Baking Better Bread: Your Guide to Clean Label Production

Isn’t bread just one of the most fundamental and comforting foods we have? From a simple slice of toast to a crusty artisan loaf, it’s a staple enjoyed across the globe. But like many areas of our food world, bread is also undergoing a transformation, driven by the powerful clean label movement.

We’ve talked before about the growing desire for foods with simple, recognizable ingredients – free from artificial additives, preservatives, colours, and flavours. Consumers are increasingly reading labels, wanting to know exactly what’s in their food and opting for products that feel more natural and wholesome. And because bread is such a staple, creating clean label bread is a fantastic way for bakers to build trust and loyalty with health-conscious customers.

But let’s be honest, making great bread, especially on a larger scale, often involved using specific functional ingredients – things like dough conditioners (SSL, DATEM) or artificial preservatives (sorbates, propionates) – that helped ensure consistency, good texture, and a decent shelf life. These are often the very ingredients that don’t fit the clean label philosophy.

So, can bakers produce delicious, high-quality bread with that desirable soft texture and reasonable freshness, without relying on these traditional additives? Absolutely! It requires a fresh look at both the recipe and the bread production process, embracing natural ingredients and innovative techniques. Let’s explore how clean label bread production is not just possible, but thriving.

What Exactly is “Clean Label Bread”?

Building on the general idea of “clean label,” clean label bread typically means a loaf made with:

• A Short, Simple Ingredient List: Featuring names consumers easily recognize and might even have in their own kitchens (flour, water, yeast, salt, perhaps sugar, oil, milk, eggs).
• No Artificial Additives: This means avoiding common chemical dough conditioners like SSL (Sodium Stearoyl Lactylate) and DATEM (Diacetyl Tartaric Acid Esters of Monoglycerides).
• No Artificial Preservatives: Steering clear of synthetic mold inhibitors like calcium propionate or potassium sorbate.
• No Artificial Colours or Flavours.
• Potentially Avoiding GMOs: Ingredients like high-fructose corn syrup (often derived from genetically modified corn) would typically be excluded.

Often, the clean label concept overlaps with other desirable attributes:

• Organic: Using certified organic wheat, sugar, honey, milk, etc.
• Gluten-Free: While distinct, clean label principles apply equally to gluten-free bread, focusing on natural flours and binders.
• Vegan: Using plant-based ingredients instead of animal-derived ones (like milk or honey).

The challenge lies in removing the functional ingredients many bakers relied upon, without sacrificing the quality consumers expect.

Rethinking the Recipe: Clean Label Ingredient Swaps

The first step in creating clean label bread is often reformulating the recipe, finding natural alternatives for conventional additives. This requires understanding the function of the ingredient being replaced. Here are some key areas and common ingredient replacement strategies:

Flour Power: The Foundation

• Organic Wheat: Using certified organic wheat flour is a straightforward way to appeal to the natural/organic segment.
• Gluten-Free & Ancient Grains: For clean label and gluten-free options, bakers turn to flours from tree nuts, pseudo-cereals (like quinoa, buckwheat), or even gluten-free ancient/heritage wheat varieties (like certain specific types of Khorasan wheat, spelt, emmer, einkorn – note: while ancient wheats, spelt, emmer & einkorn do contain gluten, it’s sometimes tolerated differently, but they aren’t suitable for celiacs).
• Whole Grains & Rye: Incorporating whole wheat or rye flour adds flavour, fibre, and aligns with the wholesome image, as seen in the example formula later.

Sweeteners, Fats, Liquids

• Natural Sweeteners: Replacing corn syrup with cane sugar, honey, or maple syrup.
• Fats: Using vegetable oils, butter, or exploring newer options (like the algae butter mentioned in a previous article).
• Liquids: Using organic milk or plant-based alternatives (like almond, soy, or oat milk) for vegan options.

