Unlike with wheat dough, no gluten network needs to be built up; the gluten-free dough only needs to be mixed homogeneously. During this time, the hydrocolloids absorb the added water and swell. Furthermore, water accumulates on the surface of the starch.
The mixing times and mixing intensity have to be adapted to these conditions. In most cases, gluten-free doughs do not need to be mixed as long and intensively as wheat doughs. A short mixing phase at high speed is often sufficient. Mixing for too long at high speed introduces more air into the dough. This can lead to the formation of larger holes in the crumb during the baking process.
To ensure that the hydrocolloids can absorb and swell the added water well, the dough temperature should not be too cool and should be at least 25° C.
Some hydrocolloids benefit from higher dough temperatures. When using mixes, the amount of water, dough temperature and mixing time specified in the processing recommendations should be adhered to in order to avoid baking faults.
