when to cut brown bread?

lg123

maybe this should be in food and drink as this forum seems as if its more oriented at sweets rather than bread but i'll start here anyways.

just made some brown bread, it looks savage and i am hungry. how long should i wait before i can cut into it?

i am asking because my mam always baked in the evening for the following day and she would never let us eat that bread that evening, she said it was bad for the bread, is there any truth in this? should i wait until it has fully cooled down until i tuck in?

Victor

Very fresh bread, baked the traditional way can be a bit gooey in the first first hours. Its not like the part-baked bread from Cuisine de France and the like.

I imagine the exact time will vary with recipe and personal tastes.

lg123

dont think i will chance it so, looks too nice to ruin

Magic Monkey

The reason why you shouldn't cut bread until it's cooled down to room temperature is because the starches need time to set and form the "crumb" - this is the cross-section of bubbles trapped in delicious dough when you slice a loaf. If you cut before the starches have set, the bread can seem to be doughy and undercooked.

Cooling also allows excess moisture to evaporate, drying the bread out and intensifying the flavour. Bread should be cooled on a wire rack to prevent condensation forming on the side it's resting on. Some rye breads are an exception to this, where it should rest for at least a few days before slicing.

Sigma Force

You could risk cutting it in half once it's fully cooled down then leave the other half to cool down over night.

I usually can't wait and plop some jam on a warm piece of brown bread..ok it does get soggy in the middle but sometimes I'm just too hungry.

Best off leaving it over night though for best results, I find that with things like banana bread always nicer the day after and cuts so much easier with a nice crumb.

lg123

thanks for the replies, in the end i couldnt help myself and cut into it. it was nearly at room temp at that stage though so it tasted fine.