A pastry chef in Phoenix changed my mind about chilling dough overnight

I used to think resting croissant dough overnight was a waste of fridge space, but last Saturday I talked to a pastry chef at a coffee shop in Phoenix while waiting for my latte. She said her place rests everything at least 18 hours because the gluten relaxes way more and the butter layers stay distinct, which gives a flakier crumb. I tried her method on my next batch, 12 croissants, and the difference was honestly shocking, the shape held better and the rise was taller. I'd been rushing with 2 hour chills for years because I thought longer drying meant cracking. Now I'm wondering, how long do other bakers rest laminated doughs, and do you adjust for humidity? Just curious if I'm still missing something.

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brooke44817d ago

wait, nobody's mentioned the hydration angle yet... if Phoenix is dry, that dough is losing moisture way faster than somewhere humid, so the 18 hour rest might be doing double duty there... you might need to adjust your water content if you're in a muggy climate, otherwise you get cracking from the outside drying out too fast... interesting how one city's chef solved a problem that might not even exist the same way elsewhere.