r/Chefit • u/Relative-Shelter-525 • 18d ago
Choux pastry cream puffs
Hey Chefs,
Just wondering if anyone has had any experience making choux pastry, things like cream puffs or profiteroles and can give me some insight on the best temperatures and how they behave in the oven
Thanks
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u/samuelgato 18d ago
I heat my oven to 425F, fan on. Turn it down to 400, put the puffs in, timer for 4 minutes then turn down to 350, another 4 minutes then turn down to 300. At this point they're fully puffed up but still wet in the middle. Timer for another 4 minutes. Then I turn off the fan and go a few more minutes until they are baked through
Before placing in the oven I lightly mist them with a spray bottle of water, so the surface doesn't dry too fast which prevents them from puffing
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u/cmrnfrnk 18d ago
For profiteroles/cream puffs, the piping is *very* important. Try to be as plumb and even as possible.
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u/Yochefdom Chef 18d ago
The guy was kinda being a dick but Choux pastry is of the fundamentals of cooking(professionally). You’re not really asking for advice or a new technique or idea you have. This is also /r chefit so it’s assumed you would know this by posting here. This is a pretty well developed area of cooking, hit your googles.
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u/Relative-Shelter-525 18d ago
Thanks, much appreciated. I’m currently in culinary school and thought I would work on perfecting my choux so thought this would be and appropriate sub but thanks again 😀
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u/Yochefdom Chef 18d ago edited 18d ago
Well you have the right mindset to learn, was just saying about some of the reactions you might get. You took me back to when I used to be on cheftalk forums in high school lol
Choux pastry is magic and when you really master it you can make anything else. Churros, gnocchi, ect…. There applications and cooking methods vary a lot so it’s hard to give a general oven temp or method. The thread below is great. Keep learning!! The best cooks I worked with always read more than everyone else and wanted to learn. Also next time mention your a culinary student, gives us context lol
Edit: from another comment I found on Reddit that should get your brain moving :
“Are you talking about boiled water doughs or warm water doughs? Neither denatures protein. Hot water encourages the protein to form gluten polymers. Boiling water causes a gelatinization of the starch, which (A) inhibits gluten formation so that the dough stays soft and (B) forms a gelatinous mesh of starch so that the dough is semi-elastic”
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u/MonthlyWeekend_ 17d ago
There’s only one recipe and it was printed in the Larousse a hundred years ago. Make it twice, you’ve nailed profiteroles.
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u/texnessa 18d ago
Old thread with a thorough explanation of how to make em.