Tips for Baking Better Gluten-Free Bread
Categories: Baking Tips, Blog Hop, Breads, Contests, Gluten Free 101
Tags: , Allergy Friendly, Baking Tips, Best Gluten Free Breads, Bread Baking Tips, Dairy Free, GFCF, Gluten-Free Blog Hop, Yeast Bread
Tips for Baking Better Gluten-Free Bread
Correctly measure your flour. 
When measuring flour, don’t scoop from the bag with your measuring cup. This can compress the flour — up to 25%! Use a spoon to scoop flour into the measuring cup and level off with a knife instead. One step better is to weigh your flour. My Jules Gluten Free™ Flour weighs 135 grams per cup. Measuring by weight will ensure that you have the correct amount of flour in any recipe. I use this food scale from EatSmart.
Sometimes the problem is with the GF flour used, not the recipe.
Even 1/2 cup of flour can make a huge difference in the results you get with any recipe. It’s not enough to just use any gluten-free flour you choose. Follow the flours recommended for each given recipe to get the results promised.
3 Loaves – all the same recipe, using 1/2 cup of different GF flours
Bring your ingredients to room temperature before mixing.
It is particularly important for yeast recipes that you bring all of your ingredients, such as eggs, to room temperature before adding them together to make bread. Yeast needs warmth to grow and if your ingredients are too cold, it may prevent full yeast growth.
Make sure your loaf of bread is actually fully cooked.
It is very important not to take your bread out of the oven before it is fully cooked. If the bread has a rubbery layer at the bottom, this usually means it was not fully cooked. The best way to tell if the bread is done is to take a baking thermometer and insert it all the way into the bottom of the loaf (but not touching the pan). The temperature should be approximately 205-210º F when it is done. Your bread will keep its shape better overcooked than undercooked, so if in doubt, keep it in the oven a bit longer!
If baking by oven method, use metal pans.
I have found that glass bread pans do not work as well as metal pans in fully cooking a loaf of bread. Metal pans do not have to be fancy or expensive, and you can often even find them in your local grocery store.
Rising issues.
A great method for letting your yeast breads rise before baking is to turn on your oven to 200º F, then turn it off when it has reached temperature. Put your un-raised bread into the warmed oven with an oiled piece of wax paper on top and a bowl of water in the oven with it, then let it rise according to directions. Once raised, remove the wax paper and bake according to directions.
How to prevent your bread from sinking.
When your bread is done cooking, turn off the oven and open the door so that the bread can cool slowly. Taking the bread out of a hot oven and quickly transferring it to a cool counter can sometimes cause the loaf to sink in. If it still sinks, it may have too much moisture to support itself fully. It should still taste great, but if you have your heart set on a nice crowned loaf, next time try cutting back on the liquid a bit in that recipe or adding 1/4 cup of flaxseed meal to help support the bread’s structure and enhance its nutritional value, all in one! Altitude and even the day’s weather can affect sometimes-picky yeast recipes.
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Larry Bennion said: on October 18, 2010
Jules, I purchased your 2010 Thansgiving recipe book, found a bread / rolls recipe I think on page 10 and 11, I followed this recipe to a “T” and it looked fantastic in the oven, I didn’t jar it,let it cool off and when it was taken out of the oven when done, it fell like a rock, the inside is nice, not full of holes,and taste is excellent, especially right out of the oven loaded with butter!! I have done this in the past however the yeast was put in liquid by itseld and added sugar to this then warmed to 110 degrees, this seemed to work better, not great but better. I guess I am ooking for tips as to what I may have done wrong. Oh, and to answer your first question, my yeast is not old, first thing I looked at. Hopefully you can help. Larry
Jules said: on October 19, 2010
Hi Larry – the process you’re describing is called “proofing” the yeast before adding to the recipe. I’ve done this in some recipes, but it shouldn’t really make a difference in gluten-free breads. All that being said, if you have success with any method, stick with it! As for the bread/rolls recipe – which did you make – bread or rolls? If you made a loaf, try it as rolls and see how it does. Also, this recipe has many variables, such as whether you choose ginger ale or gluten-free beer; flaxseed meal or sorghum flour (as examples), so try another option listed next time to see if it works better for you. How long did you let it/them rise and was it a nice, warm location? I’ve found that covering my rising breads with a thin, damp towel really helps. You should feel free to let the bread rise longer, as well; adding rise time can give the dough the benefit of getting “comfortable in its skin,” so to speak, as it more gradually building the cell structure. Another thing to try may be to lower your oven temperature and bake a bit longer – every oven is different and that can sometimes help. Lastly, you may want to try my bread mix since all the dry ingredient variables are taken out and all the measuring is done for you — it can make things a little easier! Whatever you do, don’t give up (it doesn’t sound like you’re the kind who would!) – I promise you that fresh-baked, delicious gluten-free bread is possible!
