Yeast is a crucial ingredient in many bread recipes because it helps the dough rise and makes the finished bread softer.

Of all the yeasts used for making bread, instant yeast is the most popular, as it’s easy to use. If you don’t have instant yeast at home, you can use the following three alternatives.

Baking Powder

Baking powder is a must-have for regular bakers. It’s made from a dry medium like baking soda, an acid, and cornstarch. Cream of tartar is often used as the acid.

Baking powder, like commercial yeast, can be used as a leavening agent. Baking powder is believed to have two effects:

When baking powder is mixed into dough and comes into contact with liquids like water, the alkaline baking soda and the acid react to produce carbon dioxide, causing the dough to rise.

When the dough is baked in the oven, the heat from the baking powder releases carbon dioxide again, causing the dough to rise.

Baking powder becomes active immediately upon contact with liquids like water or heat, making it ideal for quick-baking pastries like muffins, biscuits, and scones. When replacing instant yeast in a recipe, a 1:1 ratio of baking powder is generally used.

Baking Soda and Acids

Baking soda can also be mixed with an acid to use as a leavening agent in place of instant yeast, achieving similar results. Common acids that can be combined with baking soda are listed below.

• Lemon Juice
• Buttermilk
• Milk Vinegar (mix milk and vinegar in a 1:1 ratio)
• Cream of Tartar

When replacing instant yeast in a recipe with baking soda and an acid, a 1:1:2 ratio is generally used. For example, if a recipe calls for 2 teaspoons of instant yeast, substitute 1 teaspoon of baking soda with 1 teaspoon of acid.

Sourdough Starter

Sourdough starter, a type of wild yeast, requires only flour, water, and naturally occurring yeast. It’s a popular homemade yeast for many people.

When using sourdough starter in place of instant yeast in a recipe, you can typically replace 2 teaspoons of instant yeast with 1 cup (300g) of sourdough starter.

The thicker the sourdough starter, the less flour you need to add to the bread. A thinner sourdough starter requires less liquid or more flour to achieve the perfect dough texture. Here’s how to make sourdough starter.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups water

Instructions:

• Day 1: Combine 1/2 cup of flour and 1/2 cup of water in a large glass container and stir well. Cover the container with plastic wrap or a clean paper towel and store in a refrigerator at room temperature.
• Day 2: Add 1/2 cup flour and 1/2 cup water to the original glass container and mix everything together. Cover the container with plastic wrap or paper towels and let it sit at room temperature.
• Day 3: Repeat the steps from Day 2. The flour and water mixture should now have a slightly yeasty smell and visible bubbles.
• Day 4: Repeat the steps from Day 2. You should now see more bubbles than on Day 3, a sour smell, and the sour starter should be larger.
• Day 5: Repeat the steps from Day 2. The sour starter should now have a stronger yeasty smell and more bubbles. You can start using it immediately! Refer to the recipe below for sour starter instructions.