Laminated dough was kicking my ass until a pro at a bakery in Portland showed me their trick

Went to Ken's Artisan in Portland last month for a croissant and ended up talking to the baker for 20 minutes. He said my butter was too cold when I folded it in, which was causing all the layers to tear. Has anyone else had better results after letting the butter warm up just a few degrees?

3 comments

3 Comments

robin59111d ago

Honestly, the butter sweet spot sounds like a mythical creature I've been hunting for years. Ngl, I tried leaving mine out for exactly 8 minutes and 37 seconds once because I saw some TikTok video swearing by it. Ended up with butter puddles all over my counter and a dough that looked like a sad abstract art piece. Tbh, maybe my kitchen just runs hot or my butter is secretly plotting against me. Glad you found the magic touch though, I'm just over here accepting my fate as the lumpy croissant king.

milarodriguez11d ago

Honestly, the butter temperature thing is so real. I had the same problem for months where my croissants would come out flat and greasy. A pastry chef friend finally told me to take my butter out of the fridge about 10 minutes before I start laminating, and it was a total game changer. Ngl, I used to think it needed to be rock hard so it wouldn't melt into the dough, but it just cracks and tears everything. Now my layers actually puff up and separate like they're supposed to. Tbh it's the one tip I always tell people when they ask why their dough is fighting them.

the_anthony11d ago

Yo nah for real I was watching this one baking video on YouTube where the guy said the same thing. He called it "the butter sweet spot" where it's cold but still bendy. I tried it after years of messing up croissants and it honestly fixed everything for me too. My dough used to tear so bad I'd end up with just a lumpy mess. Now I leave it on the counter while I roll out the dough and it's like magic how it just cooperates.