kathy ross said: on January 3, 2011
I have the “Nearly Normal Cooking…” book and love it. I have a question. The nearly normal flour mix calls for potato starch. I am able to find potato starch flour. What is the difference when used in this mix? Can I substutute the potato starch flour 1:1 for the potato starch?
thanks! kathy
Jules said: on January 3, 2011
Hi Kathy – as long as it says “starch” on the Potato Starch Flour bag, you are good. They should make it easier on everyone and label it properly, but many companies don’t! You’ll know the difference if you pick up a bag that doesn’t also say “starch” on it, the product will be heavier, yellow in tint and will smell/taste like potatoes! In contrast, potato starch looks nearly identical to cornstarch.
Pam Greenfield said: on June 2, 2011
Wanted to post that a technique that GF Goddess recommends worked well for me – when using a bread machine – immediately remove bread from pan and place in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes and it helps an overly moist loaf to dry out and not sink so badly. But do it before the loaf sits for any amount of time in machine after it’s done!
Lynn said: on May 17, 2012
THanks for the great tips–i need to try to cool bread in oven…thanks again
pat said: on May 17, 2012
I love making the homemade GF bread. But, sometimes it does sink some after taking it out of the oven. I will try some of your tips. Thank you for all your help.
Jessica B said: on May 17, 2012
Thanks for all the tips on baking bread.
Cindy B. said: on May 17, 2012
Thanks! I need to try drying my bread out in the oven because it does tend to sink. And I need to buy a baking thermometer.
Cindy B. said: on May 17, 2012
Shared on facebook.
Susan said: on May 17, 2012
That’s a good tip about letting the bread cool in the oven. I do have a problem with the bread sinking in the middle. Thank you!
Wendi S said: on May 17, 2012
Thanks for these great tips…the bread in your pictures looks so light and fluffy.
Emma said: on May 17, 2012
Thanks for the tip about cooling bread in the oven, it seems so obvious – but I haven’t been doing it. I can’t wait to try and see how it affects my bread. Thanks!
julie said: on May 17, 2012
I haven’t attempted to make bread yet, but I will definitely keep these tips handy.
Jena said: on May 17, 2012
Bread is one thing my hubby and I miss most about living the gluten & dairy free lifestyles. This info helps me to not feel so intimidated in baking bread again. Thanks!
Ami Frank said: on May 18, 2012
Jules-
all of your suggestions are essential to those new with GF baking. It took me quite a while to just accept the fact of weighing my flour – and really -what a difference. Consistency is key to our baking sanity! And I have added this post to Facebook.
Thanks for helping us all out!
Jules said: on May 21, 2012
So glad the tips have been helpful!
Helen said: on May 18, 2012
Thanks for the tips. Looking forward to trying to remake Babka. Last time, it sank in the middle. Taste was delicious.
Angel R said: on May 18, 2012
Great tips! Like I said earlier, you are an inspiration!
Tessa Domestic Diva said: on May 18, 2012
Not an entry jules, but I like your idea on using a thermometer, it takes the guess work out of it! I also like the comparison of the three loaves, what a great demo!
Jules said: on May 21, 2012
Thanks Tessa! We all learn as we go, don’t we?
It’s been fun to do this Blog Hop with you!!!
Cindy W. said: on May 18, 2012
Thanks for the advice.
Sharon L. said: on June 4, 2012
http://Www.food.com/recipe/gluten-free-rolls-42322
I used Jules flour with this recipe. I substituted Jules flour for the cornstarch, potato starch and zanthum. The rolls were amazing, however they did sink. I want to tweak the recipe some but it is a start. These are so delicious, I cannot tell they are gluten free. Any thoughts on tweaking this one?
Jules said: on June 5, 2012
Sharon, just glancing at the recipe, it seems like there’s too much sour cream for that amount of flour. If the moisture ratio is too high, it will cause breads to sink. I’d cut back on that a bit and try it again. Let me know how it turns out!
