Amazed by SAF yeast
I was lucky enough to get hold of some yeast a week ago, having run out early in the lockdown. I normally use Fleischmann's or Red Star active dry yeast, but I was happy to get whatever I could, which turned out to be SAF red instant yeast.
I have to say, I'm amazed by the rise and stamina of the SAF yeast. I've gotten the best rise I've ever seen out of my white sandwich bread, and the yeast is way more active in the refrigerator during bulk ferment. I made a double batch of dough on Sunday, keeping half in the fridge to bake when the first loaf is finished. Even after 24 hours it was still going...ended up popping a hole in the plastic wrap I had it in!
I don't know if I got really lucky with this bag of SAF, or I've been really unlucky with the many single-serve packets of Red Star and Fleischmann's. I had a jar of Fleischmann's once too, which I divided up into vacuum sealed portions and stored in the freezer, same place I store the packets.
I gave up on trying to freeze pre-shaped dough, so that I could proof overnight and have fresh bread ready to bake in the morning. The active dry yeast would never rise the dough enough after more than a few days in the freezer. I think I have to try this again with SAF!
Not sure if anyone else has experienced such a difference with SAF?
PS I noticed that King Arthur has some SAF red and gold and AP and bread flour back in stock today. Not sure how long it will last!
I have used both SAF and Fleischmann yeast, normally I prefer the Fleischmann. I feel like I get a better rise out of it, but I could just be my conditions. That said I do want to point out a couple of things. You should never freeze yeast, at those temperatures some of the cells die. I store mine in the refrigerator for long periods of time, otherwise I keep it at room temp. You also shouldn't freeze pre-shaped dough for longer that a week for the same reason; the yeast cells begin to degrade.
Hope this helps!
Can you provide a source to back up the claim that you should never freeze dried yeast? I see many recommendations to do so, from some well-regarded sources, among others. For example, King Arthur Flour, Red Star Yeast, TheKitchn, TheSpruceEats, Breadtopia, and first-hand reports from members of this forum.
Now, freezing yeasted dough is a different story, because of the moisture present. I fully agree with you that yeast cells will die because of the ice crystals that form. It becomes a question of whether enough of them stay alive to allow at least a month or so of freezer storage. I'm hoping that the higher activity I'm seeing in the refrigerator with SAF yeast translates into better viability in the freezer, but I won't know if that's true until I do the experiment!
The first place I read about not storing yeast in the freezer was in Ken Forkish's Flour Water Salt Yeast. On page 52 he says "It (yeast) will keep for six month if stored airtight in the refrigerator. Do not store it in the freezer as freezing will kill off as small percentage of the yeast." I was also taught not to store yeast in the freezer at the San Francisco Baking Institute, and have read not to in at least one other book that I can't remember the name to!
Hope this helps.
There are so many reports from people successfully storing dried yeast in the freezer. I'd say this is one of those cases where the book or the teacher is just wrong, going on tradition or what they were taught, rather than having tested it themselves. Or maybe they did test it once and it failed for some unrelated reason.
But, this is no reason for anyone to change their preferred storage method. There are also many reports from people successfully keeping their yeast in the refrigerator.
I have actually stored yeast in the freezer before, but I haven't done it since I read not to. I can't say I have noticed a difference, but I use about a 2 pound block a week so it doesn't have much time to die!
I last bought commercial yeast (SAF Red) September 10, 2014. I take a little out of the 1 pound block and keep it in a Ziploc bag. The remainder is vacuum sealed. Both stay in the freezer.
It is still alive and well. Who knows, how long it will last stored this way...
Danny
I’m a fan. I’m not sure if it is because it’s SAF, or if it’s just the difference between instant yeast, and active dry yeast. I’m leaning towards it being instant yeast, rather than the brand. SAF is the only brand of instant yeast I have tried, as there is not much of a selection where I live, and I only tried it because they were out of the Red Star active dry I normally bought.
My experience is that I ordered a 1 pound pack of SAF Red yeast about 10 yrs ago and it has been in my freezer since. I do not bake often but it has performed well for each bake. I'm sure if you measured it's performance in a lab it would probably be less active than when it was fresh but it still performs well. Science can give detailed numbers but that doesn't necessarily translate into performance in practical application.
I have yeast in the freezer and it works just fine, it is instant yeast.
Benny
Make sure you put in something airtight like a zip bag.
It is in a glass jar tightly sealed.
It is the instant variation that makes it so strong.
I have a package in the freezet that I mainly use for pita’s becouse I want to make them quick and easy on a saterday evening.
I use 2 gram on 350 gram flour and it doubles in a 1 our.
Also I like the fact you can just mix it dry in the flour.