How to quickly defrost puff pastry. How to properly and quickly defrost puff pastry or yeast dough

There is nothing tastier than homemade dough: it is made from quality ingredients and keeps your hands warm. But preparing dough (especially puff pastry) takes a lot of time, which for many housewives is an unaffordable luxury. Modern housewives buy ready-made dough, and it’s good if it’s fresh and soft. Only frozen dough is sold in stores, but how do you defrost the dough if it is stone-like and ready to break when unwrapped?

Slow defrost

If you have enough time to prepare baked goods, use gentle defrosting methods:

  • Remove the dough from its packaging. Place the dough on a board or rolling mat and leave it to rest undisturbed. As a rule, 5 hours are enough for defrosting at room temperature.
  • The dough can be left on the warmest shelf of the refrigerator overnight. After 10 hours the dough will thaw.

Fast defrost

Experienced housewives call ways to quickly defrost dough “emergency measures” and use them only when absolutely necessary. The slightest mistake - and the dough can easily turn into a lump, covered on the outside with a dry crust.

Yeast dough

Difficulties often arise with how to defrost yeast dough. If a mistake is made during defrosting and the thawed dough does not rise, then you don’t have to start baking the pie. Now let’s reveal the secret of properly defrosting yeast dough:

  • Place the dough in two plastic bags, tie tightly, letting out excess air, and place in warm water. Change the water as it cools.
  • Place the dough in a plastic bag, wrap in a towel and place on the lid of a hot pan. Carefully turn the dough over to ensure even defrosting.
  • Transfer the dough into a pan and place on a warm stove next to the lit burners. Do not place on the burners!
  • The dough can be thawed using a water bath, but be careful not to let it stick to the bottom of the container.
  • You can defrost the dough in the microwave, but good housewives do not like this method: it is believed that the yeast loses its properties and usefulness. When defrosting in a microwave oven, you need to be careful and first read the instructions about choosing power and time. If there is no defrosting function, then the 80-100 W mode is suitable. Let the dough rest for 45 seconds and periodically turn it from side to side, otherwise the top layer will dry out and the inner layer will remain rocky.

Puff pastry

Unlike yeast dough, there are no such difficulties with how to defrost puff pastry. Basic Rules:

  • Do not defrost puff pastry in the microwave!
  • Remove the dough from foil and film and place it on the board. At room temperature, the dough will defrost quickly - within two hours.
  • For “emergency” defrosting, place the dough in a plastic bag, wrap it in a towel and place it on the radiator.

Not every woman chooses the easiest and fastest way to defrost dough. The main thing is that your method is safe and does not spoil the quality of the baked goods. Perhaps it is better to take care of defrosting in advance: you will save your nerves and the result will be good.

Dough is rightfully considered an indispensable ingredient; pies, pizza, dumplings and various desserts are prepared on its basis. Not every housewife has the desire and time to knead the dough on her own, so they use a store-bought frozen product. In order to subsequently use the composition, it is necessary to defrost it correctly. Let's consider effective ways that will help carry out the procedure without damaging the structure. We will provide practical recommendations and highlight important features.

How to choose a frozen product

  1. The purchased composition is subjected to express freezing, as a result of which the dough is stored longer. It is important to always remember that you cannot freeze a product twice. There are several main types of dough, each of them uses its own freezing option.
  2. Depending on the purpose, the following varieties are distinguished: puff, yeast-free, yeast, shortbread, gingerbread, etc. Before purchasing, carefully evaluate the product for compliance with storage conditions.
  3. It is worth remembering forever that high-quality dough based on natural ingredients cannot have a low price policy. As a rule, leading manufacturing companies ask for 80-140 rubles per 0.5 kg. composition.
  4. Inspect the dough for the presence, or rather absence, of foreign debris. The composition must move freely within the packaging and not stick to the film. The correct dough has a matte surface, the product is rolled into a roll.
  5. Study the label. On the reverse side you should find information about the manufacturer, supplier, production and packaging date. Particular attention is paid to the duration of storage; it should not be prohibitively long.
  6. The film in which the dough is placed must be hermetically sealed. The presence of holes or soldered areas indicates that the composition has previously been opened. It is also important to know how the dough was frozen.
  7. The number of layers is of particular importance. The larger it is, the softer, richer and more nutritious the finished baked goods will be. As a rule, dough with yeast has 30-40 layers, while without yeast the figure varies between 220-230 layers.
  8. Read the “Ingredients” column on the back of the package. Make sure the dough does not contain any harmful ingredients that you are not aware of. Make sure that there are no cracks or crusts on the surface of the product.

