The mind behind the IACP-nominated, bread-baking newsletter Wordloaf, Andrew Janjigian is also a recipe developer, writer, teacher, and photographer. For 11 years, Andrew was a test cook and editor at Cook’s Illustrated, and he has developed recipes for publications as varied as Serious Eats, King Arthur Baking, and Epicurious.

Andrew Janjigian

At some point in every bread baker’s life, they decide to up the water content of their dough. Adding more water to dough can be beneficial—greater loft, a more tender crumb, more extensibility, longer shelf life—but high-hydration doughs are notoriously challenging to work with. They can be difficult to shape because they’re so sticky.Luckily, there’s a simple trick to making high-hydration doughs easy to work with: Use wet hands. Yup, that’s it. With a little practice, you’ll be slinging high-hydro doughs like you’re playing with Play-Doh.WHAT YOU’LL NEED:
High-hydration dough
Small container of water
<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Full-Circle-Service-Refillable-Bottle/dp/B07YP974TK?tag=chefsteps02-20">Spray bottle</a> of water

Tips & Tricks: How to Handle High-Hydration Doughs