Dough Improvers/Conditioners: Replacing Chemical Strength

This is a crucial area. DATEM and SSL are powerful dough strengtheners and crumb softeners. Replacing them requires clever alternatives:

• Vital Wheat Gluten (VWG): Adding concentrated wheat protein directly boosts dough strength and structure. It’s effective but can be expensive and adds gluten (obviously not for gluten-free).
• Yeast-Based Dough Improvers: Specially developed yeast extracts or inactive yeasts can provide conditioning effects, improving dough handling and volume. The source suggests using 0.1-0.2% of these novel improvers.
• Enzymes: These are biological catalysts and star players in clean label bread production. Specific enzymes (like glucose oxidase, xylanase, amylase, lipase, phospholipase) can strengthen gluten, improve dough extensibility, increase water absorption, enhance volume, soften the crumb, and even extend shelf life. They are often considered “processing aids” and may not always require labeling (depending on regulations), making them very attractive for clean labels. Enzyme blends are often used to replace DATEM, SSL, and other conditioners like L-cysteine or ADA.
• Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C): A natural oxidant that helps strengthen the gluten network. Often used in combination with enzymes.

Shelf Life Extension: Natural Anti-Mold Solutions

Replacing artificial preservatives like sorbates and propionates is key for clean label bread. Strategies include:

• Controlling Water Activity: As discussed previously, less “free” water means less chance for mold. Ingredients like sugar, honey, salt, and some gums help bind water. Proper baking to achieve the right final moisture content is also critical.
• Natural Acids: Vinegar (acetic acid) is a common and effective natural mold inhibitor. Prune juice concentrate and raisin juice concentrate also contain natural acids and sugars that contribute to preservation.
• Cultured Ingredients: Cultured wheat or cultured whey contain organic acids produced naturally during fermentation, which inhibit mold growth.
• Spices: Cinnamon and clove possess natural antimicrobial properties, though their strong flavours limit their use to specific bread types.
• Enzymes: Certain enzymes can indirectly contribute by improving texture and slowing staling, making the bread palatable for longer, though they don’t directly kill mold.

Antioxidants: Keeping Fats Fresh

• The Need: While less critical in lean bread formulas, antioxidants prevent fats/oils from going rancid, especially in enriched breads or those with fatty inclusions.
• Clean Label Options: Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) acts as an antioxidant. Certain enzymes can also help. For richer products, natural extracts like rosemary extract or mixed tocopherols (Vitamin E) are options.

Emulsifiers: Natural Blending Agents

• The Role: Emulsifiers help blend oil and water components smoothly.
• Clean Label Choice: Lecithin, typically derived from soy or sunflower, is a widely accepted natural emulsifying agent. Certain proteins and fibers can also have emulsifying effects.

Beyond Ingredients: Process Adjustments for Cleaner Baking

Simply swapping ingredients isn’t always enough. Achieving high-quality clean label bread often involves optimizing the bread production process itself:

Enhancing Hydration Naturally

• Longer Fermentation: Techniques like using a preferment (a portion of dough mixed ahead of time, like a sponge or poolish) or including a “brew” step (a liquid ferment) allow the flour to hydrate more fully over time. This naturally develops dough strength, structure, and flavour, reducing the need for chemical conditioners.

Gentle Dough Handling

• Stress-Free Systems: Traditional dough conditioners help dough withstand the intense mechanical stress of high-speed mixers and dividers. When removing these conditioners, using gentler mixing techniques and “stress-free” dividing and handling systems (which stretch and cut the dough more gently) becomes more important to avoid damaging the naturally developed gluten structure. These systems might be slower but can significantly shorten the ingredient list.

Improving Shelf Life Through Process Control

• Optimized Baking (Thermal Profiling): Carefully controlling the temperature profile throughout the baking process and ensuring the bread is baked sufficiently to drive off excess moisture (without over-baking and causing dryness) is crucial. A lower final water activity naturally inhibits mold growth.
• Sanitation & Cooling: Preventing contamination after baking is paramount. Using cooling systems (like spiral coolers or cooling racks) that are easy to clean and sanitize effectively reduces the microbial load.
• Air Filtration: Implementing efficient air filtration systems in the cooling and packaging areas minimizes the chance of airborne mold spores landing on the finished product before it’s sealed. These process controls reduce the reliance on chemical mold inhibitors.

