Flour, yeast, salt and water: that’s all I put in my bread

In what feels like a former life, I was a purchasing assistant at Coop Switzerland. The job entailed being in charge of baked goods among other products. Back in the day, Coop ran its own production facility in Pratteln near Basel. The site produced mixes for large bakeries, for example. My notion of a small, cosy bakery where each loaf is lovingly kneaded before being baked in a wood fire was shattered. It was also the first time I heard the term L-cysteine.

Urban legend or truth?

The production manager at the time told me the following story: to prep hair for a perm, Asian hair salons use cysteine instead of the strong-smelling thioglycolic acid commonly used in Europe. Allegedly, this makes hair that hasn’t been treated with thioglycolic acid interesting for industrial use. He added that this was also why many women in Asia let their hair grow, then cut it off and sell it. These hairs are then used for the production of L-cysteine and end up in our bread.

However, he was unable to explain why untreated Asian hair, of all things, is perfect for the baked goods industry. He said that was a story for another time and one the industry is keeping quiet about.

Production, not baking

Bread is an industrial product that’s produced as efficiently as possible, i.e. with as little effort as possible. For this purpose, wholesale bakeries buy ready-made baking mixes, process them into dough and finally into bread. What’s key for the bakery is that the dough is as easy to process as possible. And this is where L-cysteine comes into play alongside many other ingredients.

L-cysteine is an amino acid and used in the baking industry because, put simply, it softens gluten. This makes the dough more elastic and quicker to develop. In combination with high-gluten flour, you can achieve a higher dough volume. This is because the leavening gas, such as the carbon dioxide produced by the yeast, can fluff up the dough more easily. In short, this means more volume and less work for the baker, who can then produce more bread in less time.

I’ve no idea if the story about human hair in bread is actually true. I reckon it’s an urban legend. Nevertheless, I’ve never been able to get that story out of my head. Not even after 30 years. It’s one of the reasons I started baking my own bread a few years ago.

Baking instead of producing

I came across this simple recipe:

• 200 grammes «Ruchmehl» (type flour 1100)
• 200 grammes spelt flour
• 3 dl water
• 1 tsp dry yeast
• 2 tsp salt

Combine everything in a bowl, cover and leave the dough to rise for a few hours without kneading. Place baking paper on a baking tray and dust with a little flour. Place your dough on the tray, dust with a little flour and put in a preheated oven at 250 degrees. Pre-bake for twelve minutes and finish baking at 185 degrees for a further twelve minutes. No need for an expensive bread-making machine nor a sourdough you need to look after for the rest of your days.

Although this simple recipe may not produce the «best» bread, it does make bread that’s amazing value for money. Similar to the coffee you get with Lavazza and a Bialetti:

And before the sourdough faction has a go at me: I know, I know. Sourdough bread with those digestive substances including non-fermentable fibre and prebiotics is much better for me than yeast. It feeds the good bacteria in your gut and means regularly eating sourdough bread can have a positive effect on your gut health and digestive system.

However, my family already includes two cats and a dog that need to be looked after when we’re away on vacation. We simply don’t have the capacity for another pet, i.e. a lump of sourdough that needs to be fed regularly and looked after.