YEAST

[Sakkarin Profile]

EDIT: I've moved these posts from the "Bargain Basement" thread, and have emailed Allinsons asking why there's a difference in price. I've also dug out all my bread books (as follows) and will be summarising the sections on yeast later in this thread.

Dan Lepard: The Handmade Loaf
Richard Bertinet: Crust
Paul Hollywood: Bread
Gerard Bauzet: Confessions of a French Baker
Harold McGee: On Food & Cooking

I always use "Easy Action" yeast rather than the "Dried Active" yeast. As they are in identically sized, identically priced tubs (and look virtually identical too, which is why I made this mistake), it never occcured to me that there might be a cost saving there. However as I picked up a new pack of yeast yesterday, which is normally £1 for 100g, I noticed it had gone up to 125g. I double checked back, and realised that I'd picked up the wrong one, the dried active. I wonder why there is a difference in price, and am wondering whether to change to the dried active yeast, even if it is more of a faff to use. Anyone got a view on this?

[dennispc Profile]

Richard Bertinet says, treat all yeast the same way - dried active, easy action and fresh. Flour in a bowl, tip in yeast, though with fresh crumble it in, stir around, add water, etc., etc. No faff involved.

[jeral Profile]

The only thing I know about dried yeast is that if you follow the packet instructions things can taste too yeasty. I imagine they recommend more to be on the safe side of a rise.

To answer the question, I know some recipes insist on one or other, no idea why. The trick is to make the one you buy work best for you by using more or less of it. Maybe the dearer one needs less?

[Gillthepainter Profile Website]

The active dried yeast needs activating. You mix it with your liquid first.
Which I prefer.

The easy yeast can be added to all the ingredients without that step. Ideal for bread machines I guess.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

Richard Bertinet says, treat all yeast the same way - dried active, easy action and fresh. Flour in a bowl, tip in yeast, though with fresh crumble it in, stir around, add water, etc., etc. No faff involved.

I’ve been using the little sachets of easy blend, which saves measuring, but I might get a tub of active dried next time and try using it the same way

Top tip from Anna Olson, to mix dry ingredients into flour evenly without sifting, use a balloon whisk. I’m sure this is old news to many but it was a for me

[Badger's Mate Profile]

I use sachets of easy blend and a breadmaker. For a loaf using 500g flour, it's 1 tsp yeast, which is rather less than a sachet. I have used small pots of dried yeast as they're cheaper, but have found that the activity wanes quite quickly once opened. Even when we were both taking sandwiches to w*** and I was making three loaves a week, the pot of yeast was noticeably less active well before it was empty. I went back to sachets after a few pots.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

Good point BM, perhaps I’ll stick to sachets

Another thing that seems cheapest at a German supermarket

[Sakkarin Profile]

the pot of yeast was noticeably less active well before it was empty

I hadn't really paid attention to that "waning" issue since I've been using tubs of yeast, but you're probably right, sometimes it really does not seem to rise well, and I'm sure that you've put your finger on why. I had that issue last week just before the old pot ran out. Not that I wasn't aware that it goes off, but like you I do at least three yeast bakes a week, so hadn't expected it to go off that quickly, more like 6 months I had in mind, rather than the month or two that a tub lasts me.

I think I'll extract all these yeasty posts and make a Yeast thread later. Yeast extract?

[Badger's Mate Profile]

Another thing that seems cheapest at a German supermarket

I've used the Aldi sachets with no problems. We tend to use Sainsbury or Tesco as they are the nearest, but branded or supermarket sachets have always worked for me. There's an Aldi being built in Hertford, might use it a bit.

As a loaf requires less than a sachet of yeast, I seal the used sachet with a plastic clip until it's finished.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

Question

I have tended to transfer bulk yeast to to a screw top jar, as vapour proof, and I’m less likely to mess it up.

Would there be any advantages in keeping that jar in the freezer?

I can buy German Demeter certified fresh yeast but I find it’s not very reliable, I suspect storage and transport takes a toll

[Sakkarin Profile]

How long does it last in a jar?

By coincidence I found my freezing bible "Freeze It!" earlier, hidden behind some other books (I thought I'd lost it). It's an A to Z of ingredients, with their freezability. On yeast, it says:

"Freezing: Place 15g or 30g cubes in a piece of foil and overwrap several together in a polythene bag, extracting as much air as possible before sealing. Freezer life 6 weeks. Allow each cube to thaw at room temperature for 30 minutes before activating in warm water as usual."

It's a long time since I froze any, I seem to remember it looks rather unappetising when it's defrosted.

[scullion Profile]

is sue talking about dried and you, fresh?

[cherrytree Profile]

I make all our bread and use Allison’s easy action yeast. I keep the tub in the fridge and this way it never seems to lose it’s efficacy.

[Sakkarin Profile]

is sue talking about dried and you, fresh?

Maybe! I presumed Sue meant fresh, as I don't think of dried yeast as being "bulk", and she mentions fresh yeast too...

[Stokey Sue Profile]

Clarification
I was talking about both - the stuff in the screw top jar is granular, either type. I think it does do a bit better than in a less than airtight tub or packet, but until recently I’ve not really used enough to check it out

In the days when I made a enough bread and could buy 200g blocks of yeast from the whole food cooperative I used to freeze it as Sakkarin describes, and it worked well though it did look like something I’d scooped from the bottom of a puddle.

The Demeter stuff of dubious utility and vast price is fresh

So I wondered if dry cold would be good for dried yeast? I see cherrytree keeps hers in the fridge

[Sakkarin Profile]

Doh! Small print on the tub:

"Store in the fridge after opening".

[jeral Profile]

Does the label also say "and use within n days/months"?

Re sachets, they used to say that Mr Colman (mustard) made his money through what was left on the plate. I reckon yeast sachets are similar in that 2g left over is likely to be chucked out.

Don't forget the straw trick for manually sucking air out of ziplock bags, i.e. which are zipped except for the straw hole then rapidly fully zipped.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

Doh! Small print on the tub:

"Store in the fridge after opening".

Doh! Never noticed that, wonder if it is relatively new? Say in the last 20 years

I always think yeast doughs are a bit like growing plants from cuttings - doesn't actually matter if they start a bit low down the scale, you just grow them until done.

[Badger's Mate Profile]

you just grow them until done

That's the issue with breadmakers of course. They work to a timetable. I've just mixed a sourdough in ours, but can't bake it now. It will be left overnight and I'll see what it looks like in the morning.

[Pampy Profile]

I always keep my yeast in the fridge (I use Doves Farm). It says on the pack to use within 2 months of opening but I've kept it much longer than that in an airtight tin in the fridge. Never noticed any loss of effectiveness.