WFASD: Emergency intervention Edition! -Chyhart 

You know you've been influenced by Jack when you find yourself yelling "roll it!" as your getting out flour to make bread! 😂😬

We've all cocked up before now. My first loaf was as hard as a cricket bat. I once made a fantastic looking loaf, soft and bouncy, crisp beautiful crust, light and airy inside - the perfect looking loaf, but I'd forgotten to add salt so it tasted like cardboard. There's a saying in engineering "the man who never made a mistake, never made anything". The only way to become expert at anything is to fail so many times, so many different ways that you run out of ways to fail. Never give up - never surrender.

The ONLY way to fail completely is to stop trying. When I feel like this, I always go back to basics. My mother used to say, "Can't, never did anything". Momma wasn't wrong.

How kind of you to respond in exactly the right way Jack. Please, don’t give up whoever wrote that comment,you will get better! Jack is right it sounds like your recipe is incorrect, it does happen and then you think it’s all your fault when it’s not! I started making bread again a few years ago after a very long gap - about 40 years! I first used a recipe from another baker, 🤭 the bread wasn’t great, then I found Jack 🎉 and realised what bread making was all about from the principles up. I no longer buy bread and each time I bake I love it a little more and so does my family. Watch some of Jacks videos and get his book if you don’t already have a bread making book. Above all don’t give up!! Thanks Jack, as always.😊

I feel for Chyhart. I was there three years ago……then i met Jack {well not in person….. it would be great to see you in AMERICA}

One of the things that threw me at first *before I found you* was recipes saying to knead in additional flour if the dough is sticky. I don't add more flour. I let it sit so the flour can soak up the water. I either wet or oil my hands to work it.

BTW, Jack, before I found your videos online and tried what you explain in such clear terms in your videos, I was unable to make a decent loaf of bread. Now, I bake a couple times a week and we stopped paying $4 a loaf for substandard grocery store bread full of "enrichments" or bleached flour. I, too, bought your book. Good job man.

Really important video. Loved it. But it highlights the underlying problem which is that when people use recipes they need to always first understand what they expect from the recipe - it's like folk using a calculator to solve a problem without first having estimated what the solution should look like If you don't know what to expect , if you are not estimating - then you really have no good sense how good the answer you get is. Same with following a recipe: if I am making dough for bread , I need to check my actual dough against what I expect the dough to feel like after I have mixed all the flour and water together. If the dough feels too dry, then I need to add more water; if it feels too much like batter, then I need to add more flour.

Before it gets out of hand, or before you even start a bread recipe, take 15 seconds and get a calculator and do a simple calc. Divide the amount of flour by the amount of water to get the hydration ratio. Hydration levels vary depending on bread type, but a standard white bread loaf should be 65-70%. If it's way off this number, make your adjustments before you waste any time (or a mixer). I've found that "lazy" bakers will give their recipes by volume (3 cups flour) instead of 360g (120g per cup x 3 = 360g). And as we all know, measuring flour by volume is WAY off. What worked for them when they made the recipe might work fine for them, but according to America's Test Kitchen (and others) the likelihood of your cups matching theirs is very small. The only way to be sure one kitchen to the next kitchen, is to use a reliable scale. And then use your common sense with regard to hydration levels (which is one simple division calculation).

Well said Jack. You are so encouraging. I hope Chyhart sees this video.

Keep on keepin' on Chyhart! We've all been there and the only way to conquer your failure is to try, try again. And of course stick with Jack because he WILL help you rise above (no pun intended!). Jack, you're an inspiration to every baker, from the novice, timid first-timer to those who are looking for a challenge!! Always a pleasure!!

I watch your videos because they've helped me so much. I love homemade bread. I used to help my grandmother make the loaves as a child and in my teens started having trouble with my hands... turned out it was rheumatoid arthritis...and I made less and less loaves. Then I started reading about no knead bread. Seemed simple enough but I had trouble with my loaves not turning out quite right. While my chickens loved my failed experiments, I was very unhappy. I don't like store bought bread. Then I found your channel and my no knead bread became more than acceptable. Thank you for giving me the confidence to keep trying. P.S. I'm on some new RA medications to help with inflammation so I'm hopeful that in the near future I can make some kneaded loaves again...maybe not everytime but enough to reconnect with my memories of grandma. Thanks Jack!!

