The Kneading Mistake You’re Making That Prevents Bread From Rising

Wheat flour contains two separate proteins — glutenin and gliadin — that, when mixed with water, combine to form the weblike network of molecules that we call gluten.

Kneading facilitates the bonding of these proteins and warms up the gluten strands, enhancing their elasticity, which determines the dough’s ability to stretch during rising.

The gas let off by the yeast needs a strong web of gluten strands to contain it, otherwise, your bread will end up dense, with hardly any air bubbles in it.

Since gluten is practically the skeleton of bread, under-kneading will prevent the essential gluten network from developing, resulting in a flat loaf.

Conversely, over-kneading can toughen the gluten strands to the extent that the gas released by the yeast won’t be able to sufficiently expand them, yielding a flat and tough loaf.

Generally speaking, properly kneaded bread dough should be smooth and barely sticky to the touch. If you poke it, the dough should spring back into place.

You can also perform the windowpane test, trying to stretch the dough until it is thin enough to see light shining through (like a windowpane), at which point you know it’s ready.