Can you freeze bread dough when it's done proofing to bake later?

Question

Has anyone put bread dough in the freezer overnight (covered), and then tried to bake it straight out of the freezer?

I believe you can put it in the fridge, and then straight into the oven from there without issues.

I am wondering specifically two things:

• Would the bread's structure/flavor be compromised by freezing?
• Would the middle not cook enough?
  • The state change from freezing to non freezing takes much more energy than warming the temperature
  • The dough as a whole would be colder than any fridge proofed loaf

I also intend to try this in the next few days, so I will update regardless

Answer 1

Seth, I make pizza dough all the time. I make about 4-6 rounds each time and then freeze them. It works just fine!

My method: Depending on your dough, you need several stages of proofing. With pizza dough, I generally do the fast, slow, and extra slow method. Meaning it starts at the optimal temp for a fast rise within a warm and moist environment. The second is less warm and still moist. The moisture comes from a damp cloth or covered container/bowl. The third rise comes after. I roll the dough into small balls (or whatever shape you desire for bread) and then placing them in the fridge on a plate with some plastic wrap over the top.

Now, the third step is when I decide which pizza dough balls are the lucky ones. I'll freeze the rest that don't make it in the fridge. !!The important part is that the shape is intact when you freeze it.!!

This nearly stops or completely stops the proofing process of the dough. When I want to make more pizza, I take the dough out the night before and let the final proofing stage begin.

Note: I have found that this method works perfectly within 2-3 weeks of putting the dough in the freezer. I got mixed results after that time period where the dough would sometimes become thin and cracker-like. Still good pizza! But not the best.

Hope this helps! I've been making pizza dough for over 12 years. @Restaurants and @home.

Answer 2

So I waited about 3 weeks because I was on vacation since I put my loaf in the freezer. Some notes on the dough structure

1. The dough was fully proofed, but that meant that the structure very much resembled a cracker. It would be stiff until you broke into it, at which point it would break & collapse into itself irreparably
2. The dough was frozen into the container, so I waited about 1.5 hours for it to thaw out. That meant that the core of the dough was frozen while the outside was thawed
   • Fortunately, the thawed dough was still just as moist as it had been went into the freezer
3. I could not score the loaf because the interior was too frozen. The loaf therefore came out without any perforations in the top. This, along with the frozen interior, likely severely limited oven spring. I expected the non-frozen version of this loaf to have double the volume.
4. The flavor is pretty bland, unfortunately. Overall, would not recommend unless in an emergency!