  1. Many housewives understand that the quality of the dough will be higher if you freeze it at home. After the procedure, the product is sent to the freezer; this move will help preserve its beneficial properties.
  2. Not everyone knows that not only “raw materials” can be frozen, but also finished products based on them. This includes buns, pies, dumplings and even bread. In this case, the shelf life will be 1.5-2 months.
  3. To properly freeze the prepared dough, roll it into a “sausage”, then chop into pieces. Wrap the products in a thick plastic bag. Make sure that no moisture gets into the packaging.
  4. Place the mixture in the freezer. Make sure that the cavity is set to the minimum temperature. This move will ensure quick setting. After two weeks, the temperature can be increased by 2 degrees.
  5. To increase shelf life up to 3 months, place finished dough pieces correctly. Place the yeast dough at a distance of 2 cm from each other, as it will begin to increase in size after freezing.
  6. It is important to remember that any frozen dough should be stored in the refrigerator for no longer than 4 months. After the specified period, the composition loses its properties, becomes less sticky and dries out. Do not re-freeze after partial use; throw leftovers in the trash.
  7. You can freeze it in foil. To do this, sprinkle the chopped pieces with flour and knead a little. When the surface becomes completely matte, wrap the product in foil. Keep air and moisture away.

Effective defrosting methods

There are several basic technologies that will help defrost the dough without damaging the structure. Particular attention is paid to the puff composition; it cannot be defrosted using thermal appliances.

Method No. 1. Natural conditions
This type of dough processing is also called slow, because the procedure takes place under natural conditions.

Open the package of dough and place it on a flat plate or cutting board. Leave for 4 hours at room temperature. During this period, the dough will thaw, as a result of which it can be used for cooking.

Turn the mixture over every hour to ensure even defrosting. If the dough is rolled, after 2 hours it can be unrolled.

If you have time, move the mixture from the freezer to the fruit and vegetable storage drawer (bottom of the refrigerator). In this way, the dough will defrost in 10-12 hours, it all depends on the portion size.

Method No. 2. Oven
Preheat the oven to 90 degrees. For 10 minutes, make sure that there are no fluctuations in the set mode.

Take a baking sheet, line it with 2 layers of parchment paper, sprinkle it with flour. Remove the dough from the packaging (!), then place it on a baking sheet.

Send the mixture into the cabinet cavity, stick to the middle shelf. The duration of defrosting is about 3 minutes, no longer. Throughout the entire period, you need to monitor the process so that the dough does not bake on top.

Method No. 3. Heating radiators
If it is not possible to use an oven, use heating appliances. You can use either a standard radiator or an oil heater. The method is suitable for defrosting dough in the cold season.

Place the product on a flat dish and place it on top of the heating device. Watch the process carefully, turn the dough every half hour.

It is important to prevent the formation of a crust, which usually appears during the chapping process. To do this, place a piece of cling film on the dough. The duration of defrosting depends on the room temperature. As practice shows, the dough becomes soft in 1.5-2 hours.

Method number 4. Microwave
In most cases, after defrosting in the microwave, the dough loses some of its taste. To prevent this, carry out a small preparatory phase.

Remove the mixture from the freezer and leave it on the middle or bottom shelf of the refrigerator for 45 minutes. During this period, the composition will soften, as a result of which defrosting will take place without compromising quality.

After preparation, begin the procedure. Remove the product from the packaging and place it in a microwave-safe glass container. Cover with a lid, leaving a small opening.

Set the power to about 90W or use the “Defrost” mode. It is difficult to say for sure how quickly the dough will defrost. It all depends on the individual characteristics of the device.

To begin with, set it for 10-15 minutes, after this period you can evaluate the result. Every 30 seconds, pause the microwave and turn the dough over.

This move will allow the composition to defrost evenly. Otherwise, a crust will appear on the surface or the dough will begin to bake locally.

Method No. 5. Water
Many housewives prefer to defrost the dough, as they say, the old fashioned way. For this, cold or room temperature water is used.

Prepare thick plastic bags without holes. You will need about 5-6 pieces. It is important that the liquid does not penetrate into the cavity, otherwise the dough will become unusable.

Wrap the product in plastic and tie tightly. Pour cold water into a bowl and lower the dough into the cavity. Remove it after 20 minutes.

Now fill the container with slightly warm water and put the dough inside again. Take it out after 35-50 minutes. During this period the product will defrost. To increase the effectiveness of the procedure, change the cooled water with warm water every 5-7 minutes.

Puff pastry is rightfully considered the most capricious, so defrosting must be approached wisely.

  1. It is important to remember forever that the product cannot be defrosted in a microwave or oven. For urgent defrosting, heating devices (stock heating or oil fireplace) are used.
  2. The best and most correct way is considered to be defrosting naturally. To do this, just leave the product at room temperature for 3-4 hours. Do not forget to cover the dough with cling film (can be replaced with gauze cloth).
  3. If you are in a hurry, use water defrost. However, there is no need to place the dough in warm liquid. The water should be at room temperature. Otherwise, the dough will lose its layer structure.
  4. If we are talking about puff pastry, there is another way. Wrap the frozen product in food foil and gauze. Turn on the gas burner, place the dough in a glass bowl and place it at a distance of 30-40 cm from the device.

