Dough Bowl

[Bill Bulloch]

I have been ask several times this past month about a Dough Bowl. I know what they are, but have never actually seen or held one in my sweaty little hands. So what do I need to know about them in order to turn one that will be recognize as one?

Some concerns are:

1. How big should it be -- Diameter, Height? Is one size more adventageous than another?

2. Wall Thickness: I know it shouldn't be to thin or to thick, so what would be an ideal thickness?

3. Wood type: What would be a good wood for this project? Would Walnut, Poplar, Magnolia or White Oak work (I have plenty of these)?

4. Shape. What would be the ideal shape for the bowl? Should the inside walls turn to a graual rounded bottom or be straighter like a salad bowl?

5. Footing. Should it have a large foot for stability, or should it have a rounded bottom with a small or with no foot to allow it to tilt while kneading the dough?

6. Finish. Are there any particular oils that work best for this type utility?

7. Any other considerations I should be looking at?

Does anyone have pictures of Dough Bowls they have made that they can post?

[Josh Bowman]

Bill, I'm new to turning, but have been an amateur biscuit maker for years. Dough is heavy, the bowl needs a good footing and bottom weight to keep it from moving around. Getting dough, even a small amount in a bowl, with your hands and utensils requires a large open form. Dough is sticky, so it wants to climb out of the bowl, so deep and steep is nice. So I guess for me, anyway, I would want a heavy bottomed, big mouthed, tall bowl. Also, the sticky part, means it needs to be finished so it can be washed easily.

[Al Wasser]

I've seen a couple of dough bowls but it has been a while. In general they are large. I suggest you ask the person asking you what they want -- size, shape, etc. I will make a big difference if the cook makes a 2 loaf recipe or 4 loaf. I would use a wood like maple and an oil finish like walnut oil.

[Bill Embrey]

Bill, I have not made a dough bowl, but the wife and I spend a lot of time in antique shops and such and I've seen hundreds of wooden bowls referred to as "dough bowls". Typically, they are more of a trough and carved rather than a round bowl, but one of these examples was marked as a dough bowl and is round:

[Richard Coers]

Just from reading, no personal experiences, but a true dough bowl should be oval. It needs the length to roll the dough, and the long base to keep stable. So a round one may work, but you need gently sloping walls, and a wide base. So that makes for uneven wall thicknesses. I would not use walnut or other open pore woods if this is going to be used. Maple is the traditional wood. I would guess that 16 dia as a min. and at least 5 deep. Good luck!

[John Keeton]

I would add that wood preference would be regional. In this part of the country, one sees a lot of poplar dough bowls simply because it is plentiful and does well for that purpose.

[Maria Alvarado]

+1 on the shallow oval shape. Typically they are hand hewn, but I would think you could approximate that shape by turning a natural edge bowl (minus the bark, of course). The ends would be higher, but you would attain the oval shape. Because such bowls typically have an oil finish (if any) I would suggest that you use a wood that is unlikely to impart a flavor to the dough, such as maple. Cherry or poplar might also work well, but I would be hesitant to use black walnut or oak for this purpose. Someone else may have better info on those woods for food purposes.
Good luck!

[Reed Gray]

I have sold several of my bowls that were going to be used as bread making bowls. I remember one in particular. The woman came into my booth several times, sat on one of my shoe benches (small sit down and take off your shoes bench), held the bowl in her lap, and mimed the actions of mixing and kneading the dough. She selected one, chinkapin/golden chesnut, that was deeper than normal, at least 6 inches, and about 14 inch diameter. All of my bowls are warped, and wall thickness is generally about 3/8 inch. I would want a standard foot, which for me is about 1/3 the diameter of the bowl, definitely not smaller than that, even if the bread maker was holding it on their lap. For woods, poplar or magnolia would probably work fine, though some times the poplar has a smell to it. I would not want walnut as it is rather strongly scented as well. Apple, cherry, maple, and white oak (for some reason, I can never sell oak bowls) could work fine. Red and black oaks are very open pored, and will leak fluids. Not sure what other woods you have down there. For finish, I prefer the Mahoney's walnut oil, though with a bread bowl, the oils from the bread will season the wood very well.

The trough type is traditional, and I would even want to try one of those some time.

robo hippy

[Steve Friedman]

Here are some links to check out: I Ibelieve dough bowls were historically hand hewn, not turned, but these should give you some dimensions, etc.


http://www.countryworkshops.org/Carv...e%20Bowls.html

http://forums.finewoodworking.com/fi...bowl-adventure

http://www.handhewn.com/gallery/bowlsset.htm

Steve

[Allen Neighbors]

My wife made bread for years. A wooden bowl about 15-16" dia with about 6 or 7" depth would work very well for 2 or 3 medium loaves of bread. A larger bowl would be better for large amounts of dough.
I think the best wood for a dough bowl is Cottonwood. But that's just my preference. It is light and strong, though soft. Unfinished is the best, because the oils from the dough will season the bowl perfectly. Hand washing, little soap, hand drying, air drying, in that order, will keep it nice for years of service.
If you want to put some sort of finish on it, smear on a heavy coating of heated beeswax, place in an oven at about 140-150 degrees for an hour or so, then wipe off the excess, if there is any. Makes a nice bowl for dough kneading.
(Mineral oil is a breeding ground for all types of things you don't want in your body.)

[Jake Helmboldt]

Good thread; a friend just asked me to make one for her. As for wood, I certainly would not use oak. Not only is it a coarse, open grain wood (making cleaning more difficult), but it develops black stains from moisture as a result of the tannins (at least white oak does).

I planned to use poplar since she gave me a big half round from a trunk. She wanted about a 20" bowl.