Bread

Bread is one of the oldest foods in the world. People have been making bread for thousands of years. It is made by mixing flour with water and then baking it. Many kinds of bread also use yeast to help them rise and get fluffy. Bread comes in many shapes, sizes, and flavors. You can find it in almost every country.

How Bread Is Made

Bread starts with flour. Flour is made from grains like wheat. A baker mixes the flour with water, salt, and yeast. Yeast is a tiny living thing that makes the dough puff up. The baker kneads the dough by pushing and folding it. Then the dough rests and grows bigger. After that, it goes into a hot oven. The heat turns the dough into warm, soft bread with a golden crust.

Kinds of Bread

There are many kinds of bread around the world. White bread and whole wheat bread are common in sandwiches. French baguettes are long and crunchy. Italian focaccia is flat and soft. Indian naan is baked in a hot clay oven. Mexican tortillas are thin and round. Bagels are chewy and shaped like rings. Each country has its own special bread that people love to eat.

Fun Facts

• People have been baking bread for more than 10,000 years.
• The smell of fresh bread comes from more than 500 different scents mixed together.
• The largest loaf of bread ever made weighed over 3,000 pounds.

Did You Know?

The hole in the middle of a bagel was made so bakers could stack them on a stick to sell on the street.