There are not many ways to defrost dough at home. The fastest option is using a microwave or oven, but the methods listed are not suitable for puff pastry. You can leave the product at room temperature or place it in water. Choose the method you like and start implementing it.

Video: how to roll out puff pastry

There are many ways to quickly defrost dough, whether purchased at the store or homemade. In each individual case, you need to take into account the type of frozen preparation for dumplings or baked goods, so as not to spoil its structure and taste. The best method of thawing for all types of dough is defrosting at a temperature of +1-+3 degrees. To speed up the process, you can use a microwave, oven, heating devices, heating pads, a water bath and warm water.

Frozen dough

Most housewives use ready-made dough for baking, as this saves cooking time. Frozen semi-finished products are easy to quickly defrost.

In production, in order to keep the dough longer, it is frozen using shock technology. This product cannot be thawed or re-frozen. When transporting the product and storing it in the store, temperature standards for frozen products must be observed. Dough that has been stored correctly moves freely inside the package and does not stick to its surface. Pieces of ice, snow and other foreign inclusions should not be felt in it. The packaging must be sealed.

A very simple but slow way to defrost a product is to place it on the lowest shelf in the refrigerator. After about 10 hours it will thaw and you can cook with it. If the dough is defrosted this way, then it does not lose its properties, shape, taste and nutritional qualities.

6 ways to quickly defrost

Defrosting will save the housewife time:

  1. 1. At room temperature. The semi-finished product must be removed from the packaging, placed in a basin or saucepan, covered with a towel or napkin so that a crust does not form on top. Depending on the quantity, it will defrost in 2-5 hours.
  2. 2. Microwave. Place the semi-finished product inside and turn on the “defrost” mode. In 1-1.5 minutes it will be ready for baking. If the microwave oven does not have a defrost mode, you need to set the power to the lowest. With this method, every 15 seconds you need to turn the dough over and check that it does not start to bake right in the microwave.
  3. 3. Under hot water. The package with the semi-finished product must be additionally wrapped in several sealed plastic bags or cling film and immersed in water. After a couple of hours you can start cooking.
  4. 4. On the battery. During the heating season, the packaging should be placed on the radiator with a towel placed under it. After 1 hour, the dough will be ready for further use.
  5. 5. In the oven. To do this, you need to remove it from the package, spread it on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper, and place it in an oven heated to 70 degrees for 2-3 minutes. With this method of defrosting, you need to carefully monitor the dough so as not to dry it out.
  6. 6. In a water bath. To do this, place the container with the dough over an open pan of boiling water. When defrosting in this way, you need to constantly monitor so that the dough does not stick to the bottom and does not cook from below.

These are the most common defrosting methods. Which one to use depends on the available equipment in the kitchen and the experience of the housewife. The most important thing is to follow the basic rule: before any method of defrosting, the dough removed from the freezer must lie in the refrigerator for 20 minutes. This will preserve the taste characteristics of the product and the beneficial substances in its composition.

Types of dough and their quick defrosting

Each type of test has its own characteristics. Cooking uses ingredients that react differently to rapid increases in temperature. The final structure of the product, lumps or layers, also requires a differentiated approach to defrosting.

This is an important process on which the final result - the taste and appearance of baked goods - depends.

Yeast

Yeast dough is very capricious. If you violate the defrosting technology, the yeast will stop working and the dough will not rise. This dough does not tolerate sudden increases in temperature. To speed up the defrosting process, the semi-finished product must be wrapped in several plastic bags and placed in warm water with a temperature of no more than 60 C. It must be changed every 5 minutes.

It is possible to use a water bath. In this case, it is imperative to turn the semi-finished product over every 1-2 minutes, otherwise it will cook from below, stick to the bottom of the pan and will not rise when baking the product.

Defrosting in the microwave is not permitted. With this method of thawing, the yeast loses its properties.

Puff pastry without yeast

Yeast-free dough is not fussy and there are more ways to quickly defrost it. But it also does not tolerate microwave use. Otherwise, the layers will stick together and, during baking, the main characteristic of the dough - its flakiness - will be lost.

If you buy a semi-finished product in the form of plates, and not rolled into a roll, then by placing it near a heating device, after half an hour you can use it for cooking.

This dough tolerates a water bath and defrosting in warm water well. During normal thawing without packaging, it must be covered with a plastic bag or napkin to prevent a dried crust from forming.

