great, the first time I made the layers right after took the butter out from the fridge after the butter sitting there for the whole night, and it was way too cold, when I started rolling the butter breaks into chunks, those chunks breaks the dough layer and the chunks are visible under the outer layer, second time I used a different butter and leave them in fridge an hour before lamination, same result, the third time I leave it in room temperature, it gets a bit smooshy so I only put them in the fridge for 10 mins before, still fails, chunks everywhere to a point I feel angry seeing those inside, I am not sure what to do anymore those the butter, any advice? if it's too soft it's gonna melted into layers and I can never Gert it right.
3. Oven temperature:
the first time I set the oven for 150 degrees, it started burn a bit so I turn it down to 120 for 20 mins, it was cakey but wasn't burned.
second time I turn it to 75 degree for 1.5 hours, the dough becoming flat and round so I turn it up to 150 for the last 20 mins, no layers whatsoever.
third time I turn it to 190 degree for 10 mins as some recipe suggested, and it burned so I turn it down to 130 for another 15 mins, the tips are brown and the gaps are white, made some ugly looking cakey stuff with this batch.
4. Should I use salted butter or unsalted? I only use salted butter the first time I made it and it taste better then the other times I made with unsalted butter, which one is better?
5. should I change the recipe of the dough? or mixing flour with the butter? trying to understand which step went wrong.
I am really at my wits end, nothing came out right and non of them has layers, is there anyone can help me? I am desperate, it's just sad to see my last batch out of the oven look and taste like that.
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Professional bakeries have professional equipment, like special machines that make thin sheets of butter to go into puff pastry to make their croissants. I'm not saying you can't make croissants at home but it's a very challenging baking project!
You can search for 'txfarmer croissant' here on tfl to see full detailed writeups by a fabled baker who used to hang out here and left a legacy of amazing posts for us.
Here is her writeup about the process of developing her plain croissants.
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/22677/poolish-croissant-pursuit-perfection
A good and simple recipe in French is this one: https://www.enviedebienmanger.fr/fiche-recette/recette-croissants-au-beurre
A recipe (also in French) by Philippe Conticini: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_a8b5Brfxw&t=137s
A good demonstration and good recipe in English: https://www.joyofbaking.com/breads/HomemadeCroissants.html
I hope you'll find a way of producing great croissant. Happy baking,
Tal.
When you fold to laminate gently smooth a little flour on the whole dough surface such that it wont stick to itself...just a dusting. If you fold it and it sticks, it wont work.
With pastry, work a few minutes at a time then pop it back in the fridge. Cold for pastry, warm for bread :)
Chill a baking stone or marble and use it as your workbench.
My tip for lamination... cling film a baking sheet and pour melted butter in to it. Chill in fridge. Voila! Pre-thinned sheet butter as large as you want it.
Good morning,
A few things come to mind when reading your post.
(1) There are "2 butters" in a croissant recipe. Some butter you mix with the dough, and a lot more butter in a block that you do a classic "butter lock and folds" process with, over a long period of time, to create the layers.
From your recipe, it seems that you're using dough butter indeed, but there's no mention of additional butter to make a butter lock. You'll never get layers unless you do a butter lock and folds.
Mind you, Asian style "croissants" only have butter in the dough, they don't follow the lamination process, and therefore have a croissant shape but no layers. It might be that you have an Asian-style croissant recipe?
(2) Making croissants "with layers", as stated by other posters, requires (a) a very strict temperature control of the dough and the room you work the dough in, (b) ideally a dough sheeter, which is a bulky machine used in professional pastry labs, and (c) quite some experience in handling dough and making pastry.
As stated by Meat500, all rest periods in a croissant making process happen in the chiller or the freezer. You work the dough for a short period of time, then back to the chiller to avoid the "lock" butter melting into the dough.
A domestic kitchen is FAR from being an ideal environment for making layered croissants, as handling the butter (must be cold), and rolling and folding the dough (must be cold too) by hand requires quite some experience. I can't think of a more challenging pastry project in a domestic kitchen than laminating croissants by hand.
