Why is white bread so

[fallen-archie]

Grey and dense? Is there anyone out there who can recommend a decent white loaf? And while I am at it does anyone have or know of a decent bacon supplier? I would like to make a bacon sandwich as I remember it, one which I would be reluctant to feed to my dog and above all one featuring crispy rind on bacon and fluffy white bread that will last for 24 hours?

[1956glyn]

Hi Archie

This is my pet hate....going to a supermarket and most of the loaves are rock hard even though they are well in date.

We only buy Warburtons white bread as this does appear to be the freshest and longest lasting.

As for bacon.....avoid the supermarkets and find a good old fashioned butchers if you can.

We live West Midlands and it is renoun for great bacon and susages etc.   Everytime i visited my parents down South i used to take them a few pounds in weight  of each.  Mum said that their bacon was so full of water and always shrunk to nothing.

[lightblueberet]

"...Grey and dense?..."

Sign of the times, I'm afraid ! Chemicals and all that etc etc !

Mind you, after 24hrs, and if, repeat if, tennis is your game, you can mould the rubbery loaf into tennis balls and have a great game on court !  

[fallen-archie]

Hi glyn thanks for that I too used to like warburtons bread until one day I visited a local cold store and found there were pallets of the stuff racked up on the freezer for a busy period! Our old co-op, also in the midlands made wonderful bread but it has long since gone! I believe that one of the problems with bacon lies with the curing process and so few butchers actually do it anymore.

[margaret*e]

I only buy Waburtons, and only when it's very fresh, not days old as itoften  is in our local shops.

Have you tried making your own?.

[jd.linklater]

Hovis best of both is not grey, a very soft white bread and it seems to keep better than most. I usually freeze half a loaf and it's just as fresh and soft after defrosting.

As for bacon the problem with most of the stuff you buy these days is it's pumped with water to add weight and it's far too lean, all the flavour and crispiness comes from the fat. 

[fallen-archie]

Yes Marge I have tried making my own with good results for seeded loaves but less so for white! It is possible that I didn’t use the best flour however I have never really made a good white loaf either by hand or with a bread maker!

[Anonymous]

I often get a white bloomer from Aldi. Thick cut. Lovely toasted.

I've gone off Warburtons. It is often like eating cotton wool.

But we also often buy uncut bread at Tesco. We just get different ones for variety. I like it uncut, so I can make nice "door stoppers" , and the bread stays fresh longer.

I'm not a big bacon eater. I prefer streaky, crispy fried if I have it. We just get ours from Aldi. It seems OK as far as I know. No one in the house has complained yet.

I got my hubby a bread making book by Paul Hollywood. He made some, but hasn't practiced enough yet to get a perfect loaf, but his third attempt was edible.

[1956glyn]

Ouch you said that word Aldi 😞

last time i was in there i had an accident (their fault) and it took me 18 months to recover after being hit from behind by a overloaded pallet and being thrown into the bottled water display.

[Anonymous]

Sorry.

[1956glyn]

Awwww no probs 🙂

[**bustysinclaire**]

Most shops and supermarkets make and sell pretty much the same recipes in my opinion, so I really don't think the problem will be solved just going from one to the other.

If you really want a good loaf that you can rely on to be exactly what you want it to be then you need to sourse a really good strong white flour and use live yeast. 

Experiment with recipes and make it yourself.  When you have found one that ticks all the boxes stay with it.

You'll need to go to somewhere like health food shops or somewhere that specialises in home baking.

You really can't beat home made, but then of course you don't get the added preservatives in it. I really don't like the bread machines because there is always a risk of them not being kept as clean as they should be. That isn't saying the user doesn't clean their equipment, it is because more down tow to poor design.

[astrologica]

I have recently bought a Tower bread maker and it makes some lovely bread. I buy the ready made packs of bread mix from Asda. My favourite is Wrights Oat and Linseed bread mix. ..it has a nice taste. And you can cut the loaf in half and freeze half if a whole loaf is too much. The bread maker is very easy to keep clean. I went right off supermarket white sliced bread as sometimes you could open the bag and you could smell the chemicals used as preservatives. My sister buys white uncut crusty loaves from the Co-op..she says they are the best and won't buy any other.

[upthecreekyetagain]

I bake most days but use a dough hook to do the kneading.  The problem with home made bread I find is that it tends to go stale far quicker than that bought from supermarkets - that’s a good excuse to eat it whilst still warm with lashings of butter 🙂

We built a pizza oven this summer - it creates a perfect crust - takes a bit of planning though as the wood has to burn out and then the oven has to cool down somewhat!

[margaret*e]

My husband makes his own gluten free bread buns, and as you say they soon go stale, but they're ok to freeze If they're not going to be eaten straight away.

[1956glyn]

With a glass of Jack Daniels?  🙂

sounds good to me

[**bustysinclaire**]

I'm sitting here salivating lol, those buns look delicious creeky.

I'm doing slimming world at the moment so bread is out of my diet.

[margaret*e]

I understood nothing was banned at SW and the others?.

[**bustysinclaire**]

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@margaret*ewrote:

I understood nothing was banned at SW and the others?.

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Hi margeret, no it isn't band as such.  You are allowed an allowance of the equivalent of 2 400g slices of wholemeal bread a day as what is called your healthy B, I choose to have porridge oats instead. so no bead unless I syn it. My body doesn't take bread very well anyway, but it doesn't mean I don't like it. I love bread, especially nice warm crusty freshly baked homemade bread and butter.

[margaret*e]

Do you find going to SW helps to make it easier to lose weight?.