Q: I've recently started dabbling in bread making and froze some leftover loaves of white bread. When I cut a slice from a thawed loaf this morning, I couldn't get a decent slice. It crumbled apart! Any idea what I did wrong?
When I baked the loaves originally, I opened a new jar of yeast and warmed my flour like my grandma recommended, and my bread doubled like crazy. I baked the loafs and they formed beautiful mushroom tops. My other loafs didn't rise as much (older yeast maybe? cold flour?) and were more dense, and much easier to slice.
Sent by Leslie
Editor: Hmm...that's puzzling. Usually bread freezes (and thaws!) really beautifully. If your other loaves were fine, I'm not sure why freezing this one would change its texture.
Usually, bread crumbles in the middle either because the gluten wasn't developed enough (ie, the dough needed more kneading), or because the shaped loaves underproofed and the quick poofing rise in the oven weakens the gluten strands in the middle of the loaf. Take a look at these bread making links:
• Help! Why Does My Bread Fall Apart in the Middle?
• Bread Baking Tips: How to Tell When Dough is Kneaded
• Bread Baking Clinic: Under-Kneading and Over-Kneading
Readers, do you have any insight into Leslie's problem?
Related: Recipe: Basic White Sandwich Bread
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Was the bread cool when you froze it? I've found I have the best success freezing bread when I cook it, let it cool, slice and then freeze it.
First thing I'd recommend: always slice your bread BEFORE you freeze it. Eliminates this problem.
Take more time, more time when kneading and more time when proofing. And yes, slice before freezing as BabyGrace said above.
Slicing the bread before freezing will solve this problem.
Freezing will definitely damage gluten, I always freeze cake layers before slicing and icing for exactly that reason. It makes for a moist cake with less bite and a better mouth feel. If you do freeze a loaf without slicing you can use a thin serrated knife to cut slices from a frozen loaf and just defrost as necessary. More development (kneading, mixing or a longer rise) is almost never a bad idea when making loaf bread. Take a look at my whole wheat loaf bread page to compare your technique if you like.