Pale Crust
A crust that stays light and dull instead of browning.
A crust that comes out light and dull instead of deep golden brown. Browning comes from the Maillard reaction and caramelization, and both need heat, time, and sugars at the surface. A pale loaf usually means the bake was too short or the oven too cool, or the dough fermented so long that the yeast and bacteria ate most of the sugars that would have browned.
By Henry Hunter · Updated
Henry's notes from the bench
- Bake it darker than you think. Most of the flavor in a crust is in the color, and a well-browned loaf tastes like bread should.
Diagnose and fix
Crust is pale even though the bake time matched the recipe
Check your oven with an oven thermometer. Many home ovens run cooler than the dial says. Bake longer, until the crust is deeply colored.
Pale crust and a sour, slack loaf
Likely overfermented, so there's little sugar left to brown. Shorten bulk or the final proof.
Pale top with a Dutch oven
Take the lid off for the last part of the bake so the steam escapes and the crust can color.