Yeast question

last month

Do you have to bring refrigerated yeast to room temperature before using? I switched to yeast in a jar rather than the packets, so this is new territory for me. It is rapid-rise yeast, if that makes a difference.

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Patriciae

last month

I usually activate my yeast before using it whether I use regular dry yeast or rapid rise because my DH manages the yeast these days and I have no idea how old it is so I want to be sure it is good before I waste my ingredients. When I do just dump it in I just take it out of the freezer. Instant yeast is identical to Active dry except it is in smaller granules so I dont fret the difference. The more complicated version of starting your yeast is making a Biga or a poolish. The temp of the yeast particles wouldnt make a difference there either.

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Comments (8)

plllog
last month
It depends on how you want it to behave. Rapid rise yeast is cut up so it dissolves and gets to work faster. If you're using a bread machine, being cold may be a problem. If you're just baking in the normal way, just like with ADY (Active Dry Yeast, the un-cut-up version), if you're dissolving the yeast in slightly warm water, the temperature of the yeast doesn't really matter. Don't make the water hotter--it can kill the yeast if it's too warm. Just add a pinch of flour from the recipe (or sugar if it's an enriched dough) and let it wake up and bubble before stirring it in. Putting it somewhere gently warm can help. For me, the top of the cable box works. In the old days, they'd put it on top of the pilot light. If you're just putting it into the bowl with the flour and water, it could take a lot longer to rise, but it should still rise.

I can't advise you about bread machine, other than take the jar out and measure into a prep bowl, then put the jar back, and let the yeast come to room temperature. Like if you're planning a loaf in the morning, measure it out the night before.

For regular baking, at least try to pour the water on top of the granules to help them dissolve faster. Let your dough rise in a warm place. Standard stuff. But if there's water in the recipe, and it's a delicate one, just do the warm water dissolve. Don't try to warm the yeast other than in the warm water. Just a little above baby bottle.

The alternative is time. For my everyday bread (weekly bake--current one is peaches, slightly spicy dill pickles, allium pepper, and madeira wine), it's a long enough process not to matter and I just dump in the yeast straight from the fridge. But that's a 6 hour preferment with a teaspoon of ADY, then an hour soak with another spoon of ADY after mixing in the flour and all. And my kitchen is always warm. There wasn't any actual water in this week's loaf, but the yeast did its stuff.
porkchop_z5b_MI thanked plllog
porkchop_z5b_MI
Original Author
last month
That is helpful info - thank you!

