Yeast Substitute?

[elemay17]

Hope I am posting this is the right spot :)

This is a bread making/preparedness question:

(Relatively new to making bread/not that good in the kitchen) If all of the grocery stores in the world suddenly combusted :o , is there anything you can use to make bread besides yeast (as yeast dosent keep very long) It would need to be something that could be stored for a moderate length of time.

Thanks !!

[pathwayholding]

I've always thought in that situation I'd make the Amish "starter". You know, the one that stays active as long as you keep feeding it.

path

[Shamrock1121]

Hope I am posting this is the right spot :)

This is a bread making/preparedness question:

(Relatively new to making bread/not that good in the kitchen) If all of the grocery stores in the world suddenly combusted *:o , is there anything you can use to make bread besides yeast (as yeast dosent keep very long) It would need to be something that could be stored for a moderate length of time.

Thanks !!

You can make naturally leavened breads (aka sourdough bread) like our foremothers did before there was commercial bakers' yeast products. *It hasn't been all that long that we've had bakers' yeast. *Active Dry Yeast wasn't developed until WWII, and cake (fresh) yeast only a short time before that. *Homemakers also made their own versions of "yeast" using potatoes/potato water, hops, flour, cornmeal, etc. *They made it in both liquid and dry versions.

All it takes to make a starter is flour and water. *You'll find all kinds of methods and recipes with additional ingredients like milk, yogurt, grapes, cabbage leaves, etc.; or the modern versions that call for commercial yeast, flour and water, but flour and water is all you'll need. *Do a google search on - Care and Feeding of Sourdough Starter. *That should keep you busy... *;) *You'll find all kinds of contradictions and differing thoughts on the subject. Making naturally leavened breads takes all day, which is probably the biggest reason it's not widely used today. *It doesn't raise as quickly as yeast dough.

I'd also say it's better to try your hand at naturally leavened breads BEFORE you'd actually need to resort to using it. *Find a method you like. *If one recipe for starter doesn't work for you, try another. *I personally like one called "Everlasting Yeast", although I've tried lots of them in the past.

I make a quick starter with my homemade kefir and freshly-milled flour. *Just google - kefir sourdough starter - and you'll find lots of information.

You can also leaven pizza dough, pancakes, biscuits, English Muffins, crumpets, etc. with starter - so if you don't have yeast, you'll probably not have chemical leavening like baking soda and baking powder for very long.

I'd also suggest you have a lot of grain in storage and a good mill under these circumstances. *Grain has a longer shelf life than commercial flour does. *You can easily have hundreds of pounds of grain to see you through a long time, but commercial flour only lasts 6-months to one year (depending on when it was milled). *

You may also want to consider some alternative cooking methods like Dutch Ovens, griddles, etc. *I have a couple solar ovens I use all the time. *A good griddle would also work for flat breads, English Muffins, etc.

I consider homemade tortillas a great bread substitute and my emergency bread-of-choice. *They can be used in a variety of ways for any meal. *A combination of beans and grains (from the flour in the tortillas) and you have a complete protein. *You can also make a sourdough version of tortillas. *This Kansas Wheat Commission recipe is easy and fun to make if you've never made tortillas before: *

http://kansaswheat.org/general.asp?id=332

FYI - Yeast has a long shelf life when it's kept in the freezer. *Exposure to heat, light, and humidity are bad for yeast. *Never leave a jar of yeast open in a hot/humid kitchen. *The heat and humidity will actually cause the yeast to begin to react, so measure out what you need and close the yeast back up and put it in the refrigerator or freezer. *I keep a user-friendly amount in the refrigerator in an old brown glass jar that yeast comes in, and keep the bulk packages in the freezer.

Hope that helps a bit and gives you some new ideas.

-Karen

*

[pathwayholding]

Mini thread steal... :-[

Karen,

Do you have to defrost the frozen yeast before you use it?

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[Shamrock1121]

Mini thread steal... :-[

Karen,

Do you have to defrost the frozen yeast before you use it?

path

Path - Yeast is not dense, low-moisture and such fine particles, it will defrost almost immediately. ;)

-Karen