Philo

This is a dough consisting of sheets as thick as a paper sheet. The structure is similar to puff pastry. But its sheets are thinner, and its base is fresh. It is sold frozen and can be stored without defrosting for up to six months. The only way to defrost dough phyllo - on a shelf in the refrigerator at a temperature from +1 to +3 degrees.

Yeast dough is a very delicate thing, and not everyone can prepare it well. Therefore, some people buy it already frozen and the question arises how to defrost yeast dough correctly. It happens that there is a lot of dough and unused yeast dough can be frozen and used at the right time.

How to defrost yeast dough correctly?

There are several ways to defrost yeast dough, but the most correct ones that preserve all the properties of yeast require time:

1. Try defrost the dough in the refrigerator. To do this, simply place it on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator and leave it overnight.

2. You can defrost yeast dough at room temperature. This process will take about 1-3 hours, depending on the amount of yeast dough. First, you need to remove the dough from the packaging. Place the frozen dough on a silicone mat or cutting board and leave in the room.

How to quickly defrost yeast dough?

If you need to cook something quickly and don’t have time to wait for the dough to thaw naturally, you can use the following tips:

1. Place the frozen yeast dough in a plastic bag and place it in warm water. This way you can defrost the dough in a shorter period of time.

2. Place the dough in a plastic bag, wrap it in a towel and place it on the lid of a hot pan, radiator. Carefully turn the dough over to ensure even defrosting.

3. Transfer the dough into a pan and place on a warm stove next to the lit burners. Do not place on the burners!

4. The dough can be defrosted using water bath, but be careful not to let it stick to the bottom of the container.

5. Defrosting yeast dough in the microwave

How to defrost yeast dough in the microwave?

You can defrost yeast dough in the microwave, but good housewives do not like this method: it is believed that the yeast loses its properties and usefulness.

When defrosting in a microwave oven, you need to be careful and first read the instructions about choosing power and time. If there is no defrosting function, then it will do power 80-100 W.

Place the dough on 45 seconds and periodically turn it from side to side, otherwise the top layer will dry out and the inner layer will remain stone. If necessary, you can increase the defrosting time, but carefully monitor the process. Yeast dough must be removed from the microwave before it heats up.

How to cook from frozen yeast dough?

After defrosting the yeast dough, proceed to forming the desired products (pie, pizza, pies, etc.). And then leave the finished products for some time in a warm place.

Dough is the main ingredient in most dishes, so women used to use all sorts of tricks and secrets to prepare it.

But given the modern rhythm of life, many housewives skip this stage, buy the dough in the store and, of course, want to quickly defrost the dough, so it will probably be useful for them to read various methods.

This article will help you qualitatively (i.e., without changing the structure) defrost the dough; all existing and current methods are proposed!

Method 1

  1. After unpacking, simply leave the dough on a plate for 4 hours.
  2. Turn the composition over every hour so that the process proceeds evenly; The dough may have been folded, in which case you can unroll it after two hours.
  3. If possible, you can place the dough at the bottom of the refrigerator, then it will defrost itself within half a day.
  4. The defrosting process in this way will last about three minutes, but you must control the process so that the dough does not bake.

Method 2

  1. Set the oven temperature to ninety, wait until it becomes stable
  2. Place parchment paper on a baking sheet, preferably in 2 layers, sprinkle with flour and place the dough on it.
  3. The defrosting process in this way will last about three minutes, but you must control the process so that the mass does not bake.

Method 3

If anyone has tried to defrost dough in the microwave, then they know that its taste deteriorates significantly, and sometimes is completely lost.

To prevent this from happening after removing it from the freezer, leave it in the refrigerator, approximately in the middle part, for about an hour. During this time, the dough will go through the preparatory stage of defrosting, but at the same time without loss of taste.

After preparation, begin the procedure:

  1. Transfer the dough from the wrapping paper into a special microwave glass container, cover with a lid, leaving a small hole.
  2. How quickly defrosting occurs depends only on the microwave oven; you can set it for 90 seconds or turn on a special mode, if there is one.
  3. Set the time for about 10 minutes to start, then check the result. After this, stop the microwave every half a minute and turn the dough over so that it does not bake on one side. This method is good because the dough defrosts very evenly, and you have complete control over the entire process.

Method 4

Many housewives, although they buy ready-made dough, defrost it the old way, namely with warm or room temperature water.

  1. It is necessary to prepare several thick plastic bags without holes or holes - they will contain dough, and if water gets in there, it will become unusable.
  2. Place the frozen food in a bag, tie a knot very tightly and submerge it in a bowl of water (preferably at room temperature). After 20 minutes, look: if the dough has defrosted, then remove it from the water.
  3. Next, you need to repeat the following procedure for about an hour: put the bag with the mass in warm water, hold it, when the water has cooled, change it, this needs to be done at approximately intervals of 5-7 minutes, for complete defrosting.