Today I found out bread goes stale about six times faster in the refrigerator then when kept at room temperature. On the surface, this might seem seem counter intuitive; after all, everyone knows if you want to keep food fresher longer, you put it in the fridge. The problem stems from what bread is made out of, specifically starch molecules, and how those starch molecules react in certain conditions.
Before we begin to dissect why bread goes stale faster in the fridge, it’s important to know what bread is actually made of. Breads are essentially networks of wheat flour protein molecules (called gluten) and starch molecules. Suspended in this network of molecules is carbon dioxide that is produced by the fermentation of yeast inside the dough. This gives bread its fluffy foam-like texture. Begin to play around with the amounts of these ingredients and other fancy tasting additives and…
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