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Yeast is a single-cell living organism that acts as a leavening agent to make dough rise. It does this by consuming and converting sugars into carbon dioxide, which produces the bubbles in the dough that make it expand - or rise - as it "proofs" in a warm, moist environment, and again as it bakes in a hot oven.
No matter what form your yeast comes in - active dry yeast, instant (or rapid-rise), or fresh yeast - it needs to multiply and grow in a sympathetic environment. The correct environment includes moisture, food (in the form of sugar or starch), and a warm, nurturing temperature.
Dry yeast is one of the miracles of modern baking-a free-flowing granular powder made from millions upon millions of dehydrated single-celled organisms. Once hydrated, these li'l critters munch on the sugar or starch in a dough, producing the alcohol and carbon dioxide that give bread its distinctly fermented flavor and airy rise.
Successfully resurrecting dry yeast depends entirely on how it was processed, so when a recipe calls for a certain type, the directions will be tailored to its specific needs. Those directions may kill a different type of dry yeast outright, or fail to provide the conditions needed for it to thrive, resulting in poorly risen doughs-or doughs that don't rise at all.
That means it's vital for bakers to understand the language used to describe various types of dry yeast, and to realize that blind substitution is a crapshoot at best. Some recipes, particularly high-moisture doughs with a short proofing period, can provide a hospitable environment for many types of yeast, creating a false sense of security around substitution. In the realm of low-moisture doughs with a cold, overnight rise (think bagels, English muffins, or cinnamon rolls), the wrong type of yeast will absolutely impact your bread. For the best results in a yeast-raised dough, it pays to understand what a recipe means when it calls for a specific type of yeast, and what the implications may be when you use a different kind.
You can use active dry yeast in place of instant yeast and vice versa, substituting them 1:1. Active dry yeast is slower to rise than instant yeast, but if your recipe calls for a long rise time (two to three hours), the outcome will be the same. If your recipe has a shorter rise time (such as an hour), add an extra 15 to 20 minutes for the active dry yeast to do its work.
Expiration dates for yeast are not always reliable, and yeast often dies long before the date on the package. While instant yeast has a longer shelf life than active dry yeast, there's no way to know if the yeast is still alive when added to a mixture of flour and salt. The benefit of baking with active dry yeast is that by blooming it in water, you can guarantee that it's still alive.
When yeast springs into action, bread dough doubles in height in a couple of hours. If yours hasn't risen noticeably in 30 to 45 minutes, try this fix from food stylist and recipe developer Riley Wofford: Fill a pan with boiling water, place it on the lowest rack of your oven, and put your loaf on the rack above it. "Shut the door, but don't turn the oven on," she says. "The yeast will do its thing in a warmer environment."
Yes, you can still use yeast once it's been opened, but it won't last forever. According to Fleischmann's, yeast should be stored unopened in its original packaging in a cool, dark place, such as a pantry or refrigerator. Once a packet is opened, store any remaining yeast in an airtight container in the back of the refrigerator.
Active dry or instant yeast should generally be used within three to four months from when it's opened, but you may also consult the expiration date printed on the package to see if it's still usable. Again, take that date, well, with a grain of salt.
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