Baker Percentage
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Baker's percentage is a notation method indicating the proportion of an ingredient relative to the flour used in a recipe when making breads, cakes, muffins, and other baked goods. It is also referred to as baker's math, and may be indicated by a phrase such as based on flour weight. It is sometimes called ''formula percentage'', a phrase that refers to the sum of a set of baker's percentages. Baker's percentage expresses a ratio in percentages of each ingredient's weight to the total flour weight: :\text_\text = 100\% \times \frac For example, in a recipe that calls for 10 pounds of flour and 5 pounds of water, the corresponding baker's percentages are 100% for the flour and 50% for the water. Because these percentages are stated with respect to the weight of flour rather than with respect to the weight of all ingredients, the sum of these percentages always exceeds 100%. Flour-based recipes are more precisely conceived as baker's percentages, and more accurately measured using weight instead of
volume Volume is a measure of occupied three-dimensional space. It is often quantified numerically using SI derived units (such as the cubic metre and litre) or by various imperial or US customary units (such as the gallon, quart, cubic inch). Th ...
. The uncertainty in using volume measurements follows from the fact that flour settles in storage and therefore does not have a constant density.


Baker's percentages

A yeast-dough formula could call for the following list of ingredients, presented as a series of baker's percentages: :


Conversions

There are several common conversions that are used with baker's percentages. Converting baker's percentages to ingredient weights is one. Converting known ingredient weights to baker percentages is another. Conversion to true percentages, or based on total weight, is helpful to calculate unknown ingredient weights from a desired total or formula weight.


Using baker's percentages

To derive the ingredient
weight In science and engineering, the weight of an object is the force acting on the object due to gravity. Some standard textbooks define weight as a vector quantity, the gravitational force acting on the object. Others define weight as a scalar qua ...
s when any weight of flour ''W''''f'' is chosen:Derived algebraically from Gisslen's formula. :\begin \text_\text &= \frac \\ &= \text_\text \times \text_\text \end : In the example below, 2 lb and 10 kg of flour weights have been calculated. Depending on the desired weight unit, only one of the following four weight columns is used: :


Creating baker's percentages

The baker has determined how much a recipe's ingredients weigh, and uses uniform
decimal The decimal numeral system (also called the base-ten positional numeral system and denary or decanary) is the standard system for denoting integer and non-integer numbers. It is the extension to non-integer numbers of the Hindu–Arabic numeral ...
weight units. All ingredient weights are divided by the flour weight to obtain a ratio, then the ratio is multiplied by 100% to yield the baker's percentage for that ingredient: : Due to the canceling of uniform weight units, the baker may employ any desired system of measurement (
metric Metric or metrical may refer to: * Metric system, an internationally adopted decimal system of measurement * An adjective indicating relation to measurement in general, or a noun describing a specific type of measurement Mathematics In mathem ...
or avoirdupois, etc.) when using a baker's percentage to determine an ingredient's weight. Generally, the baker finds it easiest to use the system of measurement that is present on the available tools.


Formula percentage and total mass

: The total or sum of the baker's percentages is called the formula percentage. The sum of the ingredient masses is called the formula mass (or formula "weight"). Here are some interesting calculations: * The flour's mass times the formula percentage equals the formula mass: :\begin \text &= \text_\text \times \text \\ \frac &= \text_\text \end * An ingredient's mass is obtained by multiplying the formula mass by that ingredient's true percentage; because an ingredient's true percentage is that ingredient's baker's percentage divided by the formula percentage expressed as parts per hundred, an ingredient's mass can also be obtained by multiplying the formula mass by the ingredient's baker's percentage and then dividing the result by the formula percentage: ::\begin \text_\text &= \text \times \text_\text \\ \text_\text &= \frac \times 100\% \\ \text_\text &= \text \times \frac \\ &= \frac \end :Thus, it is not necessary to calculate each ingredient's true percentage in order to calculate each ingredient's mass, provided the formula mass and the baker's percentages are known. * Ingredients' masses can also be obtained by first calculating the mass of the flour then using baker's percentages to calculate remaining ingredient masses: ::\begin \text_\text &= \frac \times \text_\text \\ &= \text_\text \times \text_\text \end * The two methods of calculating the mass of an ingredient are equivalent: ::\text \times \text_\text = \text_\text \times \text_\text


