Without these little pockets of air, your dough will bake into a flat and dull bread that is simply too dense to be enjoyed. While it is possible to bake dough that has not risen, it is not recommended for this reason.
Yeast is too hot Yeast may have been dissolved in water that was too hot, or the liquid ingredients in the recipe may be too hot, causing the yeast to die. Yeast needs to be warm - not too hot, not too cold. Yeast is too cold If the other ingredients are too cold, it could cause some of the yeast to die.
It is necessary to raise the rolls to create air pockets. If you bake your cinnamon rolls after they have not risen and they are still very soft, they will be less flavorful and denser. You can also dissolve more active yeast in warm water and place it in the dough to see if it rises.
Once you get new yeast that you've tested, you can add the correct amount of yeast and few tablespoons of warm water to the dough that didn't rise. To do this, mix the yeast and water, let it sit for about 5 minutes and then fold it into the dough.
The rolls won't have a light and fluffy texture without enough air bubbles. There are a few more reasons your yeasted dough doesn't seem to be rising, including yeast that's too old or expired, a room temperature that's not sufficiently warm, or the liquid you bloomed the yeast in being too hot.
But if your kitchen is cold, your oven is actually a great place. Preheat oven to 200 degrees for 1-2 minutes to get it nice and toasty, then turn it off. Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap, then put it inside the oven and let rise until doubled (about 45-60 minutes).
Your dough will rise in the fridge and it can be a huge help as it makes bread making easy to fit into your day. When you put your dough in the fridge it slows the yeast activity down. It takes ten times longer for dough to rise in the fridge than it does at room temperature.
Check For Bubbles And A “Yeasty” Smell
You should have a bubbly mixture that smells very “yeasty”. If the bubbles are non-existent, the yeast is unfortunately dead as a doorknob. IF the yeast is still quite bubbly, kind of frothy, and has a yeasty aroma, then it can still be used for recipes that call for yeast.
“The first thing that springs to mind,” Bertinet says, “is that your dough is probably too cold.” Or, put another way, the water you're using isn't warm enough. “It's vital you give the yeast a helping hand, otherwise it'll just slumber lazily,” he says, adding that your water/ flour/salt/yeast ratio is also crucial.
If the dough doesn't spring back at all, you've likely over-proofed the dough.
If your liquid was too hot, your yeast was killed and it cannot be saved. Try again with new yeast and make sure your liquid is the right temperature. If your liquid was too cold, use a water bath to slowly bring your yeast and liquid mixture up to the right temperature, but no hotter.
Overkneaded dough will be tough and make tough, chewy bread. If you've kneaded by hand, you don't need to be too worried about overworked dough—you'll start to notice it getting difficult to manage. It takes a lot of elbow grease to knead bread dough; you'll likely tire yourself out before you can over-knead.
If your kitchen and/or counter where you knead the dough is cool, the dough will cool down also (even if you used warm water to make it). If your dough is kept at around 80°F, it should take between 1 and 1½ hours to rise double in volume.
Warm-up your dough: Cold dough is hard to stretch and more prone to tearing. Let your dough warm up to at least room temperature before stretching for best results.
As the water continues to steam in the closed microwave, it creates a warm, humid environment, similar to that of a bread dough proofer. The warmer and more humid the air is, the faster the bread should rise.
By placing a cup of boiling water in a microwave oven, you can create these ideal conditions. To do this, boil 1 cup of water in a microwave-safe measuring cup. Move the cup to the back corner of the microwave. Place dough inside the microwave, close the door and allow the dough to rise until doubled.
Regardless of the type of yeast you use, if your water reaches temperatures of 120°F or more, the yeast will begin to die off. Once water temps reach 140°F or higher, that is the point where the yeast will be completely killed off.
If your dough did not rise or if you forgot to add yeast to your dough, you can just mix the quantity of yeast you planned to use with a few tablespoons of warm water (not hot).
Put the dough in the fridge straight after shaping, covered with oiled cling film. It will start to rise but slow down as the dough chills. In the morning, allow it to come back to room temperature and finish rising 45 minutes to one hour before baking as usual.
Consider vitamin C
Vitamin C strengthens the gluten in flour, which can give a better rise, and help dough to rise more quickly. You probably won't need it if you're making white bread, but if you make wholemeal bread and it doesn't rise as well as you hoped, you could try a little vitamin C next time.