Kneading bread dough is a crucial step in bread baking that cannot be overlooked. Kneading allows the protein molecules in the flour to form, creating healthy gluten strands. Gluten is what helps the mixture create gas, which helps it rise and build texture. Kneading also distributes the ingredients together evenly and allows the flour to become hydrated. As the flour starts to absorb water, enzymatic reactions occur, and some proteins begin to mesh together. When these proteins start to get tangled up together, they form gluten, which is the protein that allows bread dough to stretch and trap gas bubbles produced by yeast. Kneading also allows bakers to control the texture of the bread. A vigorous knead can help to produce a bread with a fine crumb as the kneading can tighten the gluten, keeping the air bubbles more uniform. However, it is possible to over-knead dough, which can result in a stiff, dry dough. Kneading can be done by hand or with a mixer, and the range of which a dough can be properly kneaded is quite broad. In some cases, kneading may not be the best way to develop bread dough, and other methods such as folding and stretching can be used instead.