Hi HOs! I’m new here after lurking on CH since the very early days. Having never been an avid poster or even consistent reader, I somehow missed that HO existed! I was so sad when CH announced it’s closure but was so filled with joy when I finally came here. I’m so grateful to you all for building this space.
I am getting a new counter in my kitchen and I have generally decided to go with silestone brand quartz. I really like the suede finish but I’m worried how it will be to prepare bread dough on the counter. Do any of you have silestone counters (maybe with suede finish?) and make sourdough or other baked goods on it? Is it OK? Do you use a plastic pastry scraper?
Of course I searched the internet using multiple search engines but the only relevant thread I could find was a CH one, which…had none of the comments archived on the WayBack machine. It was short anyway. Hoping some of you might have experiences to share!
For me, it was quick for me to decide my counter top has to be stainless steel, and it costed a fortune to have it custom made with the sink integrated, but I think it suits our cooking style, especially I see husband working on the bread or pizza dough with force, like karate.
I have had Silestone counter tops for over twenty years. Prior to purchasing, I had some small samples that I gave the torture test to…red wine, lemon juice, ( left overnight) very hot pot, etc. Nothing seemed to effect it negatively. In addition, a family member with four kids and lots of friends, also installed Silestone with very satisfactory results. As for using the surface for bread doughs, no problem there. On the other hand, I don’t use the surface for tart dough, I place a silpat or parchment on the Silestone. I think you need the ability to rotate, shift the pastry dough with ease and also to return it to the fridge if it begins to get too warm. ( I do not have the suede finish.)
Perhaps you can get a sample from the contractor/manufacturer?
I would definitely install Silestone again.
I don’t have Silestone, but I have read that sueded finishes on any countertop surface tend to show grease marks more easily (or maybe it’s just that grease is not as easy to remove with a sueded finish). I would suggest you check out the GardenWeb Kitchens forums at Houzz for more information - there are extensive discussions there on every surface and finish you can imagine (and some that you can’t, LOL).
Having felt sueded finishes in stores I think the surface would be fine for kneading bread - probably better than a polished finish, in fact, because you can get a little better “grip” for shaping.
I have never used the sueded surface, but regular Silestone was fine for working dough. I use a metal scraper. I now have soapstone, and it is good, too.
