1. Why Biscuits Have Small Holes: Needle-Tipped Molds in the Factory
When you hold a biscuit, you may see a pattern of small holes on the surface. These holes are not made after baking. In the factory, thin sheets of dough are cut out using molds that have needles attached. These needles pierce the dough to create the holes. [3]
Bourbon, a major manufacturer, explains that these holes help the biscuit rise evenly during baking and improve the texture. [3] This is an explanation from one company. Not all biscuits have holes; their presence depends on the mold and the type of biscuit. When choosing a biscuit, comparing the pattern of holes might reveal differences in the molds used.
But how is the dough made in the first place?
2. How Mixing the Ingredients Changes a Biscuit's Crunch
In the factory, ingredients are measured first. The amounts are managed by computers according to specific recipes for each type of biscuit. Next, a mixer blends and kneads the ingredients at high speed. [2]
The main ingredients are cereal flours like wheat, sugars, and edible fats. Salt, dairy products, eggs, and leavening agents are added as needed. [1]
Even with the same ingredients, the texture changes based on how they are mixed. According to Bourbon, hard biscuits that are crisp use wheat flour with high gluten content, less sugar, and less fat. Soft biscuits that are crumbly use more sugar and fat, and are mixed for a shorter time to prevent gluten formation. [4]
Gluten is a net-like structure formed when wheat proteins absorb water. Kneading creates elasticity and stickiness because of this network. For bread, you want this stickiness. For crumbly sweets, you mix briefly to avoid creating this network. Once the dough is ready, it is rolled out, folded to create layers, and rolled out again into sheets. [3] Then it is time to bake.
3. Baking Takes Minutes, but Cooling a Biscuit Takes Longer
The dough with needle holes moves on a belt through a long oven. The oven is 14 to 100 meters (about 46 to 328 feet) long, with temperatures around 200°C (392°F). It takes 3 to 8 minutes to pass through. [2]
Bourbon describes four stages during this process: the structure expands; heating hardens the outside and sets the structure; moisture evaporates and dries the biscuit; and finally, the biscuit turns brown. [3]
After baking, the biscuits are not packed immediately. They move slowly along a cooling conveyor that is 30 to 200 meters (about 98 to 656 feet) long. [2] Bourbon explains that the cooling conveyor is about 1.5 times the length of the oven, and sudden cooling is avoided. [3] For example, if the oven is 50 meters (about 164 feet) long, the cooling section would be about 75 meters (about 246 feet). Once cool, the biscuits are aligned, packed, and sent to stores. [2] Notice that in this entire process, the biscuit is baked only once. So where does the name "twice-baked" come from?
4. Where the Word "Biscuit" Comes From: Twice-Baked Food for Travelers
The word "biscuit" is said to come from the Latin *panis bis coctus*, meaning "twice-baked bread." It passed through Old French *bescuit* in the 12th century and Middle English *bisket* in the 16th century to reach its current spelling. [5]
The National Biscuit Association explains that travelers in the past carried preserved food made by drying bread and baking it again. Stories remain that Columbus and Magellan carried large amounts of this on their voyages. [6] The idea was that re-baking to remove moisture made the food less likely to spoil during long sea trips.
However, in modern factories, biscuits are baked once from mixed dough. [2] The "twice" in the name remains as a memory of how preserved food was made in the past. This preservation wisdom that created the name "twice-baked" in Europe also connects to the story of how biscuits arrived in Japan.
5. Who Wrote the First Japanese Biscuit Recipe: A Doctor's Letter
Industry materials state that biscuits were introduced to Japan in 1543 by Portuguese people who arrived on Tanegashima Island, along with guns and other confectionery. [7] This is a common theory in the industry, but reading it as a year confirmed by records from that time is too strong.
The oldest known document with a biscuit recipe written in Japanese is a letter dated February 28, 1855. Shibata Houan, a doctor of Dutch medicine from the Mito domain who was studying in Nagasaki, sent a "Pan Biskoit Seihōsho" he learned from the Dutch to Hagi Nobunosuke of the Mito domain. [8]
Houan was interested in the fact that biscuits are long-lasting food. [7] The preservation wisdom that created the name "twice-baked" in Europe became the center of interest in Japan as well. Because of this letter's date, the National Biscuit Association designated February 28 as "Biscuit Day" in 1980. [8]
By the way, stores sell both "biscuits" and "cookies." What is the difference?
7. Try It at Home: Check the Back of a Biscuit Bag
Try these things at home with a biscuit bag and, if possible, two different types of biscuits.
Count the holes on the surface and compare their presence and pattern. If a biscuit has no holes, think about why.
Look at the ingredient list on the back of the bag. Consider any differences you notice when eating them as just one example.
If you have food allergies, check the ingredient list before eating.
The sources for this article are the National Biscuit Association and Bourbon for factory processes, the Fair Competition Code for definitions and cookie distinctions, an etymology dictionary for word origins, and the Japan Food Newspaper for the oldest recipe. The role of holes and the 1543 introduction are explanations from one company or the industry.