What to do if flour ferments slowly in winter? What to do if flour ferments slowly in winter?

We all know that many people usually ferment flour before making pasta, which is a common step. In winter, the weather will be colder and the temperature will be lower, so the fermentation speed of flour will be relatively slower. So how can flour be fermented quickly in winter? Let's take a closer look!

How to quickly ferment flour in winter

The temperature is relatively low in winter. In order to make the dough rise faster and better, it is necessary to keep the dough at a temperature suitable for yeast. Generally, the following methods can be used:

1. Warm water and dough

Add yeast powder to flour and mix well, then use warm water to knead the dough. The temperature of warm water should be 30-35 degrees. Add it to the flour in small amounts and multiple times, which is just the most suitable temperature for yeast growth. Too low a temperature will make the yeast inactive, thus prolonging the fermentation time; too high a temperature will kill the yeast, making the fermentation unsuccessful.

2. Add appropriate amount of sugar

Adding sugar to the dough can increase yeast activity, shorten the fermentation process, and make the steamed buns softer and sweeter. Similarly, adding an appropriate amount of honey or yogurt has the same effect.

3. Add more yeast powder

In winter, the temperature is low and the yeast activity is weakened. At this time, you can add more yeast powder to promote the fermentation of the dough. For example, in summer, three grams of yeast powder is enough for one pound of flour, and in spring and autumn, five grams of yeast powder is needed for one pound of flour. In winter, seven grams of yeast powder can be added to one pound of flour. Adding more yeast powder is also to speed up the fermentation of the dough.

4. Insulation

After the dough is kneaded, if it is placed at room temperature, it will take a long time to ferment. After all, the temperature in winter is very low and it is not at the right temperature for yeast to grow. In order to maintain a temperature suitable for yeast growth, the dough should be placed in an environment of about 30 degrees to make the yeast activity strongest, so that the dough can ferment quickly.

There are many ways to keep warm, you can choose according to the actual situation:

①Warm water insulation

That is, boil some warm water at about 30 degrees in a pot, put the container containing the dough in it, and cover it with a lid to keep it warm.

② Cover and keep warm

Seal the container containing the dough and cover it with a thick cotton coat or quilt to keep it warm. Sometimes I put the sealed container directly into the quilt.

③Sunlight

The weather in Lhasa is quite special. The temperature is high under the sun, but very low in the shade. When there is sun, I will put the container with dough into the pressure cooker, cover it with a lid and put it in the sun, so that the pressure cooker will have a certain temperature. This method should be noted that the sun cannot directly shine on the dough, otherwise the yeast will lose its activity and the fermentation will fail.

How to ferment flour in winter

First of all, we need to know that the yeast must be kept within a temperature range of more than 30 degrees. When we knead the dough, we must ensure that we use warm water. Water cools very quickly in winter. When we prepare warm water to knead the dough, we must know that if we prepare some clean water in advance to prepare for kneading the dough, then we must be careful not to let the prepared clean water cool down. Generally, it is better to pour clean water that is kept at more than 30 degrees into the dough to knead the dough. Sometimes we will find that the warm water we prepared slowly cools down when we use yeast to knead the dough, then we will prepare slightly warmer water, so that we can add warm water to the flour when we knead the dough. However, it is recommended that you do not put hot water in. If you use hot water, the effect will not achieve the fermentation effect but will be counterproductive. Hot water will inactivate the yeast and cause the dough to fail. This is also one of the reasons why using hot water does not have a good effect on dough.

Next, we pour in warm water and start kneading the dough. We need to knead the dough for a while longer to allow the subsequent leavening effect to be more sufficient. Another reason is that a slightly more even mixture of the yeast will be beneficial to our subsequent fermentation effect, so this step of kneading the dough is a detail that cannot be ignored.

Next, after we seal the lid, because the weather is relatively cold, we need to ensure that the surrounding temperature is slightly higher. It is generally recommended that we use a large basin for dough, and then cover the basin with a pot lid to make the basin more tightly sealed. Then we can cover the basin with a towel cloth, and then put it on the radiator or in a warm place. This is a more practical and simple method, and it is recommended that you use this method. Another way is that we can put the basin in a larger basin, and then add a little warm water to it, and use the heat preservation effect of this warm water to keep the ingredients warm. However, it is recommended that you do not use too hot water here, because the heat will be transmitted to the yeast dough, which will still affect the activity of the yeast, so we also need to pay attention to the effect of using the basin.

Tips for rapid fermentation of flour in winter

1. It is better to dissolve yeast in warm water than in cold water. Temperature can increase the activity of yeast, making it easier to make dough rise. But the temperature should not be too high. If it is higher than 40 degrees, the yeast will be scalded to death and the dough will not rise. The water temperature should not be too hot.

2. If the temperature is too low, you can use a large basin to pour two bowls of warm water, and then put the basin for rising the dough in the water. The water temperature should be warm but not hot when you put your hand in it.

3. If the temperature is low, you can pour some warm water into the pot, then put the bowl of dough on it, cover the pot and let it ferment. If the temperature is too high, the dough in the bowl will be easily scalded.

4. There is heating in the north, so it is easier to ferment the dough by placing the dough bowl under the heater. Because the dough is fermented for a long time, the moisture on the surface of the dough is blown dry. During fermentation, you can cover the dough bowl with a pot lid, or cover the dough bowl with a layer of insurance film.