I find I need to vary the water at different times. If the weather is hot, I always need a bit more, for example.

Jack you're a seriously good teacher! People ask me how to bake sourdough bread and I tell them I learned from you and give them your channel info. Keep doing your thing brother!

Thanks, Jack. It is comforting to see you respond to your reader like this, making a special video Chyhart. You are so encouraging! I also have so many failures in the kitchen. Sometimes I tell myself I will never bake again. But then I get inspired by someone like you, and I do try again.

Oh Jack you are wonderful! I thoroughly enjoy your videos.

Ah, poor Chyhart - I think we've all been there at some point or other. But Chyhart, rest assured you'll get it right soon enough if you keep trying - and when you do "BOOM" - that feeling of pulling your first proper baked / shaped bread out of the oven is a moment of wonder and will make all the past mistakes worthwhile and you persisting with trying worth all the effort, believe me. I made several good quality bricks and doorstops before I managed to get the hang of even a basic white loaf and once in the swing of things, there's no stopping you. Trust in Jack, he knows what he's talking about - I bake all sorts of bread / dough that I would never have contemplated attempting 12 months ago - cottage loaves, sourdough, cobs, pizza dough, potato bread, bagels (yes, even bagels !!) - it'll come, just stick with it. We're all right behind you Chyhart, rooting for you - as Bertinet would say "Show the dough who's boss"

Hey Jack, want to let you know your channel saved my bread journey. I started with that no-knead NYT recipe, but was absolutely awful, gave up for a bit. Years later I learned they typo-ed the amount of salt and it was far too little. Tried again, but my bread was always dense and flat, was ready to give it a rest again, but found your channel and your sourdough technique where you explain creating structure. The results are amazing, Thanks so much for being here, you have made a huge difference in my life.

Jack, you are a star for reaching out to a follower, you are truly wonderful that you care so much 🤗 We have all been there…. but it is how we learn…. you never lose, you either win or learn ☺️🥰 I bought your book Jack, truly wonderful in every sense of the word, thank you for being you and inspiring us all and caring. Now I have to go and ‘roll-it’ 🤭😘👌🏻😊

You truly are a good person. In today’s world that soothes me.

You’re such a kind soul Jack

The one thing I've learned from Jack is to keep at it. I've had a few times my bread didn't seem to work, so I kept kneading and adding stuff (too wet add flour, too dry add water). Eventually, I got a decent loaf... Now I make pretty good bread. Good enough, I'm proud to share. I usually make sourdough because the fermented flour is easier to digest, and I can control the salt more easily. I occasionally make yeast donuts, cinnamon rolls, or challah that are extremely popular.

Try Try again 4 years ago I had never baked a loaf of bread now I make it every other day and it is awesome😄

Even Jack’s basic loaf recipe came up stiff-ish for me the first few times, but I’m using US flour and I’ve come to think that the flour I have access to is just dryer. Added a few grams of water to the recipe and now it’s fine. I referred to the way Jack’s dough looked when kneading, and it clearly had more moisture.

When your heartbroken just by reading how hard your followers are at themselves when their baking failed them the first few times they tried...thank you for the push and encouragement @bakewithjack!

Such a wholesome response

Aww Jack, well said! We've all been there to some degree or other! The only thing that can make things better is practice and being kind on yourself

Weights are really important in bread. The scales could be broken. Easy check by weighing a pound of butter or a litre of milk. Stick with it, Jack turned me from a average bread maker into an expert. The Book took me to the next level again. Thank you Jack!

I'm new to baking (age 70) - using your recipe in edition 130 - it took 5 hours to rise to 1.6 times it's volume, Jack is right, leave it, it will rise! - room temp was just 15.8 degrees! I think next time I'll swap some of the salt for sugar and hope I can get it to rise closer to what it should be, rather than 'heavy bread'. Still it was tasty and very filling!

First rule of bread making, don't measure any of the ingredients by cups or volume. Always use weight (preferably metric) and use digital scales.

I wish to thank you Jack because since using your recipes and advice I can now make Sourdough bread. In the beginning I had made some dreadful loaves but I thought to myself I won't give up this time and persevered and now 9 times out of 10 my bread comes out really well.