Sharon L. said: on June 5, 2012
Hi Jules: I cut back the sour cream to 3/4 cup. Let them cool in the oven. They still fell flat. But…they are delicious. The recipe doesn’t call for letting the dough rise prior to baking. It is a very sticky dough. I think I will try this next time. I am new to gluten free having discovered that I have an intolerance to glutens, not diagnosed as celiac yet. It took 2 years for my mother to be diagnosed. She sent me my first package of your flour and mixes. If you try this recipe, let me know what you think. Thanks!!
Jules said: on June 6, 2012
Sharon, I didn’t look at the directions, but I would agree, they should rise before baking. Good work experimenting! You’ll be a pro in no time! (And tell your mom thanks from me for introducing you to my products and recipes!)
Bev said: on June 20, 2012
I am definitely going to keep these bread making tips handy. I have tried different recipes in the pat but they never turned out well and the bread was so dense and had a wet texture. I can’t wait to try the dinner rolls too. It has been so long since I had a dinner roll with a meal. My mouth is watering as I right. LOL. So excited to find your website.
Jules said: on June 21, 2012
Yay Bev! So glad you found me, too! Enjoy the recipes and having a delicious dinner roll again!
Tracy Atack said: on July 13, 2012
I have 2 of Jules recipe books and they both have recipes for the flour mix – but they are different. Which one should I use?
Thank you –
Tracy Atack
Jules said: on July 15, 2012
Tracy – it’s all about proportions when blending GF flour. Free for All Cooking, my most recent GF Cookbook, has a recipe for a flour blend that offers many different options for each ingredient, in case you don’t have one on hand or cannot use a particular ingredient. I find that recipe to be helpful to more people, but you can use either flour recipe with my recipes and when subbing for regular wheat flour in wheat flour recipes.
Laura said: on October 13, 2012
Hi Jules, this isn’t quite the right place for this question, but I couldn’t find the right one… I have a really hard time with cupcakes and muffins sinking. Do you have any tips for that? They look great coming out of the oven, but within a minute they are flat. Of course they taste good, but are all then heavy. I always use your flour with any recipe I have. Thanks!
Laura
Jules said: on October 15, 2012
Hi Laura, no worries on where to ask the question! If your cupcakes are sinking, it would typically be one of two, or possibly both, things: either there is too much liquid in the recipe, or they are not cooking long enough. Have you checked to see that your oven is baking at an accurate temperature? I was surprised when I put an oven thermometer into my oven, that it was not baking accurately (but that explained a few things, though!). I would start there, and perhaps cook them a bit longer, as well. (Since you say that it happens with all muffins and cupcakes, I would suspect that is the problem, rather than the moisture, but you can try that as well.) Make sure to stick a toothpick all the way to the bottom of the cupcakes to see that they are done before taking them out of the oven. With muffins — many of which have fruit like bananas or zucchini in them — it is easy to use too much moisture and that causes sinking, as well. I hope these tips help! Let me know how your experimenting goes!
Laura said: on November 16, 2012
Hi Jules, I bought an oven thermometer to test my oven temperature. Here’s what I found out: my oven takes longer to preheat than the oven timer says, and the sides of my oven are 25 degrees cooler than the desired temperature, but the middle is correct. That would make sense why my muffins and cupcakes tend to sink since I cook them side by side. Any thoughts on how to deal with this since my oven is correct in the middle but not the sides?
Also, the muffins I make are usually pumpkin which are pretty heavy, what do you suggest I don’t put as much in: pumpkin, milk, or apple sauce? Thanks for all your insight, it’s been very helpful!
Laura
Annie said: on February 6, 2013
You’ve covered bread sinking after it has been removed from the oven too early, but would cause the bread to sink while baking? I had a good rise on the bread before baking, but by the time the baking was done, the bread was flat and a brick! Any ideas?
Thanks,
Annie
Jules said: on February 7, 2013
Hi Annie – that is certainly frustrating to have a beautiful looking loaf collapse! Why don’t you send an email to support@julesglutenfree.com so we can walk through all the possibilities with you? The recipe, ingredients, altitude, temperature of ingredients, type of yeast … there are many variables and it would be easier to help you with an email exchange to get to the bottom of it.
Dolores said: on February 17, 2013
Hello Jules,
My husband was recently diagnosed with dairy a allergy and there is a history of celiac, so we decided to go gluten free.
We just made our first loaf of bread (your recipe) today in our bread maker, it is delicious! It did sink slightly but overall lovely.
