How to Make Dense Bread in a Bread Machine

[kad613]

My mother-in-law bakes her own bread by hand and the bread tastes wonderful. It has a dense texture and taste great, especially right out of the oven with butter on it! I find it time consuming and really tiring doing it by hand so I bought a bread machine. I have to say that I've tried different recipes and I have yet to get a nice dense bread out of it. Most of the bread is really light and fluffy. Is there a way or something I can add to make the bread heavier or more dense?

 

[christa]

I have never baked a bread myself but my mom used to bake her own bread and i loved it!!

 

[Happyflowerlady]

If you make a whole wheat bread, it will probably come out heavier than the lighter white or French bread loaves.
Also, when you put in an egg, or add extra ingredients ( I like to add shredded carrots for color and vitamins), I think that makes the bread heavier.
Some of the recipes should say that they make a heavy, rich bread, and some will say it is light and fluffy.
You might ask your MIL what she usually adds to her bread to make it have more body.

 

[Susie R.]

If you take a recipe and do it both by hand and by bread machine, you will pretty much always get an airier bread from the machine. Stick to denser recpies and while they will still come out lighter than by hand, they may give you the texture you want.

 

[Golem]

My mother-in-law bakes her own bread by hand and the bread tastes wonderful. It has a dense texture and taste great, especially right out of the oven with butter on it! I find it time consuming and really tiring doing it by hand so I bought a bread machine. I have to say that I've tried different recipes and I have yet to get a nice dense bread out of it. Most of the bread is really light and fluffy. Is there a way or something I can add to make the bread heavier or more dense?

There are two things to consider. The first is whether you are using recipes with the appropriate amount of water for your altitude. It makes a big difference in bread. The second is the recipe and if it is specifically for bread machines.

If the answers to the questions are "yes", then try adding gluten. The amount will depend on the size of the loaf.