Is Fresh Yeast Important When Baking Bread? (2024)

FAQs

Is Fresh Yeast Important When Baking Bread? ›

Using Fresh Yeast

Instant dried yeast can be added directly to the other dough ingredients without the need to activate it first like fresh yeast. It is available in sealed individual sachets, which can be stored at room temperature, or sealed canisters that are best stored in the fridge or freezer once opened.

According to Jordan, fresh yeast lends a slightly sweeter, richer flavor to baked goods compared to dry yeast. One downside, though, is its short shelf life: Unlike dry yeast, it's highly perishable and must be stored in the refrigerator. Even then, it usually only lasts about a week or two — opened or unopened.

Instant yeast, as its name implies, is the quickest yeast to use of the three. Fresh yeast will give you a deeper, richer, more 'yeasty' flavour. Not all yeasts can be used in bread makers: fresh and instant can be but active dried yeast cannot. Instant yeast is the most common yeast to use in a bread maker.

Active Dry Yeast is an ideal yeast to use for artisan breads or no knead breads that require a slower rise time. It's also the preferred type of yeast for those doughs that proof in the refrigerator for extended periods of time.

To convert from fresh yeast to active dry yeast, multiply the fresh quantity by 0.4. Active dry yeast must be hydrated in warm water before being incorporated into a dough. To convert from fresh yeast to instant dry yeast, multiply the fresh quantity by 0.33.

For dry active yeast you generally need to use half the quantity of fresh yeast stated in the recipe and for instant yeast you need to use 1/4 of the quantity of fresh yeast. So if the recipe has 30g (1 ounce) fresh yeast then you can use 15g (1/2 ounce) active dry yeast or 7g (1/4 ounce) instant yeast instead.

Fresh yeast is great in breads that require a long, slow rising time, as it activates more quickly than dried yeast and also stays active for a longer period of time.

Pretty much all supermarkets sell bakers yeast, many shops sell brewers yeast (both dried) and my local Morrison's sells fresh yeast in its refrigerated section.

Perfect Your Yeast Levels

Carbon dioxide is responsible for all the bubbles that make holes in bread, making it lighter and fluffier. Because gas is created as a result of yeast growth, the more the yeast grows, the more gas in the dough and the more light and airy your bread loaf will be.

Do I need to activate fresh yeast? ›

Yeast from fresh yeast cakes must be activated, or proofed, prior to being used in a recipe. If your yeast is not activated, the bread you are making will not rise.

This can affect the bread by adding a "yeasty" taste if you put too much into the dough. General amounts of yeast are around 1 - 2 % of the flour, by weight. Too much yeast could cause the dough to go flat by releasing gas before the flour is ready to expand.

As a rule of thumb, use: 1.4% of the weight of flour you are using (for example, 14g yeast per 1kg of flour) fast-acting yeast. 1% for dried yeast. 2% for fresh yeast.

The Very Best: Instant Yeast

Instant yeast is the only yeast I ever use in my baking. Always have and always will. The yeast of choice in most restaurant kitchens and commercial bakeries, it's easy and convenient.

While bread flour is the best option, it can sometimes be used if you don't have bread flour. “Check the protein content,” advises Chef Jürgen, since it can vary from brand to brand, and an all-purpose flour that contains protein on the higher end of the range, 12 to 13 percent, will produce a better outcome.

It's called Irish Soda Bread because it's made with baking soda instead of yeast. Because of this, it's more dense than your everyday white sandwich bread. Hearty and rustic are the words that come to mind, and it tastes kind of nutty from the wholemeal flour.

If it's expired by several months, it's probably best to toss it. If you're close, you can always proof the yeast to see if it's still active. But if it looks a little sluggish, you might not get enough yeast-y action to make anything. One of the most important articles I read is this one on storing yeast properly.

Can I use active dry and instant yeasts interchangeably? Yes, they can be substituted for one another 1:1. We've found that active dry yeast is a little bit slower off the mark than instant, as far as dough rising goes; but in a long (2- to 3-hour) rise, the active dry yeast catches up.

Fresh yeast is ideal for use in breads that require a long, slow fermentation and rise, as their active reaction lasts longer than that of dried yeast. It always works out very well when a recipe calls for multiple proofs, like this braided bread with herbs or this homemade flatbread.

If your mixture does not rise much or stays at the same volume, then your yeast is no longer active. You'll have to throw it out, and get yourself a new batch.