Do you have to add sugar to bread to make it rise?

[MrsChemist]

I am having a bread making competition with my DH. We have to use the same recipe. I've just looked and it doesn't have any sugar in it. Just flour, water, yeast salt and butter.

I keep thinking it won't rise and DH will win and get to be all smug and gloaty about my rubbish bread.

Does it need sugar, or does that just help it along a bit?

Basically the answer is no, bread does not have to have sugar in it to rise. It will be fine without it. Some recipes and/or bakers do use sugar, and it also depends on the type of bread you are making....

I cheat and put a pinch of sugar in with the yeast when activating it. IMO it definitely makes it rise better.

no you dont. sugar makes yeast rise faster but you dont need it. I make bread at home all the time and only use suger with yeast in cakes or brioche type loafs.

You can add sugar for taste but too much sugar can kill the yeast.

Rec a book called Bread matters so full indepth bread making. SO interesting on how much nutrition is lost by fast bread making.

Yeast reacts with the flour thats what makes it rise.

I use a breadmaker anddon't bother now. Rises just fine.

Thanks everyone :) it rose very well, until I had to cut a cross in the top and it deflated a bit :( DH might win this one.

Catinthehat I would get a breadmaker but DH likes making it by hand, and our kitchen is the size of a postage stamp.

You may have done this but if not, next time, put a deep tray in the oven when you pre heat and pour boiling water in to it when you put the loaf in. Helps rising and crust. Also always put your loaf to bake on a hot tray. The heat makes it puff up.

Fwiw we haven't bought bread in over a year and the recipie we use doesn't have any sugar (or butter) in. All you need is flour, salt, water and yeast.

Don't bother with a bread maker. The bread it makes is still quickly risen in heat so not much better than that you buy in the shops imo. Just get a really simple recipie (i can give you mind if you want) and hone your kneeding technique.

"The bread it makes is still quickly risen in heat so not much better than that you buy in the shops imo"

Thanks for sharing that astonishing piece of information MoonFaceMama. It's always good to have someone who is familiar with the Chorleywood process ("CBP") which is generally used for factory bread and which I now realise is the same as that used in all domestic breadmakers.

Although I only add flour/water/salt/yeast to my little breadmaker and leave it for 5 hours, here's what my amazing £80 piece of kit apparently does while I am out of the room:

"CBP is able to utilise lower-protein wheats, combined with chemical improvers, and uses intense mechanical working of the dough by high-speed mixers, together with solid vegetable fat, high quantities of yeast and water, which produces a loaf of bread from flour to sliced-and-packaged form in about three and one-half hours. By introducing several minutes of high energy mixing into the baking process, the fermentation period is substantially reduced, which increases the production speed of each loaf. The CBP method of making bread cannot be reproduced in a normal kitchen because of this requirement. Solid fat is necessary to provide structure during baking or the loaf collapses. Higher protein wheats may be used but are more expensive.

Flour, chemical oxidants and "improvers" like water, yeast, fat and salt are mechanically mixed and the dough is violently shaken for about three minutes. The large amount of energy used generates high temperatures to raise the dough with its large dose of yeast, and computer regulated cooling systems modulate the next stages. The air pressure in the mixer headspace is maintained at a partial vacuum to prevent the gas bubbles in the dough from getting too large and creating an unwanted "open" structure in the finished crumb.

The dough is cut into individual pieces and allowed to "recover" for 8 minutes. Each piece of dough is then shaped further, placed four to a tin and moved to the humidity and temperature controlled proofing chamber, where it sits for about an hour. It is now ready to be baked. Baking takes 20 minutes at 400 °F (ca 200°C) and then the loaves go to the cooler, where, about two hours later they are sliced, packaged and ready for despatch"

Catinthehat i'm glad your breadmaker works for you. The one we tried was crap. Don't think it took 5hrs. The recipie it gave called for all sorts of stuff (that we ignored).

As i'm sure you know slow risen bread is better nutritionally, in terms of flavour and texture, and is easier to digest.

So we ditched our crap machine and found a recipie we like, that works. You have clearly found a method that meets your needs.

This has clearly bothered you but i wasn't out to offend, just giving my opinion.

Sorry MFM, I can't think of the last person who got to "bovvered" or indeed an "offended"on the Cat-o-meter.

You made it to "giggled a bit" - I enjoyed your comment!

Phew...was a bit worried...i hate confrontation! God knows what i'm doing on mn!

Btw cbp is rubbish init?

CBP rubbish? It's truly terrifying!

Honest guv, I've used my Panasonic for 5 yrs and I get a most excellent 85% wholemeal, which compares very favourably with the loaf we used to get from our village baker when I was little. THey are very impressive and for a single loaf it saves firing up the whole oven.