How to store yeast dough in the refrigerator and allow it to rise
Using yeast dough is considered by many to be difficult and error-prone. But yeast dough offers a number of advantages. It can be prepared well in advance and baked later – this allows you, for example, to conjure up fresh bread rolls in the morning without much effort. Read on to find out how this works, how long yeast dough can be stored, and what you should bear in mind when allowing it to rise. We will also give you advice on how you can still use dough that has not risen.
The key points
- Process your yeast dough as soon as it has doubled in size.
- Yeast dough will keep for a maximum of two hours at room temperature.
- You can keep yeast dough in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
- If you freeze the yeast dough, you can store it for up to six months.
- You can also leave your yeast dough to rise in the refrigerator.
- After approx. 12 to 18 hours in the refrigerator, your yeast dough will have risen sufficiently.
- If your yeast dough has not risen, prepare a second batch of yeast (250 ml of water, two tbsp of flour, one tsp of sugar) and add it to your dough.
Shelf life of yeast dough
The shelf life of yeast dough depends on the yeast it contains. If you allow the dough to rise for too long, the yeast will have too much time to ferment. This causes the dough to lose flavor and quality. You will recognize this has occurred when the dough bubbles burst and the yeast dough collapses. Especially if it then smells fermented and/or tastes sour, you should dispose of the dough.
The yeast dough is ready for further processing once it has doubled in size. How long this takes depends on the temperature of its environment. At room temperature, this usually takes 30 to 60 minutes. You should not allow the dough to rise at room temperature for longer than two hours.
Do you intend using the yeast dough the following day? Then put it in the refrigerator immediately after preparation. The cold slows down the fermentation process. This means you can easily keep the yeast dough in the refrigerator for 12 to 18 hours, up to a maximum of 24 hours. Yeast dough will keep for up to six months in the freezer. You can read more about this in our article on freezing yeast dough.
It makes no difference whether you use fresh or dry yeast. The same applies to sweet and savory dough. In the next section, you will find out what to look out for during the rising process to get the best result.
Quick guide – storing and allowing the yeast dough to rise in the refrigerator
- Yeast dough rises slower in the refrigerator than at room temperature.
- Use cold ingredients to slow down the fermentation process even further.
- Shape the dough into a ball and dust it with flour.
- Place the dough ball in a sealable tin with sufficient space.
Storing and allowing the yeast dough to rise in the refrigerator
Yeast dough rises more slowly in the refrigerator than at room temperature. To slow down the fermentation time as much as possible, use cold ingredients during preparation. Then you should put the dough straight into the refrigerator before it starts to rise.
If your dough has already risen, you should process and bake it straight away if possible. It will go off sooner in the refrigerator because the fermentation process is already so far along.
Shape the dough into a ball, dust it with flour, and place it in a sealable tin. Make sure that the dough has enough space. When it is ready for further processing, it will have roughly doubled in size.
The advantage of leaving yeast dough to rise in the refrigerator instead of at room temperature is that the longer rising time makes the dough fluffier. This also makes it easy to split the time required over two days.
Quick guide – how to process yeast dough from the refrigerator
- Leave the yeast dough to stand at room temperature for 20 minutes.
- Collapsed yeast dough cannot be saved.
- If your yeast dough has not risen, prepare a second batch of yeast (250 ml of water, two tbsp of flour, one tsp of sugar) and add it to your dough.
Processing yeast dough from the refrigerator
After approx. 12 to 18 hours in the refrigerator, your yeast dough will have risen sufficiently. Before processing it further, leave it to stand at room temperature for 10 to 20 minutes. You can then mold the yeast dough into the desired shape.
Has your dough has collapsed when you open the refrigerator? There can be various reasons for this. The dough was either not kneaded long enough or kneaded for too long, or the rising time was too long. Dough that has collapsed cannot be saved. So be aware of these potential sources of error during preparation. The dough has been kneaded just long enough when it comes away from the edge of the bowl.
If your dough has not risen at all, we have another solution for you. The reason for this problem is that the yeast has not been sufficiently activated. For example, the rising time was too short, the yeast was too old, or there was too little liquid in the dough. The solution: Prepare a second yeast batch and add this to the dough. Mix 250 ml of water, two tbsp of flour and one tsp of sugar together. When this mixture starts to bubble, you can add it to the dough and knead everything together. If the dough is too dry, add more water. If the dough is too soft, add flour. Then allow this rested dough to rise for 30 to 60 minutes – until it has doubled in size.
Tip: In our article on pizza with tomato and mozzarella, we have a delicious recipe in which you can make use of our yeast tips directly.
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