How Many Times can Yeast Dough Rise?

[KAYLINDA]

I was in the middle of shaping my bread dough into rolls....got an unexpected rush. By the time I got back to the dough...it was rising again. I punched it back down...finished them...and they were fine. Question that came to mind though...was how many times could you do this before it affected the finished product? Just curious!

 

[Chausiubao]

I don't think it should matter...a recipe i used told me to punch it down and let it rise again if it was rising too fast...but other then that, it shouldn't affect it. Unless you let it rise too long and the yeast suffocates itself with carbon dioxide.

 

[SNPiccolo5]

I have little experience with yeast doughs, but there's definitely a limit to this. Can anyone share some general information about how yeast doughs work and what punching them down does/do you have you punch them down?

-Tim

 

[Gretchen]

There is a limit, but the good news is that yeast doughs ARE forgiving and you can have a "do-over". Some even get better with extra risings.

 

[Chausiubao]

When you add yeast to dough, the yeast eats simple sugars that are present in the dough like glucose. They also give off enzymes to break down the starches in flour that are inside the dough so they can eat more glucose. The products of that process is carbon dioxide, which leavens dough. When you punch down the dough, you release the gas inside the dough. This is so you prevent the yeast from killing themselves with excess carbon dioxide, and gives the yeast new pastures to eat glucose and produce carbon dioxide. Basically, the yeast breaks down the starches in flour so that they can eat, and in the process they leaven the dough. Degassing prevents the yeast from killing themselves and provides them new areas to break down the starch.