Weights and densities

The use of customary U.S. units can sometimes be awkward and the metric system makes these conversions simpler. In the metric system, there are only a small number of basic measures of relevance to cooking: the
gram The gram (originally gramme; SI unit symbol g) is a unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI) equal to one one thousandth of a kilogram. Originally defined as of 1795 as "the absolute weight of a volume of pure water equal to th ...
(g) for weight, the liter (L) for volume, the
meter The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pref ...
(m) for length, and degrees Celsius (°C) for temperature; multiples and sub-multiples are indicated by prefixes, two commonly used metric cooking prefixes are milli- (m-) and
kilo- Kilo is a decimal unit prefix in the metric system denoting multiplication by one thousand (103). It is used in the International System of Units, where it has the symbol k, in lowercase. The prefix ''kilo'' is derived from the Greek word () ...
(k-). Intra-metric conversions involve moving the decimal point. Common avoirdupois and metric weight equivalences: :1 pound (lb) = 16
ounce The ounce () is any of several different units of mass, weight or volume and is derived almost unchanged from the , an Ancient Roman unit of measurement. The avoirdupois ounce (exactly ) is avoirdupois pound; this is the United States customa ...
s (oz) :1 kilogram (kg) = 1,000 grams (g) = 2.20462262 lb :1 lb = 453.59237 g = 0.45359237 kg :1 oz = 28.3495231 g. In four different English-language countries of recipe and measuring-utensil markets, approximate cup volumes range from 236.59 to 284.1 milliliters (mL). Adaptation of volumetric recipes can be made with
density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the substance's mass per unit of volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' can also be used. Mathematical ...
approximations: : Due to volume and density ambiguities, a different approach involves volumetrically measuring the ingredients, then using ''scales'' or ''balances'' of appropriate accuracy and error ranges to weigh them, and recording the results. With this method, occasionally an error or outlier of some kind occurs.


Drawbacks

Baker's percentages do not accurately reflect the impact of the amount of gluten-forming proteins in the flour on the final product and therefore may need to be adjusted from country to country, or even miller to miller, depending on definitions of terms like "bread flour" and actual protein content. Manipulation of known flour-protein levels can be calculated with a Pearson square. In home baking, the amounts of ingredients such as salt or yeast expressed by mass may be too small to measure accurately on the scales used by most home cooks. For these ingredients, it may be easier to express quantities by volume, based on standard densities. For this reason, many breadmaking books that are targeted to home bakers provide both percentages and volumes for common batch sizes. Besides the need for appropriate readability scales, a kitchen calculator is helpful when working directly from baker's percentages.


Advantages

Baker's percentages enable the user to: * compare
recipe A recipe is a set of instructions that describes how to prepare or make something, especially a dish of prepared food. A sub-recipe or subrecipe is a recipe for an ingredient that will be called for in the instructions for the main recipe. His ...
s more easily (i.e., which are drier, saltier, sweeter, etc.). * spot a bad recipe, or predict its baked characteristics. * alter or add a single-ingredient percentage without changing the other ingredients' percentages. * measure uniformly an ingredient where the quantity per unit may vary (as with eggs). * scale accurately and easily for different batch sizes.


Common Formulations

Common formulations for bread include 100% flour, 60% water/liquid, 1% yeast, 2% salt and 1% oil, lard or butter.


Dough hydration

In a recipe, the baker's percentage for water is referred to as the "hydration"; it is indicative of the stickiness of the dough and the "crumb" of the bread. Lower hydration rates (e.g., 50–57%) are typical for
bagel A bagel ( yi, בײגל, translit=beygl; pl, bajgiel; also spelled beigel) is a bread roll originating in the Jewish communities of Poland. It is traditionally shaped by hand into a roughly hand-sized ring from yeasted wheat dough that is first ...
s and pretzels, and medium hydration levels (58–65%) are typical for breads and
rolls Roll or Rolls may refer to: Movement about the longitudinal axis * Roll angle (or roll rotation), one of the 3 angular degrees of freedom of any stiff body (for example a vehicle), describing motion about the longitudinal axis ** Roll (aviation), ...
. Higher hydration levels are used to produce more and larger holes, as is common in artisan breads such as
baguette A baguette (; ) is a long, thin type of bread of French origin that is commonly made from basic lean dough (the dough, though not the shape, is defined by French law). It is distinguishable by its length and crisp crust. A baguette has a di ...
s or
ciabatta Ciabatta (, ; literally " slipper") is an Italian white bread made from wheat flour, water, salt, yeast and olive oil, created in 1982 by a baker in Adria, province of Rovigo, Veneto, Italy, in response to the popularity of French baguettes. Cia ...
. Doughs are also often classified by the terms stiff, firm, soft, and slack. Batters are more liquid doughs. Muffins are a type of drop batter while pancakes are a type of pour batter. :


Notes


References


External links


Baker's percentageSample recipeUnderstanding The Baker's Percentage - Video
A video that explains in detail the baker's percentage, its benefits, and best uses.
Baker's percentage calculator
{{Bread Baking Percentages