What to Do When You Forgot to Add Yeast

Yeast plays an important role in bread and baked good recipes, and needs to be added a certain way. There is some flexibility in this, however, so if you realize that you forgot to add the yeast when you're in the middle of baking and you notice the dough fails to rise, as long as you haven't put it in the oven yet, there's an easy fix. You can also add the yeast even when you are going to hold off on letting the dough rise completely.

If You Forgot to Add Yeast to Dough

If you forgot to add yeast to your dough, you can just mix the yeast called for in the recipe with a few tablespoons of warm (but not hot) water. Let it sit for five to 10 minutes. Once the yeast has activated, fold it into your dough, and allow it to rise.

When Not Rising and Baking Immediately

If you don't have time to wait for your dough to go through another rise plus however long it needs to spend in the oven, just add the yeast. Shape your dough into a neat ball, wrap it up tightly, and tuck it in the fridge. This will keep the dough from rising until you're ready to work with it—even if that's tomorrow or two days from now.

To use your dough, just pull it out of the fridge, and place it on the kitchen counter. It'll start to rise as soon as it comes to room temperature. Want to back-burner your baking project for more than a few days? Then, toss your dough in the freezer. Once it thaws, it will go through its normal rise.

When Yeast Goes Bad

A failed activation, paired with a failed rise, suggests that your yeast might have gone bad. Buy a new package of yeast or use a yeast substitute as a stand-in until you're able to get to the store for more. Using a substitute will alter your recipe, but if you're just making pizza dough or rolls for a family meal, the results should be more than satisfactory.

Storing Yeast

An opened package of yeast will usually keep in the fridge for three to four months before it needs to be replaced. If you don't ever seem to use yours up that quickly, consider storing it in the freezer instead. Yeast keeps indefinitely there, and it doesn't need to be thawed or brought to room temperature before you use it. As soon as you add it to warm water, the yeast will spring back to life.