Baking is a task that can be easy and enjoyable for some, but challenging for others. Making bread and pastries from scratch takes a lot of work and meticulous measuring and timing. You want your goodies to come out of the oven tasting just like the delicious treats you can buy from a pastry shop, but that isn’t always the result when you bake at home and have little experience.
But if your dream is to become the person responsible for whipping up those delectable desserts displayed behind a glass counter, then you have a lot of things to learn. While earning an ICCA Certificate in Patisserie can teach you most of these things, some well-guarded secrets can be accessed only by those with extensive experience in the pastry industry.
Lucky for you, some of them have been revealed and are gathered in one place. Here are eight valuable secrets you’ll learn on your journey to becoming a professional pastry chef:
1. Prepare a Game Plan
Whether you’re making a few mug cakes for your family’s snacks or baking the desserts for your sister’s wedding, there’s one thing you need to get through the task: a game plan.
This plan of action will help you get through the task without forgetting anything. After all, baking is a science that requires specific processes to work.
If you’re not sure how to make a game plan, start by reading the entire recipe first and then mapping out what you need to do in your mind. Determine where you need to work and for how long, before moving on to another step of the task.
If you can’t picture what you must do without a visual aid, it won’t hurt to write down key points of the task. Mobile memo pad apps and reminders could also help with this.
2. Learn the Proper Ratio of Baking Powder
Baking powder is a powerful ingredient in baking. Even the name shows how important it is to the task.
As a professional specializing in baked goods, you must learn the correct ratio of baking powder, even when following a recipe. Too much or too little might prevent your product from rising well.
Remember the best baking powder ratio: 4 teaspoons of baking powder for every 200 grams of flour.
3. Get Yourself a Soaker Bottle
Round and large sheet cakes are often showered with booze or simple syrup to ensure that they stay moist. To do this, many bakeshops use a special squirting bottle with shower-like lids or multiple nozzles for drizzling liquid.
This nifty tool called a soaker bottle can help you create mouthwatering and evenly moist cakes that don’t dry out even after they are cut.
While you can easily buy one, you also have the option to make it on your own from recycled materials, like plastic bottles and metal skewers. See the instructions on how to make one below:
- While holding the bottle cap by the edges using pliers, move it in a circular motion over a source of heat until the plastic becomes soft enough to manipulate. Make sure the heat distribution is even.
- Once it is soft enough, press pointed skewers into the bottom center of the bottle cap. Don’t overstretch the plastic or leave it too thin, so you must make sure that the skewers don’t break through the cap.
- After skewing the lid, leave the plastic cap and let it solidify without removing skewers to avoid deformation. Once it’s hard enough, dip the cap in lukewarm water for several seconds to remove them easily.
- Finally, cut off the pointed tips. You can poke through the holes using the skewer to clear any debris that may have stuck in them before screwing the cap back onto the bottle.
4. Prevent Fruit from Sinking
Fruits are common ingredients found in many pastry products. However, it can be tricky to incorporate them in what you’re baking while preventing them from sinking too deep into the batter.
If you want to make sure that they don’t sink, consider these tips:
- If using fresh fruit, add the ingredient on top of the batter right before putting it in the oven.
- If you’re using frozen fruit, work them into the batter while they are still frozen.
5. Metal Molds Are Better than Silicone
Many rookie bakers use silicone molds for their pastries and other baked goods. But while they may be more convenient and practical to use, silicone molds tend to need a longer time to bake.
Since metal conducts heat better, professional bakers and pastry chefs use metal molds for their products. If the mold you’re using doesn’t have a nonstick coating, don’t forget to cover it with buttered wax paper to prevent your bread and pastries from sticking.
6. Bake Low and Slow
A good way to make sure that your cake is baked perfectly and evenly is to keep the oven at middle-to-low temperature during the entire time it’s being cooked. The key is to bake the cake longer to ensure that it is cooked well both inside and out.
7. Apply Glaze for More Appetizing Results
Glazing is a popular method of making food more appetizing, but it is particularly popular in pastries. This is what makes glistening fruit tarts irresistible.
When glazing, some chefs use thinned apricot jelly. To make this mixture, heat the jelly with water (half a teaspoon of water for half a cup of jam) in a double boiler until you get a drippy consistency.
Using a pastry brush, coat the fruits on your tart in a light layer of this mixture. Avoid adding too much as it can make the entire thing look lumpy.
Glazing not only elevates your fresh fruit desserts and levels up their appetizing looks but also keeps the fruit fresh for a bit longer.
8. A Bench Scraper Is Your Best Friend
Professional pastry chefs tend to use bench scrapers more than anything else in the kitchen simply because these make their jobs easier. From cleaning the work surface to decorating cakes and making perfect chocolate furls, bench scrapers are excellent multipurpose tools every baker must-have.
Make Your Life Easier
Baking may be challenging, but it’s a worthwhile endeavor. Whether you are self-taught or someone who has trained in the best culinary school in Dubai, knowing as many industry secrets as possible for working in a patisserie can make your life as a pastry chef easier.
AUTHOR BIO
Shanaaz Raja is the Course Director at International Centre for Culinary Arts – ICCA Dubai.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
LinkedIn
RSS