First of all, you have to get rid of the negativity as it’s amazing how that can affect what you’re doing. Thinking things like ‘I can’t do this’ or ‘I just know it’s going to be a disaster’, is affecting you’re concentration right away so mistakes will easily happen without you noticing! I’m wondering if instead of using half the weight each of bread and plain flour, perhaps you’ve weighed out the full amount of each? I’m sure you’ll get past this though. Watch plenty BWJ videoed and you won’t go wrong. They’re super helpful 😊

Inspirational as ever Jack 😊. If I try a new recipe or an overnight bulk ferment or overnight prove, I always, always write my recipe AND the method down including timings so if it isn’t how I expect it to be, I can tweak things! I learned that from you and it’s the best advice you’ve given me.

I believe she should check episode 130, it is very well explained (as all your recipes), watch it over and over again and then give it a try! I’m quite sure she can make it! As always great advice

My dad asked for a chocolate cake for his 79th birthday, so I was all set to make one for him from scratch. Time to bake, I bake the cakes, the batter overflowed one of the pans but not the other. ok, still salvageable, the cake itself was tasty. I started making the icing while they cooled, and realized I didn't have enough powdered sugar. I though I could just blitz some granulated in the food processor and it would be ok... wrong. So gritty. I warmed it in the microwave a little till it was runny, mixed some more, still not smooth. Hmm. When I tried finally getting the cakes out of the pans, the first one fell apart completely. I smooshed it into shape, glued it together with the gritty icing, and put the top layer on. I kept thinking, it's all just cake and icing, and my family really doesn't care what it looks like... I iced it up as best I could and it still looked like a complete mess. I made a better looking cake the first time I ever baked one at 12 years old. I was so close to just dumping it in the trash. I stuck it in the fridge, and after an hour or so, I decided i would keep this cake for me, and buy something at the store on the way to Dad's house. My husband said it was too much sugar for us to have in the house, and to just take it anyway and let my brothers split it to take home. So I did take mine and also buy a store cake on the way, but when it came time for dessert, my brothers looked at my cake-pile and said they wanted to try it. I scooped some out with a big spoon for everyone, and they loved it! No one touched the store-bought one and I ended up with that one in my freezer. My brothers and my dad divided up the leftovers of my cake-pile to have the rest of the week.

I had a panicky time just a couple weeks ago. My dough was way stiffer then it had been before. I have been writing the steps down with measurements all along when I looked again I had forgotten add the weight of the container when I weighed the water. I do not have a digital scale just1 a very accurate scale so I have to subtract and add "by hand" to get the stuff right I was lucky I added some more water and it tasted good when it was done. teach me to take my time.

Sometimes it isn't you and it isn't the recipe, it's that your flour brand is different in consistency that what the recipe author used. I've encountered that myself. I weighed everything and followed the directions as written, but my dough was dry and stiff when the recipe author said that it would be wet and sticky. Next time I added more water and it worked better, but still not like his. I also had a recipe that worked great for my daughter, but turned out way too wet for me. Again, I weighed everything. I added more flour to the dough (after at least 10 minutes of kneading it was almost puddling) and the rolls turned out beautifully. Sometimes in just takes experimenting with your own ingredients in your own kitchen to find out what works for you. Just don't give up!

Kilograms, cups, ounces, pounds, grams, pints!!! Need maybe to get measurements matched. Just tried increasing from 60% to 63% and my loaves have flat tops. I'll stick to 60% in future. Thanks Jack 🙂

I started baking bread (and other stuff) in 2020...encouraged by my daughter during the onset of the Covid pandemic. After buying stuff (books, tools, gadgets, flour, etc) I attempted my first loaf. It was a soggy mess. My wife started searching for help online (for me, LOL) and found this young Brit named "Jack". And, my baking journey became fun. I expect success and failure (especially when I try something new) and savor the successes and failures. Mostly, thanks to Jack! Well done for reaching out to the writer! BTW, baked a focaccia yesterday (Saturday in the US)...something I hadn't baked since 2020...not in any way I had before (used a dutch over, used an Ankarsrum, used a recipe out of "Bake Every Day" with some tweeks) and while I had trepidation, it turned out fabulous. Stuff happens, enjoy the journey and keep watching Bake with Jack...Cheers!

