Do pannetone and ciabatta burn out your KitchenAid?

[BAPyessir6]

1. Higher hydration (ciabatta) dough, I find, is hard to work with as it can lose its gas pretty quickly due to either not being gentle with the dough during forming or not doing slap golds/stretch golds good enough. I therefore want to improve my technique with high hydration doughs.

2. I bought a pannetone from Aldi the other day to try it, and it was SUPER strong of cocoa liquor. Like alcoholic. (I realize I don't like a super strong alcoholic taste in food). And I figured if I make it homemade, I can lessen/eliminate that taste. I therefore also wanna make pannetone soon.

I have heard, however, that high hydration doughs and pannetone both (pannetone takes forever to mix, though I don't know if it's a "high hydration doughs" as I haven't looked at it, while ciabatta takes forever to mix as it's a high hydration doughs that needs strength to rise.

THE QUESTION HERE!:

Due to taking forever to mix, people say that these doughs (Pannetone and ciabatta's high hydration) can burn out your KitchenAid faster if you make them regularly. I have a bread maker from my mom so it's fine, but for future reference, do I need to worry about high hydration doughs making my KitchenAid struggle? Is a bread maker better to mix these doughs?

Or is it better to work these doughs by hand?

And another question: is overworking a ciabatta dough harder due to the high hydration? Or easier? Or the same? (I hear KitchenAid kneads your dough like twice as fast than kneading by hand does. I know it's an experience thing, but I'm curious as to how quickly on average that overworking happens).

 

[medtran49]

It's more the amount of dough. I stripped a gear in my KA years ago making a triple recipe of pizza dough.

 

[Andy M.]

A high hydration dough should be easier to knead in a KA because it's softer/less firm. The issue with overload is if you mix too much dough at once.

My experience is similar to medtran's. I used to make bagels in larger quantities. It was struggle for my KA. Stripped the plastic gear. I cut down the size of the dough in the mixer at one time and it's been fine since.

 

[pepperhead212]

I agree with Andy - it seems the firmer doughs, like bagels, would strain the machines, more than the higher hydration doughs. And the sticky, high hydration doughs are much easier in a mixer!

 

[Kathleen]

Our first KA was also a victim of bagel-making. Smaller amounts are important now.

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

I don't have a KitchenAid mixer. I used to, but it was stolen by those unscrupulous movers I hired. I have a Wolfgang Puck universal mixer, which would work for dough,

but I have found it much easier to use a bread machine.

 

[HeyItsSara]

I'm also a bread machine girl!