Yeast
Yeast is a simple ingredients in bread, but with a big personality. It’s a living organism—a tiny fungus—whose only job is to feed on sugars and release carbon dioxide. That gas becomes trapped in dough, creating the bubbles that make bread rise, soften its texture, and develop its flavour.
There isn’t just one kind of yeast. Bakers use different types depending on how they like to bake, how long they want the dough to rise, and what kind of bread they’re making. Some yeasts work quickly and predictably, perfect for beginners. Others encourage slow fermentation, deeper aroma, and the complex taste of artisan bread.
Fast Action Dried Yeast
This is the easiest to use and in UK and France is the most commonly available. You can use it in assembling the ingredients for your dough with out any additional preparation to activate it. In UK packets are 7g and in France 5g. It produces a faster rising dough than natural yeast and is ideal for bread machines but can just as easily be used with your stand mixer or making bread by hand.
Where To Buy
This is the yeast that you will see in the supermarket.
Allinson Easy Bake / Fast Action
Dove’s Farm Quick Yeast
supermarket own brands
Instant Yeast
This is the professional choice.
Although the name Instant Yeast would suggest that it is “instant”, this does have to prepared by activating the yeast first. Pour 50ml of lukewarm water in a small bowl, Stir in a level teaspoon of unrefined sugar and stir to dissolve. Add 7g of Instant yeast and gently stir. Leave for several minutes and you will see the active yeast appearing on the surface of the water.
Deduct the water and sugar used when measuring out the quantities for the remainder of ingredients in your recipe
Where To Buy
Buy online. Brands include
SAF Instant (red = standard lean doughs, gold = sweet doughs)
Fermipan
Lesaffre
Fresh Yeast
Use double the weight of Fresh Yeast for the amount specified in the recipe so typically in these recipes it would be 14g of fresh yeast instead of 7g dried yeast. As with Instant Yeast, I always use a small amount of sugar. Pour 75ml of lukewarm water in a small bowl, Stir in a level teaspoon of unrefined sugar and stir to dissolve. Add the yeast and gently stir. Leave for several minutes and you will see the activated yeast appearing on the surface of the water.
Where To Buy
Fresh Yeast is available in blocks from fridge section of the grocer/supermarket. It is not sold by many stores. In France, you can ask for it at the boulangerie.
Sourdough Starter
Sourdough is naturally made yeast. It can be made using various types of flour. I keep 2 batches of sourdough: one with wholemeal rye flour the other with strong white flour. The recipes here use both rye sourdough starter and white flour sourdough starter.
Sourdough bread is traditionally made by hand with no kneading required and there are also methods using a stand mixer. There are also recipes here that use up the discarded sourdough starter.
Make or Buy
You can but sourdough starter online but really it is best to make your own