Butter leakage during proofing

[Sussan Estela Olaya]

Hi Grethe.

If the butter melts and starts to leak during proofing, it’s most likely because the dough is a bit too warm or the proofing environment is too hot at that stage of the process.

Here are a few things you can consider:

▪️It’s important that the dough is very cold before going into the proofer. If it’s too soft or at room temperature, the butter will start to seep out.

▪️While 28 °C with 85% humidity is the standard recommendation, if the dough is very thin or not well laminated, that heat can cause the butter to melt. If you’re working in a particularly warm environment, you might try lowering the temperature slightly (to around 26 °C) and see if that helps.

▪️If the butter wasn’t properly enclosed or leaked out slightly during lamination, it’s more likely to melt later on. This can also happen if the folds weren’t even.

▪️If the croissants are proofed for too long, the structure weakens and the butter escapes.

Croissant dough and shaping is a technique that takes practice to master. Don’t worry,these kinds of issues are part of the learning process, and with time and experience, they’ll get easier to solve!.

[gtalke014]

Thank you very much. I did place the croissants in a cold oven with a large pan filled with boiled water. It was quite hot when I finally opened the oven. I will make sure to reduce the temperature for my next batch as this was probably what caused the leakage. 😀 Thanks for the help!

[Sussan Estela Olaya]

Hi Grethe.

I believe that’s what caused your croissants to lose some butter or for it to melt too much.

Although you can recreate a proofing environment at home for breads using your oven, it’s important to follow the temperatures and, in this case, the humidity percentage that the chef specifies, since following these standards is essential to achieve good results.

In the course, Chef Bachour recommends fermenting for 2 to 2.5 hours at 28°C with 85% humidity.

If you want to do this process at home, I suggest using a thermo-hygrometer https://www.amazon.com/JEDEW-Hygrometer-Thermometer-Temperature-Humidifiers/dp/B0DDKSSMTK/ref=mp_s_a_1_15 which helps you measure the temperature and humidity inside an environment, in this case, your oven.

I hope this information is helpful. Keep practicing and keep trying to make croissants.

Best regards.

[Sol Damiani]

Hey there Grethe!👋

Welcome to the Scoolinary Community! 😊Join our awesome group of food lovers and share your love of cooking. Everyone’s invited!

I’m Sol Damiani, the Community Builder and I’m from Buenos Aires.

I hope Sussan’s answer helped you. Please let us know if it did.

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[Janice Wong]

Hi there, first timer here and failed at proofing. My proofer was too warm and they leaks butter. I out them back in the fridge for now. What should I do if this happens again? Thanks!

[Sussan Estela Olaya]

Hi Janice,
Welcome to the Scoolinary community!
I’m so glad you’re here and that you’ve taken on the challenge of making croissants it’s a beautiful and truly rewarding process!

What you described is completely normal, especially when you’re starting out. If your proofer was too hot and the butter began to melt, putting the croissants in the fridge was exactly the right thing to do to prevent further leakage. Well done!

Here are some tips for next time, or to help prevent this from happening again:

Control the temperature and humidity:
Chef Antonio Bachour recommends proofing the croissants at 28°C (82°F) with 85% humidity for 2 to 2.5 hours. If your proofer gets hotter than this, the butter will start to melt and seep out of the dough.

Make sure the dough is cold before proofing:
After shaping, ensure the croissants are cold and firm before placing them in the proofer. If the dough is too soft, the butter will escape more easily.

What to do if it happens again:
If you see the butter starting to leak:

• Stop the proofing process immediately.

• Place the croissants in the fridge (just like you did!) for at least 30 minutes to firm them up again.

• Then, you can resume proofing at a slightly lower temperature (around 26°C / 79°F) to maintain better control.

How to measure temperature and humidity at home:
You can use a simple thermohygrometer to help monitor the conditions inside your oven or proofing space.

Keep going and don’t get discouraged! Croissants take practice, patience, and a whole lot of love. If you have more questions, I’m here to help

Warm regards,
Sussan
Scoolinary Team

[Janice Wong]

Hi Sussan, thank you so much for your reply and reassurance! I put them in fridge for an hour then I brought them back out to the counter to continue to proof at around 76F for another 2 hours or so. I think I saved them and they came out not bad for a first timer and despite lost some butter:) I’ll try the recipe on Scoolinary next time to see if I can achieve a more fluffy honeycrumb. Thanks!!

[Sussan Estela Olaya]

Hi Janice,

Thank you for sharing your progress and all that positive energy!
And… wow! Your croissants turned out amazing especially for your first time. The lamination is beautifully defined, the golden color is gorgeous, and the interior has a great structure. The honeycomb is already there, and it’s only going to get better with each bake. Congratulations!

You also handled the temperature issue really well. Chilling the croissants and then continuing the proof at room temperature was a great call. That kind of practical intuition is gold in pastry making.

And just a reminder: every bake teaches you something new, and progress comes quickly when you’re open to practicing and adjusting.
If you feel like it, we’d love for you to share your results and photos with the community on our feed it would be so inspiring for other Scoolinars to see your amazing work.

You can do it here: https://www.scoolinary.com/activity-feed/

If you have any questions for your next batch, I’m here and happy to help!

Big hug,
Sussan Scoolinary Team.

[Janice Wong]

Hi Sussan,

Thank you so much for your compliment and courage!! I guess I have been baking at home a few years gave me some instinct to react to the accident LOL.

Thank you for inviting me to the community. I just posted there, hopefully it was posted correctly and you and the community are able to see.

I’ll keep trying and when I get a hang of the plain croissant, I’ll hit on other danish pastries!

Thank you again😘

[Sussan Estela Olaya]

HI Janice

I’m so happy to hear from you! That instinct you showed in the face of the unexpected was brilliant (and very baker-like, haha).

Thank you for sharing your post in the community! I saw it and it looks great I’m sure it will inspire many others who are just starting out or practicing too.

And absolutely, once you feel confident with classic croissants, diving into Danish pastries will be a whole new and delicious adventure. I’m sure you’ll do amazing!

I’m here for anything you might need on your next bakes.

Warm regards,
Sussan Scoolinary Team