I read that most home bakers overmix their cookie dough by a lot

I was reading a baking blog last night and it said like 80% of people mix their dough for over a minute after adding flour (which is way too long, apparently). I tried mixing my chocolate chip dough for just 30 seconds today and the cookies came out so much softer and chewier. How long do you all usually mix for?

4 comments

4 Comments

ryanc7116d agoMost Upvoted

Evan saying "stop as soon as the flour disappears" is right, but there's a hidden step. The real trick is mixing your wet ingredients until they're totally smooth BEFORE you add the flour. If you don't do that first, you end up overmixing later trying to get rid of lumps. So the clock starts after the flour goes in, but the battle is won or lost before that.

evan_harris616d ago

Wait 80% of people mix for over a minute? That's actually insane, I thought everyone knew to stop as soon as the flour disappears. I've been doing like 15 seconds max after adding the dry stuff.

wilson.olivia4d ago

That "battle is won or lost before" adding the flour, like @ryanc71 said, is such a good point. It reminds me of how a lot of small mistakes happen because we skip the basic prep step. Getting the wet stuff smooth first just sets you up to barely mix the flour, which makes all the difference.

nancy_wood16d ago

Well, I'm probably in that 80% because my cookies could double as hockey pucks. I guess I just get nervous and keep stirring, thinking more mixing means more even. Turns out it just means more tough.

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