No bread machine, BTW. Most of my recipes are no-knead types. I have a couple that require kneading but those use active dry, I still have packets of that, I don't go through anywhere near as much as the rapid rise.
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A couple of points. First of all, a packet of yeast is 2 1/4 teaspoons. Yeast actually doesn't have to be precisely measured. You can use more--if you like a yeasty taste to your baked goods and want a shorter rising time. You can use less, and let your dough rise longer. As to the instant/regular yeast. I've seen experts on both sides of the fence--I've seen bread baking experts say they're the same, and you can use them 1 for 1; I've also seen that they're a little different. In practice? I've used both, and measured the same, and haven't seen any difference in my bread, so go ahead and use the amount the recipe calls for. More importantly, if you're using a bread machine, keep an eye on the process. Monitor the mixing stage so that you know the dough is achieving the proper consistency (so many things affect bread baking, that it's pretty hard to get perfect results UNLESS you adapt the recipe to the conditions of the weather, ingredients, etc.)
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I store mine in the freezer, and I use it directly from the freezer. I was surprised at first that this worked, but I've read that because it's granular it pretty much defrosts instantly--kind of like when you need room-temperature butter and all you have is frozen, you can grate it to get it to room temp right away. Apparently it's a surface-area thing.
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I'm on my third package of Costco Red Star yeast. It keeps forever in a sealed ziplock baggie in the freezer. I use it as I would any active dry yeast. Price is great, as are so many of the grocery items at Costco. I just bought a giant container of Vietnamese cinnamon for about $2.50. We also have the quinoa - makes great salads and sides. I still have the carton of dates which I use for sticky toffee pudding - thinking about this for T'giving. The only problem with Costco is everything comes in huge sizes. Cheryl
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When to add salt… Not only does salt control the yeast and add flavor, it also strengthens and tightens gluten. If you wait to add salt after the gluten has been well-developed, the dough is easier to knead and the gluten develops faster. Once the salt is added, the dough will literally tighten. Adding salt early or late is a choice. It’s usually added early when using the direct dough method just to keep things simple and make dough quickly. If you tend to be forgetful, add it early because bread/pizza crust without salt is at best, insipid. If you want to develop the gluten quickly, add it late during the last minutes of kneading to strengthen the dough, just before it’s set to rise. Just don't add the salt to the proofing water with the yeast/sweetener. That's a place where salt can kill the yeast. If you are using a bread machine you can still choose to add the salt late – wait to add it at the add-in beep. It will be easier on your bread machine since the dough will be less “tight” during kneading. Depending on the type of crumb I want to achieve, I may wait to add the fat AND the salt at the add-in beep. If you add fat early in the mixing it “shortens” the gluten strands and you will get a close, even crumb (better for sandwich-type bread when you need the bread to hold a spread like mayo). By waiting to add fat late in the kneading, you will get a more open and irregular crumb (better for toasting – butter and jam setteling in all those nooks and crannies). You can make the same enriched recipe and add the fat early on one loaf and add the fat late on another loaf, and get different results in the crumb structure and the size of the loaves. The one where it is added early will be smaller/shorter than the loaf where it is added late. Tip if you are adding salt late. The type of salt can make a difference in how well it gets mixed in. If you are adding salt late, DON’T use regular table salt because it doesn’t mix in quickly and won’t get distributed throughout the dough. Choose flaky sea salt or Diamond Crystal kosher salt because they blend in faster. Another tip, or rule of thumb: If you are reducing the salt in yeast bread, be sure to reduce the yeast by the same amount. Example: If you reduce the salt by 50%, then reduce the yeast by 50%. If you don’t, you’ll find the dough will proof too rapidly and you could easily over-proof it, especially if you normally use a timer rather than checking the dough. Use a dough-rising bucket so you know by looking when the dough has doubled in bulk. If the dough comes up to the 1-quart line in the dough-rising bucket when you pat it in, when it reaches the 2-quart line you will know it has doubled in bulk. Dough can’t tell time…. It’s more about the strength of the yeast, hydration of the dough, and the ambient temperature that determines how quickly or slowly it takes to rise.
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colleenoz
last month
I keep my rapid rise yeast in the refrigerator and use a bread machine. I haven’t noticed any issues at all. For the first part of the cycle the machine just sits and thinks about things, and I guess that as the yeast is sprinkled over the top of the flour, it has time to warm up a little.
porkchop_z5b_MI thanked colleenoz
lizbeth-gardener
last month
I also keep my rapid rise in the freezer and have no problem with the bread machine.
porkchop_z5b_MI thanked lizbeth-gardener
carolb_w_fl_coastal_9/10
last month
last modified: last month
I've never had a problem, as long as the yeast's not too old. I keep both kinds in the fridge, always have. I don't have a bread machine, and I've been baking bread around 50+ years now.

With rapid rise, I never dissolve it first, it's mixed into the dry ingredients. I dissolve active dry yeast in warm water tho. I think simply stirring the dry yeast into room temp. flour will take off any chill, since it's only something like 1 or 2 tsp..
porkchop_z5b_MI thanked carolb_w_fl_coastal_9/10
annie1992
last month
I also keep a Costco size package of yeast in the freezer, they come in two packs, so I put one into a quart canning jar and put it in the fridge, the other gets frozen until I need it. I use a bread machine regularly, but not always. I use the yeast straight from the freezer or the fridge no matter whether I'm using the bread machine or not, and I haven't experienced any difference in my recipes or results.

Annie
porkchop_z5b_MI thanked annie1992
NiCOZ5
last month
I buy a commercial brick of yeast, quick rise. I keep 99% in the freezer and a small jar in the frig. I don't warm it up before using it...
porkchop_z5b_MI thanked NiCOZ5

Yeast question

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plllog

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Comments (8)

plllog

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porkchop_z5b_MI
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