Yeast is closer to the animal kingdom than the plant kingdom. It’s a living organism you need to feed so it will grow your food. You need to make it comfortable and give it an environment to thrive and then kill it when it’s the yummiest.
It requires more precision, sure, but there are absolutely bakers who can taste a dough and tweak the water/flour/oil etc. ratios to get the perfect bread.
It’s only different from other kinds of cooking because most people haven’t developed those senses. If you knew what you were doing, you could bake from scratch without a recipe easily and go by “vibes” (i.e. based on sensory input).
Well, cooking normally doesn’t require rising. Baking usually does. Knowing how chemicals react and how yeast acts is important. Cooking is mostly just about flavor. You should know about the Maillard reaction and burning, but as long as the flavors are good (and you don’t cook something that’ll make you sick) then you’re going to be fine.
Baking by vibe takes some work, and you should practice recipes by the letter before trying it, but it can be fun. It’s more so knowing the impact of what you’re adding.
Spices, for instance, can be added by vibe to some recipes. Flour, on the other hand, should be weighed out and a firm knowledge of ratio to fat rather then vibes.
I had to bake by vibes one time because I started a recipe then realized I didn’t have eggs and the friend the cake was for is lactose intolerant. Used a can of coconut milk. Turned into brownies instead of chocolate cake, but they were good enough that I’ve been intentionally making them since.
With a deep enough knowledge of how baking works, it can be done. My sister improvises baked goods very well. The sad thing is that when one turns out amazing instead of just good, she can’t replicate it because she doesn’t know the recipe. I’m particularly sad I’ll never again have the amazing butter rum pound cake she made for her daughter’s birthday last year. She tried to make it again later, but it just wasn’t the same. :(
If you aren’t cooking by vibe, are you really living?
Baking on the other hand…
Baking is chemistry, cooking is jazz.
I have a Master’s Degree in chemistry, I can’t bake for shit. Cooking, on the other hand, I excel.
Baking is actually ranching.
Yeast is closer to the animal kingdom than the plant kingdom. It’s a living organism you need to feed so it will grow your food. You need to make it comfortable and give it an environment to thrive and then kill it when it’s the yummiest.
Man, now I love making bread even more.
It’s biochemistry
You can still get jazzy with it tho once you understand tha chemistry well enough.
Jazzy Chemistry sounds like the title of a textbook that is attempting to be more attractive to students.
Saxophone with little molecules floating up out of the horn end like notes, lol
It requires more precision, sure, but there are absolutely bakers who can taste a dough and tweak the water/flour/oil etc. ratios to get the perfect bread.
It’s only different from other kinds of cooking because most people haven’t developed those senses. If you knew what you were doing, you could bake from scratch without a recipe easily and go by “vibes” (i.e. based on sensory input).
Well, cooking normally doesn’t require rising. Baking usually does. Knowing how chemicals react and how yeast acts is important. Cooking is mostly just about flavor. You should know about the Maillard reaction and burning, but as long as the flavors are good (and you don’t cook something that’ll make you sick) then you’re going to be fine.
Baking by vibe takes some work, and you should practice recipes by the letter before trying it, but it can be fun. It’s more so knowing the impact of what you’re adding.
Spices, for instance, can be added by vibe to some recipes. Flour, on the other hand, should be weighed out and a firm knowledge of ratio to fat rather then vibes.
My wife says that everything I cook smells the same. Yeah baby I know what I like.
I had to bake by vibes one time because I started a recipe then realized I didn’t have eggs and the friend the cake was for is lactose intolerant. Used a can of coconut milk. Turned into brownies instead of chocolate cake, but they were good enough that I’ve been intentionally making them since.
With a deep enough knowledge of how baking works, it can be done. My sister improvises baked goods very well. The sad thing is that when one turns out amazing instead of just good, she can’t replicate it because she doesn’t know the recipe. I’m particularly sad I’ll never again have the amazing butter rum pound cake she made for her daughter’s birthday last year. She tried to make it again later, but it just wasn’t the same. :(
Powerful eldritch knowledge tends to come at a terrible price.