Yeast, Brewer's, to Prepare for Use
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the yeast
Taste the yeast; if very bitter, pour cold water over it.
Let it stand for 24 hours, then pour off the water.
If still bitter, add more water and let it stand for 1-2 hours.
Keep covered with cold water for several days if needed.
Strengthen the yeast
If yeast is weak, mix in 1 teaspoon of honey or brown sugar per ½ pint of yeast.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Brewer's yeast
- Provides the leavening and fermentation activity that the preparation is meant to rescue.
- Honey or brown sugar
- Feeds the yeast, giving it sugar to ferment and restoring its activity when weak.
The step that matters
Pouring off the water after soaking. Soaking in cold water draws out bitter compounds from the yeast. Standing time must be followed by draining, otherwise the bitterness and dissolved compounds remain in the yeast.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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