Here's a recipe and YouTube video of how it can be done by hand with domestic tools, but please be advised that it's a lot more challenging than it seems when a chef does it.
https://www.brunoskitchen.net/blog/post/croissant-taste-of-paris
Hope this helps. Good luck with your endeavor.
recipe:
for the dough:
1/2 c warm milk (110-115 degrees F)
1 tsp, plus 2 tbsp sugar, divided
4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 stick of cold unsalted butter cut in to 1/2 inch cubes
4 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp salt
1cup cold milk
butter block
3 1/2 sticks of cold unsalted butter cut in to 1/2 inch cubes
2 tbsp flour
1. cut your butter for the dough & refrigerate. i slice the butter in to 8 even slices and the cut each slice in 4.
2. cut your butter for the butter block using the same method. toss with the 2tbsp flour. (if butter is too soft, refrigerate first (20 minutes) before putting flour in)
3. mix warm milk & sugar together. add yeast. Set to side while you start dough. it should be frothy in about 10 minutes.
4. in a stand mixer, with a paddle attachment, on medium, mix flour, 2 tbsp sugar, salt, flour and 1/2 stick butter until the consistency of bread crumbs. butter sho yuh ld be in small pieces (approx 1 - 2 minutes)
5. change to the hook attachment and add in the yeast mixture & milk. mix on lowest setting approximately 2 minutes. dough will be pretty rough.
6. put out on a lightly floured surface. knead 4 or 5 times. if it is still sticky, add a small amount of flour. dough will not be smooth or elastic.
7. wrap dough loosely and put in refrigerator for 30-60 minutes
8. with a clean mixer bowl & paddle attachment, mix the cold 3 1/2 sticks of floured butter on medium until it forms just in to a smooth mass. you may have to scrape the bowl a few times. (do not over mix or make in to a cream.)
9. making the butter block: place the butter on to a sheet of plastic. I use my hands to form a rough rectangle. then place another plastic over the top. using a rolling pin, roll it into a 9 1/2 by 11 rectangle. I use a pastry scraper from sur la table that has measurements on it.
to get it this size, if you roll it out too much, just lift the plastic, cut the butter and place it where you need to make an edge larger or on top, and roll it back in to tje block. if the butter gets too soft at any point, put it in the refrigerator for 20ish minutes to firm up.
once ypu have the block to the correct size, just put the whole thing in the refrigerator.
10. roll the dough out on a floured surface, to a 15x12 inch rectangle with the short side toward you. you can pull and square off the dough if needed. it should be the same thickness all over. I use the scraper to push the dough back if I over roll.
visually split your doigh in thirds from top to bottom (you can lightly mark it if needed)
11. take your butter block and remove the top plastic. flip it on to the upper half of the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch margin on the top and sides.
12. fold the bottom of the dough up on to the bottom of the butter block
13. fold the top, with the butter down. this should look like you would fold a letter.
14. use the rolling pin to lightly seal the seams.
15. if you have worked quickly you can move to 16, if it is soft, put it in the refrigerator for an hour.
16. position the dough with the short side toward you and the long fold toward your left.
roll in to a 20x12 inch rectangle. brush any flour from the dough. fold the 2 short edges toward the middle. there should be a 1/4 inch gap in between the 2. then fold the bottom on to the top (like you would close a book)
roll your pin over the top to seal the edges. wrap in plastic & refrigerate for 1 hour
17. place dough on floured surface, short side to youm roll put to a 20x12 inch rectangle again. fold this in to a "letter" again. (like in steps 12 & 13) roll your pin o er it to seal edges.
18. wrap in plastic & refrigerate for 2-24 hours.
to shape & bake
1. flour work surface.
2. roll out to 26 x 7 inch with 1/4 inch thickness. long edge toward you.
3. cut the edges off to make straight edges.
4. cut dough in half length wise.
5. take strips of dough and with a pizza cutter (or sharp knife) cut dough at angles to create triangles.
6. make nicks in the middle of the base of the triangle.
7. lightly stretch dough & roll toward tip of triangle.
8. curve away from the tail until the 2 ends just meet (like hands coming together)
9. place on parchment or silicone baking sheets. 2 inches apart.
10. make an egg wash (1 lg egg & 1 T milk beaten) brush each croissant. refrigerate remianing egg wash.
11. allow to proof (rise) for 1-2 hours in a cool, room temp, room. dough should be marshmallow like when ready.
12. chill croissants for 15 minites in refrigerator to firm butter.
13. preheat oven to 400F and place rack in center.
14. brush croissants with egg wash again.
15. bake for approx 20 minutes, until golden brown, turning the pan around midway through.