kneading or rolling dough?

Question

When you put dough on a lightly floured surface, does it always have to be on a floured pastry cloth? Or is that just with pie crusts? I have a silicone mat and most doughs i make stick to it.

Answer 1

Isn't the 'silicone mat' for BAKING, not for 'rolling or kneading' your dough. I know that it's FLAT and looks like it could be used for the 'rolling or kneading' but it's meant to go in the oven ... we put a 'regular cookie sheet' under ours, but it helps the 'bottoms' brown nicely and not burn ... but the 'silicone' has a 'weird structure' that seems to 'reject' the 'flour' when you are rolling or kneading ... I'd get a 'glass' or 'marble' cutting board and use that if you don't want to use a 'pastry cloth' ... it's a LOT EASIER to 'keep clean' and you don't want to 'harbor bacteria' which you can do with a 'cloth' or 'plastic' or 'wooden' board.

Answer 2

While you can use a silicone mat for kneading and rolling you will have to cover it with flour. When you are kneading dough you are doing it to break up the gluten and most of the time add more flour to it.

Personally I prefer either a plain old clean counter top or if I want to really look impressive a a wooden butcher block to knead bread on.

Answer 3

I use my pastry cloth strickly for pastry. Kneading dough can be done by flouring your surface and kneading the dough which incorporates some of the flour from your surface. Once the dough is nice and smooth, that's it.

Answer 4

i always use my marble counter top dusted with flour and it works perfect for rolling and kneading dough. if you use the silicone mat, make sure you put plenty of flour on it so the dough doesn't stick.