Baking & Snack - November 2018 - 71

EQUIPMENT
Bread, Bun, Roll Tech

THAT'S SOMETHING

SPECIAL

Attention to detail automates the production of premium or even artisan-style bread, buns and rolls.
by Dan Malovany

As delis and restaurants up their game, specialty breads
and rolls are soaring in popularity. Take brioche, which
is commonly found in nearly every quick-service restaurant (QSR). The word is out: Charging a higher price for
a sandwich requires upscale touch.
However, most brioche buns and rolls only resemble
the French version. Specifically, the American-style alternatives are designed to carry big, juicy burgers. "If
you are making an authentic French brioche, it is very
rich in butter and eggs which make it much more difficult to mass produce," noted Craig Kominiak, sales consultant, Erika Record Baking Equipment.
"While still possible to mass produce, traditional brioche requires significant planning. In addition, you are
limited to the various machines you can use. We have
found a traditional divider/rounder with a modified process works best for this method," he added. "Likewise,
there has also been a rise in brioche-style buns. While
the dough is still enriched with eggs and butter, the recipe is modified to ensure the dough maintains a similar
consistency to typical bread dough. This makes it much
easier to mass-produce and broadens your scope of
available equipment options."
Specialty products' inherent nature require a totally different approach than conventional ones, said
Jay Fernandez, Bakery Innovation Center manager,
Middleby Bakery Group. He suggested making brioche

with gentler extrusion dividers and polymer screws than
those used for hamburger buns. "The temperature of
dough and mixing is critical, especially when using butter since it is added at a later stage and can impact hydration," he explained. "For an artisan look, many bakers
are using premium egg wash substitutes or similar glazes
using automatic sprayers like the Burford spray applicator. Also important is gentle handling of pans prior to
baking to ensure a premium finished product."
Specialty products offer other challenges. "Hamburger
buns - or any conventional breads - are processed
with high force through degassing dividers and generally a very short process time from mix through proof
and bake," observed Nick Magistrelli, vice-president of
sales, Rademaker USA. "A premium bread will be from a
highly hydrated dough with a long pre-fermentation or
rest period prior to initial processing,"
Even intermediate proofing is totally different with
specialty items. "Premium products need longer intermediate proofing times than high-speed bread or buns,
which get 2 to 4 minutes compared with 8 to 13 minutes for premium or specialty products," said Damian
Morabito, president, Topos Mondial. "You also need
to check the intermediate proofer and ask, 'Is it easy to
clean and maintain, and is it reliable?' "
In fact, many straight doughs on high-speed lines
don't even need an intermediate proof. The process be-

Today's dividers and
rounders carefully
produce everything from
hamburger buns to
brioche doughs and even
breads and rolls with
chunky ingredients.
Koenig

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Baking & Snack - November 2018

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