How Does Sugar Affect Yeast

Sugar refers to carbohydrates. Sugars are employed by yeast during the early stages of fermentation. Extra sugars are used to increase gas production by the action of enzymes in the flour. By this way, it improves the crust colour and sweetens the bread. During baking, the reducing sugars in dough combine with amino acids from protein to undergo Maillard reaction giving attractive brown colours to the whole wheat bread. Duncan states that the concentration of the reducing sugars present is proportional to the colour produced (Duncan, 1998). Furthermore, sugars act as antiplasticizers retarding the pasting of native starch or function as antistaling ingredients inhibiting the starch recrystallization which can extend the shelf life of the bread by delaying the gelatinization and the denaturation of protein (Giannou et al., 2003). …show more content…
Sugar increases dough yield. It is complementary to the Pyler which states that addition of sugars results in increases yield per dough (Pyler, 1973). Stable, elastic and softer dough are produced apart from enhancing the crumb texture and moistness. Increasing levels of sugar affect the gas producing of baker’s yeast and thus rate of dough raised ability since extra food for the yeast are provided by sugars. The main non-starch polysaccharides components in whole wheat flour are the arabinoxylans and pentosans. Their water holding capacity has been known to affect the dough rheology, extensibility and texture (van Hamelet.al., 1993; D’Appolonia and Rayas-Duarte, 1994). Soluble arabinoxylans with high molecular weight causes modification in volume and softening of