Just combined

"Just combined" tells you to mix only until the ingredients have come together and no streaks of dry flour remain, and then stop. Recipes use it for muffins, quick breads, pancakes, brownies and many cakes, usually right after you add the flour. A few small lumps are fine. The aim is to avoid overmixing.

How to do it

1. Mix the wet ingredients in one bowl and the dry ingredients in another.
2. Pour the wet into the dry, or the dry into the wet, as the recipe says.
3. Use a spatula or a large spoon, not a whisk or mixer.
4. Stir with big, slow strokes, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl.
5. Stop as soon as you can no longer see dry flour. That is usually 10 to 15 strokes.
6. Add any berries, nuts or chocolate with the last few strokes.

How to tell it is done

The batter looks thick and a bit lumpy, with no white streaks or dry pockets of flour. It does not look smooth or glossy. If you find a pocket of flour at the bottom later, a few more strokes are fine.

Why it works

When wheat flour meets liquid and is stirred, gluten starts to form. A little is fine. A lot makes muffins and pancakes chewy and tough, with long tunnels inside and peaked tops. Baking powder and soda also start reacting when they get wet, so batters made with them should go in the oven soon after mixing.

Common mistakes

• Beating the batter smooth with a mixer. The result is tough and dense.
• Trying to remove every lump. Small lumps disappear in baking.
• Leaving the batter to sit for a long time before baking, unless the recipe asks you to rest it. The leavening loses power.
• Folding in mix-ins at the end with lots of extra stirring. Add them while there is still a little dry flour.

In recipes

"Stir until just combined", "mix until just moistened" and "do not overmix" all mean the same thing. When the light mix is whipped cream or egg whites, recipes say fold instead. With pastry and shortbread, the matching phrase is "bring together".