Becomes a professional of the food transformation
1. In the bowl of a food processor, place flour and salt; Impulse until not combined. Add the butter and pulsates until the mixture is crumbly and the butter is of peas, from 12 to 15 impulses. What does it mean to be “dimensional of peas”? Look for the largest pieces of butter: those should be close to the size of a common pea. The rest of the butter flow mixture will appear Melena, such as raw corn flour or grated Parmesan. Be alert, as you can elaborate the mixture and start creating it if you are not looking. Once the mixture is overloaded, you will not be able to recover those ideal lumps of butter. These are the pieces of butter that in the end create the shaky and buttery crust that we all know and love.
2. In a small bowl, add cold water and vinegar ½ cup (120 grams). With the execution processor, add the vinegar mixture to the flour mixture in a slow and constant flow until the dough joins.
3. The mixture will seem crumbly, but should remain united when it is crushed between the fingers. This crumbly dough may appear a little messy, but this level of hydration is ideal for limiting the formation of gluten. The flour, depending on how it has been processed and where it is stored, will absorb the liquids at different speeds. We check the hydration factor by adding the vinegar mixture until the dough starts detaching from the sides of the bowl of the kitchen robot. Once this happens, you can discard any additional liquid that you have not used, you won’t need it.
4. Perform the dough. Divide in half and model every half on a disc. Strictly wrap in a plastic casing and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. The dough can be refrigerated for a maximum of 3 days or frozen for a maximum of 2 months. Over time, the dough can develop a slight gray shade due to oxidation. The addition of vinegar in the dough helps to slow down this process, keeping the dough closest to the original color during storage.
Under the microscope
When we talk about proteins in flour, the conversation often leads to gluten, but through an enlarged lens, there are actually two proteins that are added to history. In short, these are called glutenin and Gliadina. While these two proteins meet liquid, they join together, forming the protein complex that gives lengthening to the dough and creates shaky pastry. This complex is called gluten. Now, the more he is managed, the stronger the gluten network becomes and the molecules align themselves to create elasticity. With bread, working the dough, it develops widely this network of gluten, which captures gases, creates an increase and lends the airy crumb and undeniable a rubbery consistency. For pastry, however, we need sufficient gluten to keep the delicate pasta together, but not so much that we get a rubbery and hard mixture. Therefore, choosing the flour with an intermediate protein content and limiting how much the dough is working is a simple method that leads to tender and shaky sweets.
