Is it harmful to your body to eat foods containing yeast regularly?

When it comes to yeast foods, what’s your first reaction? Bread, steamed buns, or… There is a saying on the Internet that eating foods containing yeast often can easily cause stomach problems. Is it true or not? Let’s find out together.

Eating foods containing yeast

Are you prone to stomach problems? Yeast is the common name for yeast, which is a microorganism that humans have used for a long time. Since ancient times, Chinese people have used yeast to make wine and condiments. Families use old dough containing yeast (starter, leavener) to make steamed buns, dumplings, naan, etc. Yeast powder has quickly become popular in households and the catering industry because of its strong fermentation effect and easy transportation and storage. Because it is industrially produced yeast, many people are worried that the yeast contained in staple foods that are eaten frequently will hurt the stomach, causing stomach pain and other discomfort symptoms.

Yeast powder is affordable, and more importantly, compared with traditional “dough starters”, it has a short fermentation time, produces less acid, and can reduce the gastrointestinal burden. It will use the carbohydrates in the dough to grow and reproduce at a temperature of 25 to 30 degrees, decomposing maltose and glucose, thereby producing a large amount of carbon dioxide gas, causing the gluten to expand and form a loose texture. At the same time, fermentation will also decompose the phytic acid contained in the flour that affects the absorption of dietary iron, making it easier for the human body to obtain trace elements. It can be seen from this that eating foods containing yeast regularly will not only not hurt the stomach, but will improve the digestion and absorption of nutrients in the diet.

Eat yeast-fermented steamed bread

Will high uric acid cause gout? Long-term intake of high-purine diet is a high-risk factor for hyperuricemia and gout. The general diet is divided into three categories: high-purine, medium-purine and low-purine. Judging from the purine content alone, 100g of this powder has a purine content of about 559mg, and this powder is indeed a high-purine food. However, based on the intake, the recommended amount of yeast powder is 0.5%, that is, 5g per small packet, which can make about 1 kilogram of flour. Calculated based on 100g of staple food per person per meal, the purine content is basically negligible, and there is no need to worry that eating yeast-fermented foods frequently will lead to high uric acid and gout.

Yeast and baking soda

Which is better for making dough? Generally speaking, the proper use of this and baking soda can both make pasta fluffy, but the conditions required for these two types of dough leavening agents are different. It is more suitable for steamed bread, dumplings, and naan bread that have no or low added sugar and oil, while high-sugar, high-oil cakes and pastries require chemical leavening agents such as baking soda and baking powder to achieve the purpose of loosening. If is ordinary use for these pastries, it will not be able to make the dough expand because too much sugar and oil will inhibit the activity of this.

Some people use baking soda to steam buns because chemical leavening agents make the dough expand quickly. Although chemical leavening agents, when not used excessively, produce products of ammonia and carbon dioxide, which are also products of human metabolism and will not cause obvious health damage, have an alkaline taste and turn yellow. They also destroy some B vitamins in the flour, reducing the nutritional value of the food. Yeast dough requires sufficient time and temperature to produce carbon dioxide, and the dough will continue to expand. As mentioned above, the protein and carbohydrate composition of yeast itself, and the rich B vitamins and trace elements such as calcium and zinc it contains, will protect the vitamins in the flour and reduce the loss of nutritional value of pasta. Therefore, using it to leaven is the best choice for daily pastries.

Using Yeast for Food

What should I pay attention to?

Choosing the right yeast

First, make sure it is within the shelf life. Second, and this is often overlook: pay attention to whether it is high-sugar or low-sugar. High-sugar yeast is generally use for dough with more than 7% added sugar, such as sweet bread. For making steamed buns or whole wheat bread at home, choose yeast powder labeled “low-sugar”. Finally, check whether the packaging is hard, because active dry yeast is vacuum-pack. If the packaging bag becomes soft, it means that air may have entered, which will reduce the activity it.

Before using it, add a small amount of warm water to the required amount of yeast and gently stir to dissolve. Then add a small spoonful of sugar and let it stand for 3-5 minutes to “activate” the yeast before adding it to the flour. This will ensure that the knead dough is fully ferment in the shortest time possible, which not only saves time, but also makes the steamed pastries softer and sweeter.

Suitable temperature

The temperature between 30℃ and 35℃ is most suitable for dough fermentation. Whether the fermentation is sufficient can be see by whether the dough is fluffy and expanded and whether honeycombs appear inside the dough.

Recommended amount of yeast to use

Generally speaking, the best amount of yeast is about 0.5% of the weight of the flour. It can also be adjust according to the fermentation time and season. In summer and autumn, 5g of it can be add to 1 kg of flour, which takes about 45-60 minutes. In winter and spring, it may need to be double, that is, 10g, which takes about 60-90 minutes.