Leveraging Enzymes as Processing Aids

• The Advantage: As mentioned, enzymes are powerful tools. Because they are often deactivated by the heat of baking and act as catalysts during the process, they are frequently classified as “processing aids” in many regions. This means they might not need to be listed on the final ingredient label, making them ideal for achieving functional benefits while maintaining a very clean label.
• Multiple Benefits: Enzymes can replace oxidizing agents, improve dough handling (machinability), increase volume by strengthening the gluten’s gas-holding capacity, stabilize the dough to prevent collapse during proofing and baking, soften the crumb for better shelf life (by modifying starch), and help maintain optimal product characteristics like pH and moisture.

A Step-by-Step Approach to Clean Label Formulation

Switching to a clean label formula can feel daunting. The source material suggests a methodical approach:

1. Target One Ingredient: Don’t try to change everything at once. Select a single conventional ingredient you want to replace (e.g., DATEM).
2. Understand its Function(s): Thoroughly analyze all the roles that ingredient plays in your current formula (e.g., DATEM provides dough strength, tolerance, and some crumb softening).
3. Find a Clean Alternative: Research and select a clean label ingredient (or blend, often involving enzymes) that offers similar functionality.
4. Bake and Compare: Develop a test batch using the alternative. Critically compare the resulting bread (texture, volume, flavour, handling, shelf life) against your original control sample.
5. Adjust and Repeat: If the results aren’t quite right, adjust the usage level of the alternative or try a different one. Once you’ve successfully replaced that one ingredient and achieved the desired quality, move on to the next ingredient on your list.

This systematic process helps manage the complexity and ensures you maintain product quality throughout the reformulation.

Example: A Clean Label Bread Formula

The source provides an example formula that incorporates several clean label principles:

• Flour Blend: Uses a mix of white hard wheat flour, whole wheat flour, and rye flour for flavour and fibre. (Could be organic for an organic claim).
• Hydration: Uses both water and milk (could be plant-based for vegan).
• Sweetener: Uses honey (a natural sweetener).
• Yeast: Standard compressed yeast for leavening.
• Fat: Vegetable oil for lubrication and some richness.
• Dough Conditioner Replacement: Uses a specific commercial enzyme blend explicitly designed to replace DATEM, SSL, MDG, etc.
• Oxidant: Uses Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) for gluten strengthening.
• Natural Preservative: Uses Vinegar (acetic acid) for mold inhibition.

This example illustrates how natural ingredients and specialized enzyme blends can come together to create a functional and appealing clean label bread.

Tackling Specific Clean Label Challenges

Bakers often face specific hurdles when reformulating:

• Frozen Dough: Making clean label frozen dough requires ingredients that provide tolerance to the stresses of freezing and thawing. Specific enzyme blends designed for frozen dough applications can strengthen the dough and improving gas retention even after freezing.
• Straight Dough Process: For simpler “straight dough” processes (where all ingredients are mixed at once without preferments), replacing chemical conditioners relies heavily on effective enzyme blends that provide dough strength, volume enhancement, and shelf life stability all in one package.

Final Thoughts: Embracing Clean Label Baking

The movement towards clean label food is clearly here to stay, and bread production is right at the heart of it. Consumers want the simple goodness of bread made with ingredients they trust. While this means moving away from some traditional functional additives, it doesn’t mean sacrificing quality.

As we’ve seen, achieving excellent clean label bread is a combination of smart ingredient replacement – leveraging the power of natural ingredients like cultured whey, vinegar, lecithin, and especially versatile enzymes – and thoughtful process adjustments, such as longer fermentation, gentler handling, and optimized baking and cooling protocols.

It requires a good understanding of ingredient functionality, a willingness to experiment, and partnerships with suppliers offering innovative clean label solutions. By embracing these approaches, bakers can confidently meet consumer demand, reduce reliance on artificial additives, and continue producing delicious, wholesome bread that truly nourishes. The future of bread looks bright, and delightfully clean!