I have a dough formula that I want to convert into a batter. By using the "Baker's Percentage," my water is about 78% of the weight of the flour. That's a pretty wet and sticky dough already. At what point does it become a batter? 100% water? Is there any consensus? One of my baking classmates told me that if it can be poured, it's a batter. That doesn't sound very scientific. Ideas?
Thanks.
Rich Hollenbeck Moreno Valley, CA USA
Oh pshaw, on Thu 14 Dec 2006 12:57:24p, Richard Hollenbeck meant to say...
LOL! It may not sound very scientific, but it makes perfect sense. The primary difference between dough and batter is the consistency - Dough is thicker and must be molded by hand, while batter is semi-liquid, thus spooned or poured. Both can be leavened with either yeast, baking power, or baking soda.
I'll go along with your classmate. What's scientific about the terms "dough" and "batter" to begin with?
In another context, it's stepping up to the plate that makes a batter a batter. Having done that, if he can hit, he makes dough.
Bob ;-)
Thanks to both of you. I simply kicked up the hydration to 122% without changing any of the other ingredients' ratios and it did the trick. You can refer to another post I made today about English muffins. I found that making the dough into a batter and pouring the batter into biscuit-cutting rings gave me the characteristic big bubbles I was seeking.
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