BREAD encyclopedia topics

BREAD - 5 reference results

bread, food made from grains that have been ground into flour or meal, moistened and kneaded into a dough, and then baked. Many types of bread are leavened, usually with yeast, which induces fermentation and causes the breads to rise. The discovery of fermentation is attributed to the Egyptians, who also invented baking ovens. Unleavened flat breads have been eaten since Neolithic times (10,000 B.C.), and bread has long been a staple in the diets of people in all parts of the world, excepting Asia, where the preferred rice is eaten in grain form. Flat breads are made from various types of grains—corn (e.g., the tortilla), barley, millet, wheat, and rye—but only doughs made from wheat and rye contain enough gluten to trap the gases caused by fermentation and expand into an airy loaf of bread. Dark rye breads are common in Europe; the light rye breads popular in the United States are made with a mixed wheat and rye dough. White breads are made from a finely sifted wheat flour, as opposed to whole wheat bread, which retains the fiber-rich outer kernel of the grain. Nutritionally, bread is high in complex carbohydrates and a good source of B vitamins. Whole grain bread is higher in protein, has twice the fiber, and generally has more vitamins and minerals than white bread. Other ingredients that may be added to breads include milk, fats, eggs, salt, and sugar.

See J. Beard, Beard on Bread (1973); J. and E. Jones, The Book of Bread (1986).

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Licensed from Columbia University Press

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St.-John's-bread

St.-John's-bread: see carob.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Copyright © 2004.
Licensed from Columbia University Press

Hottentot bread

Hottentot bread: see yam.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Copyright © 2004.
Licensed from Columbia University Press

bread

Baked food product. It is made of flour or meal that is moistened into a dough, kneaded, and usually leavened with yeast. A major food since prehistoric times, bread has been made worldwide in various forms using a variety of ingredients and methods. Flat, unleavened bread, the earliest form, is still eaten in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. The principal grains used in such breads are wheat, barley, millet, buckwheat, rye, and corn. Raised bread, common in Europe and the U.S., is usually made of wheat or rye. Both contain the elastic protein substance gluten, which traps gas produced by fermentation during leavening, helping the bread to rise. While the simplest breads contain only flour, water, and yeast, other common ingredients are milk, shortening (fats, butter, oils), salt, eggs, and sugar. Bread is a source of complex carbohydrates and B vitamins (see vitamin B complex); whole-wheat bread contains more protein, vitamins, minerals, and fibre than white-flour bread. Seealso baking.