Kneading and Gluten Formation in Dough

Abstract (EN)

Gluten in wheat-based bread can both benefit and harm consumers and thus is an important factor in consumers’ food choices. The effect of kneading time on the gluten content of bread was studied. Relative gluten content was determined by measuring the force needed to puncture both the kneaded dough and the baked bread. It was found that the force needed to puncture both the dough and the bread increased with increasing kneading time up to 12 minutes. Kneading for longer than 12 minutes resulted in a decrease in the measured force. The gluten content of the dough was also measured directly and found to follow a trend similar to the force.