When a craving for freshly baked bread strikes, but your dough is frozen solid, it can take four to five hours to defrost that baby. But you're in luck—there are several ways to quickly thaw it so you can have fresh, warm bread in a flash.
Soaking
Put the frozen bread dough in a large sealed plastic bag. Fill the sink with warm (not extremely hot) water, then place the dough in the water. (If the water is too hot, it may activate the yeast in the dough.) You may have to change the water a few times as the frozen dough cools it, but this method can cut thawing time in half.
Oven Heating
Turn the oven to the lowest setting, no more than 175 degrees Fahrenheit, and put the dough in on a cookie sheet. If you take the dough out and turn it every so often, it'll defrost even faster, but do so frequently to avoid uneven defrosting. This process should take an hour or so.
Microwave Heating
Place the dough on a microwave-safe plate and use the auto-defrost button on the microwave. Using the lowest power setting, put the loaf in for 5 to 8 minutes, and repeat this cycle as often as needed, with 10 to 15 minutes between cycles. This is a great way to quick-defrost bread dough, but you need to be careful with most microwaves because some tend to have hot spots that defrost certain parts of the dough faster than others.
Ready to bake!