That ice water test for pastry dough felt silly but it actually works

I always just winged it when checking dough hydration by feel. My old pastry chef put a tiny piece of dough in a bowl of ice water and had me watch how it spread in 30 seconds. I can dial in my butter distribution way better now. Anybody else have a weird test that nobody teaches in culinary school?

2 comments

2 Comments

diana_black2213d ago

...and the thing is, that test actually taught me more about my dough temperature than any thermometer ever did. Once you see how fast it melts in cold water you really get why keeping everything chilled matters.

luna_kim4013d ago

Wonder if @diana_black22 ever tried that with butter too...