Your videos really help! Thank you Jack!

Don't lose heart! Even experienced bakers run into wrecked recipes. We moved to a different state in America 20 years ago. I had made bread for my large family regularly until my shoulders were giving me trouble and couldn't. However, the new locale had absolutely horrible options for store bought bread, so I got out my trusty recipe to make a big batch of homemade once again. It turned out like little bricks - 6 horrible loaves. I bought new yeast and did everything by the book. Nothing worked. Come to find out, not only was the whole wheat flour possibly not high enough in gluten, but our new location had extremely hard water. Once I realized that I could research a fix. (Lemon juice, btw, is the answer. 1-3 tsp a loaf, depending on how hard the water is.) Instantly, I had success again! There is always a reason - and it isn't because you suck!!

Without seeing the recipe, helpful questions would be: did you weigh all the ingredients, not just the water? Did you account for the weight of the containers? Did you take note of the measures being imperial or metric? Did you give it whatever rising times were listed in the recipe? And, did you rise it in a warm enough environment? Hopefully, your commenter does reach out and exchange more info. Because I agree Jack, it's just one try...don't give up.

Nicely said.

I have found some recipes written incorrectly regarding measurements. And I admit, I've also misread the ingredients too, so easy to do. We are all human, mistakes happen.

I've made a ridiculous amount of loaves that turned out a littler flatter than I desired! practice practice practice and bask in the glory of home made bread, even if the loaf isn't exactly perfect... enjoy imperfection... it still tastes great

I was making a new recipe but it was stiff and odd. It was from your book so I knew it had to be right. I kept trying but it was getting harder, but I had faith in you. This is a Bake With Jack recipe. However, you have taught me so much (I'm still a beginner) that I stopped -- this is too dry, why? I had used a scale for the first time and the first measurement was the water and I had misread the scale! I am thankful that you have taught me and I can vaguely tell what might be wrong and what the solution might be! Thank you so much!!!

Got your book a few weeks ago and now that I've read through it, couldn't be more satisfied. Instructions and photos are very straightforward and clear, and your personality is def in those pages! It's now my bread bible. Cheers. Sincerely.

LOL 911 rescue my dough, yup 💯🙏🇺🇸👍 Never give up 💪

I wonder if using both scales and measuring cups could be part of the problem? If you have decent scales, use them - ditch the cups. measuring powders by volume has always been problematic. Scales simply give you finer control. And using part bread flour and part general purpose - I mean - there are reasons why some of it is called bread flour - and one of them is that it rises better! Try and find a simpler recipe that just uses bread flour. And keep trying. One, just one success, and you'll never look back! Luck!!!

Hi Jack!

I've found quite a few 'online' recipes that sometimes seem slightly off in the measurements. I bake enough to recognize when some just don't seem right. New bakers though wouldn't know, which can lead to frustration and disappointment if just learning. If I'm unsure, I try to check similar recipes from known sources or books to compare ingredients and measurements. Bottom line is don't give up, find another recipe, try again. Good luck🤞

I think that person is messin' with you, Jack! Pay no attention to them!

Chyhart ….Love…. Try Jack’s recipe. It is bang on perfect

Oof I’ve been there. I hope the commenter gives it another shot and keeps at it. I know I’ve had so so many failures. Heck, I’ve even had to run to my phone to frantically look for a video from Jack hoping he had addressed the issue I was facing lol.

Get the recipe from chyhart and try to reproduce. These are the collaborations we need! :)

Sounds like a case of "I forgot the water"... #MiseEnPlace

The best advice to give this frustrated newbie baker is to do the hydration calculation. I think it's worthwhile to do that with any bread recipe one has not tried before. Then, before even starting, if the hydration percentage is not within reasonable bounds, stop.

Are you sure it wasn't plaster of Paris powder that was used 😂. Check online and if necessary try again. Good luck

What is WFASD ?

How do you convert a recipe, which calls for volume measurements, to weight measurements?

I don't know that the recipe is the problem. Baking at different altitudes makes a difference too, at least in my experience. My wife's parents live in higher elevations in New Mexico, and when I bake bread for them, my recipe is never the same. Though, I'm not a professional-I certainly could be wrong.

Bad recipe! There are many out there.

👍

Always Trust Jack @chyhart! You keep trying!