Will certainly try your other recipes.
Thank you,
D&R in Illinois
Jules said: on February 18, 2013
Hi Dolores – sounds like a smart thing to do, given his history. So glad you found my blog! And glad you made the bread and are enjoying it. Have fun trying my recipes and let me know if you ever have questions or need other recipes you can’t find. Welcome to the Jules Family!
Samantha said: on February 23, 2013
Hi Jules
I’ve been making gluten free bread for a while now…and am having some issues.
I live at 3500ft so I do lengthen the baking time.
The top of the bread is rising away from the bottom portion leaving a huge pocket of air inside the bread. It tastes lovely but makes the slices smaller as the top part breaks free when sliced.
Any suggestions?
Also – sometimes the left side of the bread rises higher than the right…which also makes slicing difficult. Would the oven light affect the rise while baking?
Thanks,
Samantha
Jules said: on February 26, 2013
Hi Samantha, thanks for writing. If your bread has large air pockets, it might not be rising long enough or may be that you’re using a touch too much yeast. Try both and see if either helps you. You might also try covering your bread loosely with foil (like a tent). Regarding lop-sided rising, the issue is definitely with your oven or oven light. Believe it or not, the light does throw heat, so turn your bread half-way during the rise so that it is more evenly exposed to the heat. Hope these ideas help!
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Cheryl Killion said: on March 15, 2013
Jules,
I have a Hamilton Beach Homebaker with a gluten-free setting. But the GF setting allows for 3 rises. I chose the express setting for a 2-pound loaf with dark crust for my first loaf in this machine because it allows for only one kneed and rise. I chose the dark crust so I could keep an eye on it and not have to extend the baking time. I was really disappointed to find that the GF setting was a 3-rise cycle. Would you have gone with the GF cycle anyway? I have baked your bread in the static oven with excellent results, both with your mixes and with your flour and recipe. So, I know one rise is all that is required. I may end up returning this machine in the end, but hopefully it will work since I got it on a sale. It was hard to fine a bread maker in town. Seems stores no longer carry them.
Thank you,
Cheryl
Cheryl Killion said: on March 15, 2013
Hi again Jules,
I figured out what I need to do to use this bread machine after all. The express cycle was going to be too short of a baking time. Once the bread had risen and baking had just begun, I reset the machine to the bake-only cycle and baked it the full hour, checking the temperature before removing it from the machine. The bread turned out as good as it had in the oven. So, I either need to use both the dough and bake settings or start with the express setting and switch to the bake setting. Not quite “set it and forget it” that I was hoping for, but less of a mess compared to cleaning up the dust from flour and all the equipment. Also, I can use it in the summer to bake bread instead of heating up the whole kitchen with the oven. I had given up the idea of making GF bread until I tried your flour. What a difference! Thank You!!
Cheryl
Jules said: on March 16, 2013
Cheryl that’s a wonderful work-around. My machine has been persnickety lately, and I’m still trying to get it to allow me to change course in the middle of a cycle. I’m going to try this method, rather than letting it go to the end of the bake and trying to add time (which, for some reason, it’s recently decided not to allow me to do!). Thanks for sharing your method! Oh, and I’m so glad you didn’t give up on baking GF Bread!!!
Elizabeth said: on March 25, 2013
I have a bread recipe from the Art of Gluten Free for Soft Whole Grain Sandwich Bread. It calls for a half cup of Expandex. Should I use that since your flour has it in it?
Jules said: on March 25, 2013
Hi Elizabeth – I’m not understanding your question, sorry! Are you asking if you should use my flour in place of Expandex in a recipe calling for Expandex?
Deborah said: on March 27, 2013
can you buy expandex?? and I have Your ” nearly normal cooking” book. But just looked at your french bread recipe on celieac.com. Can I use your all purpose flour blend mix from the book in that recipe with good results? OR do I need to buy your current APblend in a bag? thanks a bunch.
Deb
Jules said: on March 28, 2013
Hi Deborah, my pre-blended all purpose flour contains Expandex, which helps to naturally extend the shelf life of your baked goods and also helps to give doughs more elasticity (something that GF flours typically lack). You can use my homemade blends from my cookbooks in my French Bread Recipe, but I find that the pre-made blend works a bit better for those reasons. I’m not sure if consumers can buy Expandex directly — check on their website to see. It is not a 1:1 for wheat flour, though — you’ll need to use it in a blend. Hope this information helps!