Extensibility

Extensibility is the stretchiness of a dough, measured as the distance a piece can be pulled before it breaks. One test, the Kieffer dough and gluten extensibility rig, reports it directly as distance to break.

It comes mainly from gliadin, one of the two gluten proteins, which contributes to the viscosity and extensibility of the dough. Glutenin supplies strength and elasticity, so the character of a dough reflects the balance between the two: one that pulls back against the baker versus one that stretches and stays stretched.

Resting helps. In a study of sheeted wheat dough, elongation increased significantly after resting because internal stress had time to dissipate. That is why a rolled or shaped dough that keeps shrinking back is often left to sit, and why an extensible dough can be rolled thin or shaped without snapping.