Parbaking

Parbaking (also known as part-baked in the UK ) is a cooking technique in which a bread or dough product is partially baked and then rapidly frozen for storage^[1] or assembled into a final product. It has been used to increase the mass manufacture and distribution of bread products, including bagels.^[2]

Origin

It was invented in 1949 by a former GI (goverment issue), Joseph A. Gregor, who owned a bakery business in Avon Park, Florida. Gregor originally intended to bake a US biscuit (similar to a scone in the UK; not to be confused with a biscuit or cookie). He attempted a number of different methods from reheating to freezing and moistening them later. Gregor said: "It was disgusting." One day when he was baking a new batch of rolls, the fire alarm had been activated. He left the property and turned off his gas oven. An hour later, when he returned he discovered that the low residual heat had thoroughly baked on the inside, requiring only a few minutes to fully bake. They were nicknamed: blondies^[3]

Baking

When parbaking is used to bake bread, it increases the shelf life of the loaf.^[4] The raw dough is baked normally, but halted at about 80% of the normal cooking time, when it is rapidly cooled and frozen. Partial cooking kills the yeast in the bread mixture, and sets the internal structure of the proteins and starches (the spongy texture of the bread) so that the inside is sterile and stable, but the loaf has not generated "crust" or other externally desirable qualities that are difficult to preserve once fully cooked. A parbaked loaf of bread is less likely to go stale than a fully baked loaf. It can be transported easily and stored in containers preventing moisture loss until needed. They can also be frozen. A parbaked loaf appears as a risen loaf of bread, with much of the firmness of a finished loaf, but without a browned or golden crust (in the case of a normally light colored bread). When the final product is desired, a parbaked loaf is completed by baking at a normal temperature, which produces a normal loaf of bread.^{[citation needed]}

Parbaking, also known as blind baking,^[5] is used for pastry crusts, as in pies^[6] and quiches to prevent sogginess.^[7] It is also used to manipulate the taste of pizza crusts through its effect on the yeast content of the dough.

Criticism

Parbaking has been criticized by Cornell University historian of bread Steven Kaplan for its impact on traditional bread baking practices.^[8] In 1995, a number of part-barked breads were tested by reviewers: Michael Bateman, Independent on Sunday food editor; Linda Collister, food writer, cook and author of The Bread Book; Eric Feuilleaubois, research scientist; Steve Job, health service developments manager at the Indepedent who found: "... if you don't have the time or inclination to make your own bread, you would do better to buy a fresh loaf and heat it up in the oven for a couple of minutes before eating."^[9]

See also

• Food portal

• Parboiling
• Parcooking