Sheeting dough

Sheeting turns a mass of dough into a flat, uniform sheet. At home that is done with a rolling pin. In a bakery it is done with a dough sheeter, a machine used to quickly and uniformly roll out dough to a desired thickness.

The operator runs the sheeter by decreasing the space between the rollers as the dough passes through them. Tabletop sheeters feed the dough through the rollers by hand, while larger standalone models suit busy shops.

Sheeting matters most for laminated doughs such as croissant and puff pastry, where the dough and butter are rolled and folded into many alternating layers. It is also used for cookies, pie crust, and pasta-style doughs that need an even thickness.