Dry yeast, usually called baking powder, is actually a kind of microorganism, a kind of fungus. Since it is a fungus, it has life. It’s just that the dry yeast we usually come into contact with is a product that has been compressed and dried. The yeast has been “dormant”. When making bread, steamed buns and other dough foods, the dry yeast gets moisture and a suitable temperature, so it can “Wake up” and start to grow and multiply, allowing the dough to rise.
Likewise, since there is life, there must be death. If the dry yeast is not stored properly or has passed the shelf life, the yeast will die in large numbers and no longer have the ability to ferment. Using such yeast to make bread, the dough is difficult to rise. Therefore, when making bread, why the dough cannot rise, you must consider whether the dry yeast has failed. How to test whether your yeast is still active? . The method of inspection is actually very simple. If you’re not sure if your dry yeast is still usable, check the following:
Prepare half a cup of warm water (feel slightly warm with your hands), pour 1/2 teaspoon (2.5ML) of sugar into the warm water and stir until dissolved. Pour 1 teaspoon (5ML) of dry yeast into warm water and stir until dissolved. Next, wait quietly for a moment. After 10 minutes, a layer of foam floats on the surface, indicating that the yeast is active, and the longer the time, the more obvious it will be. If there is no such foam, it means that there is no activity and the dry yeast has failed.
Tips:
- After the yeast is dissolved in warm water, wait for 5-10 minutes. If the yeast is active, a layer of foam will quickly float on the surface. If there is no foam or the foam is not obvious, it means that the activity of the yeast is not very good and cannot be used any more.
- Add 1/2 teaspoon of sugar to the warm water, which is used as a nourishment for the yeast, so that the yeast can grow rapidly and easy to observe.
- If the dry yeast you purchased is in a large package, it can be stored at room temperature before opening. After opening, please put it in a sealed bottle and refrigerate it in the refrigerator (5°C is best). The sooner you use it up, the better. For home use, it is recommended to purchase yeast in small packages, so as not to lose its activity if it cannot be used up for a long time.
- If the dough does not rise, it is not necessarily the cause of the yeast. The temperature of the dough, the oil content, the amount of salt, etc. will affect the fermentation speed and effect. But yeast failure is the most common problem. Therefore, testing whether the yeast is viable can save us from making the simplest mistakes and keep us from failing at the beginning.
