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Dense croissant problem
Hi,
I have done the recipe multiple times but still have one main issue which is dense inside. I have taken quite a few pictures you can see below of 4 batches and I’ll describe what I did everytime.
A few important details:
– I do not have a stand mixer so everytime I knead the dough by hand and in order to stay < 25C I put it back and forth in the freezer and knead in a frozen metal bowl as well. This ends up taking A LOT of time and it’s really hard since the dough is cold hand kneading it is really difficult. I just got a stand mixer for batch #5 to see if that’s the main problem.– I have a home made proofing box with temperature and humidity probes.
– Most of them were frozen after shaping and then proofed then baked.
– I typically do half of Bachour recipe so 675g dough and 250g butter
– I use mostly T45 flour and Plugra butter
1. (Images 1, 2) First try, everything seems quite fine. Proofing went a little wrong as the humidity went up to more than 90% and I didnt realize. When I took them out of the proofer and touch them they’re really wet and sticky. The outer most layer would basically stick to my finger and start peeling off . So I expected that humidity was the main problem. I also misunderstood how to thaw the shaped croissants after freezing. I used to do it in the fridge so I get that made them wet.
2.(Images 3,4,5,6) This time I changed recipe to Joshua Weissman just to see if that would help (especially since it’s without stand mixer). This time I mistook parchment paper and wax paper so the dough really dried overnight and cracked so I added some water to rehydrate before layering which went ok even though butter was too cold and didnt spread well. In the end they look better but still basically a brioche not a croissant inside. That recipe also kneads dough very little so maybe that doesnt help it rise.
3.(Images 7,8,9) Back to Bachour recipe and no freezing this time to check that. Unfortunately I messed up the layering and butter stuck to the table so I had to add a lot of flour to keep doing folds. On top of that I think I kneaded the dough more than before and rolling it was quite tough. And that’s why my final shaped croissants I think are really thick, because the final dough thickness was too much as I can’t roll it more. And that created that very weird detached layer we see I guess? The exterior’s really nice but once again inside is brioche. Also I had some butter leaking out during proofing so I should stop being too close to 28C and lower it.
4.(Image 10) This time I tried Kerrigold butter instead of Plugra and that was really hard since it becomes very soft. Main problem in this one is that the croissant dough is really dough to roll out.
Expected issues:
– Proofing: Looking at the size and remembering how “wobbly” they were I think most need more proofing time.– Dough: If I knead the dough until I have a window pane it’s really hard to roll the next day with the butter. So I’ll try to see what’s up with a stand mixer.
– Layering: Maybe I’m just messing up the layers and they merge somehow which is why I don’t have any?
Is there anything you see that I’m doing wrong? Please let me know!
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1 Reply
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Scoolinary Team
Hi Louis.
Thank you for sharing in such detail what’s been happening with your croissants.I can see you’re putting a lot of effort and care into perfecting them, and that’s already a big step forward. After reading your notes and looking at the photos, there are a few things that might be contributing to the dense texture and brioche-like crumb.
1. Kneading:Kneading a dough with that much butter by hand is definitely a challenge,especially when you’re trying to keep it cold. It’s very possible that the gluten isn’t developing properly, or on the other hand, that it’s being overworked just to get structure, which then makes the dough hard to roll out. Using your stand mixer will definitely help you get a more elastic and even dough without overheating or overworking it, since the machine’s power can develop gluten faster and more efficiently than by hand.
2. Rolling and dough thickness:You mentioned the final dough feels thick and hard to roll out. That can prevent the layers from forming properly, since folds won’t develop well if the dough isn’t rolled thin and evenly. Also, adding too much flour during the folding process (like when the butter stuck to your work surface) can change the texture of the final product.Make sure to also check the flour’s PL value,it should be in the range the chef recommends, between 0.4 and 0.7. The PL helps determine how elastic and workable the dough will be.
3. Butter:Plugra is a good option for laminating (I believe it has about 80% fat), but if it’s not at the same texture as the dough (neither too soft nor too hard), it can break or not integrate well. Kerrygold, as you mentioned, softens quickly and can be tricky to work with.You might try conditioning the butter a bit beforehand,give it a few taps between parchment to make it more flexible but still cold, and see if it performs better.
Remember that the chef recommends using butter with at least 82% fat content for proper lamination.
4. Proofing:You made a good observation about proofing. If the croissants feel wobbly but don’t look airy inside, they probably need more time. And as you also noticed, once the temperature rises above 27–28 °C, the butter starts to melt and leak out, which affects the final texture a lot. The chef recommends proofing at 28 °C with 85% humidity for 2 to 2.5 hours.
5. Freezing and thawing:Freezing fully formed croissants is totally fine, but it’s important to thaw them slowly in the fridge first, and then give them enough time at room temperature (or in your proofing chamber) to rise fully before baking. If they go into the oven underproofed, the interior will remain dense.
6. Layers:It looks like in some of your attempts, the layers may have gotten lost a bit possibly due to too much pressure while rolling, or because of issues with butter temperature. Once you start using the stand mixer and get a smoother, more pliable dough, it’ll be easier to laminate without forcing the dough or needing too much flour.
In short, you’re definitely on the right track, and you’ve already identified many key issues yourself, which is great.
I think you’ll notice a big improvement once you start using the mixer. And if you keep refining your proofing times and watching your temperatures, you’ll get that airy, laminated crumb you’re aiming for.
Sorry for the long explanation,I just didn’t want to leave out anything that might help!
Thanks again for sharing your process, and feel free to reach out if you have any more questions. I’ll be happy to help.
All the best!
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