Dough & Pastry DDT

Desired Dough Temperature Calculator

Bakeries hit the same dough temperature every day by adjusting the water. Enter your target, your room and flour temperatures and how you mix, and get the water temperature, with ice amounts on hot days.

How to use it

  1. Enter the dough temperature you want (75 to 78°F suits most breads).
  2. Enter the room and flour temperatures, how you mix, and any preferment.
  3. Mix with water at the temperature shown, using ice if the tool says so.

How it works

Desired dough temperature × 3 (or × 4 with a preferment) equals the sum of the room, flour, water (and preferment) temperatures plus the friction heat from mixing. Solve for the water.

Friction factors are typical: about 5°F by hand, 22°F in a stand mixer, 26°F in a spiral mixer. When the water must be colder than your tap, the tool works out how much ice to melt into it.

Assumptions and limits

  • Friction varies by mixer, speed, time and batch size; measure yours once for best results.
  • Temperatures in °F or °C, all the same unit.

Tips

  • Measure your friction factor: mix a dough, take its temperature, and solve the formula for friction.
  • Keep flour in a cool cupboard in summer; it's often the warmest ingredient.
  • Don't use water above 105°F with yeast mixed straight into the flour.

Recipes to try it with

Questions

What is desired dough temperature?

The temperature a dough should be after mixing, usually 75 to 78°F, so it ferments on schedule.

How do I calculate water temperature for bread?

Multiply the target by 3, then subtract the room, flour and friction temperatures. The result is your water temperature.

What is a friction factor?

The heat added by mixing: a few degrees by hand, about 20 to 25°F in a stand mixer.

What if I need water colder than my tap?

Use ice: the calculator shows how much ice and cold water make up the recipe's water.