Psyllium Aids Rising & Reduces Moist Center Of Bread

[cbill]

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Following up on "Riceguys'" discovery that Psyllium hulls aided the rise and stabilized his somewhat unusual bread flour mix, I have experimented with 2 standard mixes, using Psyllium powder, with good results. Those mixes are Annalise Roberts' "mix A" and Pamelas' packaged bread mix.

We have a Zojirushi BB-CEC20 that allows the setting of 3 custom programs. The settings we are presently using are: Preheat-8 min; Kneading-20 min; 1st & 2nd rising-none; 3rd rising-45 min; Bake-45 min; Crust-med. We started with a Bake time of 55 min, but found that to be too long with the addition of Psyllium.

Prior to using Psyllium, both of these mixes tasted great, but always fell to some degree, and had too much moisture in the center.

After discussing "Riceguys'" recommended rate of Psyllium addition with my Life Partner, for our first experiment we decided to try adding 2 1/2 teaspoons of Psyllium powder to "mix A". The results were amazing! The bread rose smoothly and looked great. The texture was very good, but the center was a little too dry, and the sides and bottom of the bread were a bit too hard. We decided the Bake time might be too long, and the amount of Psyllium might be too much; so in our next experiment we reduced the Bake time to 45 min, and considerably reduced the Psyllium, as discussed below.

Pamelas' Amazing bread recipe, made with their "Amazing Bread Mix" has been our mainstay in the past, but, as previously mentioned it always collapsed to some degree and always had an overly moist center; so we decided we would try Psyllium to fix the problem. We followed the manufacturers' directions exactly except for adding one slightly rounded teaspoon of Psyllium powder. We also reserved one Tablespoon of water. At the start of this 2nd attempt, the Bake time was still set at 55 min, because I knew I could monitor the baking process and cut it off earlier if necessary.

Evidently the Psyllium reacts very rapidly, as the mix in the bread machine very quickly began to stack up on the paddles and had an appearance of being too dry. I have fairly well learned what consistency to look for in a proper dough consistency, so I spatulaed the dough and flour off the sides of the pan, and added two tablespoons of water, one at a time watching and waiting several minutes between each. The stacked up dough finally smoothed out and reduced to where it formed a slightly glossy, cup shaped mound over each paddle.

The machine then cycled through. I checked it periodically, and noticed it was rising a bit more than usual and had a very nice, even form.

Finally, I checked it ten minutes before the Bake cycle ended and noticed the top had nice color and the sides were pulling away from the pan. This is, to me, clear evidence of the bread being done, so I removed it and turned it onto a towel covered cooling rack. It looked beautiful, and smelled great. We let it cool for about 30 minutes, occasionally turning it to discourage any settling (there was very little), then sliced the end off and tried a slice. It was great. It was not overly moist in the center and was delicious.

Our next step will be to work with "Mix A". Our first step will be to simply reduce the Psyllium to one smoothly rounded teaspoon. We will start with a bake time of 55 minute, but we will start checking at forty minutes.

If you are having problems with your bread falling, please give Psyllium a try and post back the result.

NOTE: My information is Metamucil and other similar products have additives that may complicate or defeat the Psylliums' effectiveness, so you may want to keep that in mind.

Cbill

Suggest reading Riceguys' Forum Post "Uprisings - Reaching New Heights In Gluten-Free Baking"

[sa1937]

Very interesting! I've read the entire "Uprisings" thread and some time ago I bought psyllium husks from Barry Farms, as well as guar gum, ivory teff and sweet potato flours.

I wonder how adding psyllium would work with quick breads...I'll find out soon. I added a heaping tsp. of psyllium to a loaf of banana bread (recipe using Pamela's Baking & Pancake Mix), which is in the oven now. It'll be interesting to see if I get more rise from it.

Also, have you read the buckwheat bread thread (yeast bread) with the latest version of adding baking powder? It's a really good "from scratch" bread. I cut the recipe in half to make only one loaf.

I don't have a bread machine (bought a KitchenAid stand mixer instead) but don't know why these tips might not work baking bread the old fashioned way, too. I am forever searching for ways to get gluten free breads to rise more...

Nope...didn't work with my banana bread...but the banana bread is really yummy. Oh well, I'll try psyllium next time I make a yeast bread.

[Takala]

Here's the original "Uprisings Reaching New Heights in Gluten Free Baking" thread by riceguy

Riceguy was using a combo of guar gum and ground psyllium husk, and teff, sorghum, and sweet potato flours.

This page has the details on how he was baking a loaf, it was about a teaspoon each of guar and psyllium per cup of gluten free flour

page__st__15

He's getting a full rise before baking and using yeast and a glass dish. Also less water than some of these gluten-free batter breads.

[cbill]

sa1937:

As mentioned in my original comments, our first attempt with Psyllium was using Annalise Roberts' "basic sandwich bread" recipe. That is a standard method recipe, and not a bread machine recipe, therefore you may want to get a copy of it from her "Food Philosopher's Gluten Free" site. just do a web search using her name.

Takala's comments that follow yours on this forum page correctly identifies the amount of Psyllium husk and Guar gum used by "Riceguy" in his experiments; and while that might serve him well with his specific recipe, my experience indicates it may be disastrous if 2 1/2 to 3 teaspoons of standard Psyllium powder were used in a standard recipe using xanthan.

The point I am trying to make is Psyllium powder appears be an ingredient that can easily be added, in small amounts to almost any standard yeast bread recipe, and result in a better rising, more consistent and stable end product.

As I stated in my first entry, we will be making another loaf of Annalise's "Basic Sandwich Bread" this afternoon or tomorrow, with an adjustment to one slightly rounded teaspoon of Psyllium and a baking time of about 45 minutes. We will also closely monitor the kneading process to make sure the mix is the right consistency before going to the "Baking" stage. We will, of course, report the result, and we hope you will do the same.

Good Luck Cbill

[poptart87]

How much psyllium husk needs to be used per cup of flour? And does the liquid amount need to be adjusted? If someone has a recipe that uses psyllium husk would you please share it? Thanks!

[love2travel]

I just throw in some of it with my bread recipes, usually about 1 to 2 tsp or so per loaf of bread.  I do not adjust my liquids. 

 

Another thing that works is using a tsp or so of unflavoured gelatin.  Makes a nicer texture.

[auzzi]

About 1 tablspoon per cup of gluten-free flour blend ...

 

If you "do" weights, try this one ...

 

Open Original Shared Link

 

Two things to mention - psylluim powder not husks ... and no gums as psyllium husks/powder absorbs moisture to expand and become viscous and gelatinous ....