How to properly freeze dough and products made from it

Yeast dough is a semi-finished product that, when properly prepared, produces excellent baked goods, such as buns, pies, kulebyaki, pies, bagels, pizza bases and cheesecakes.

Sometimes there are situations when there is not enough time, but you need to prepare a delicious flour product. Is it possible to stock up on semi-finished products at home for future use? Yes, sure. You can perfectly preserve the dough without spoiling its gastronomic qualities.

A common way to preserve it is to freeze it yourself at home. This method will preserve all the qualities of the flour product, and the baked goods will become more fluffy and soft from frost. If you plan to knead the flour mixture, you will do it in a larger volume so that in the future you will have a reserve that will help out if you are short of time. In order to store for a long time, the product must be kneaded and properly prepared for freezing. When storing, it is worth remembering the conditions and terms of storage in the freezer.

Important! When leaving it in the freezer, do not forget to stick a note with the name of the stock and the date it was stored to avoid incidents.

Test preparation

Immediately after mixing, time it for a few hours. The dough should rest a little. Then divide the lump into several pieces of the desired size and put them in the freezer. If you are going to prepare yeast dough, wrap each portion with aluminum foil or cling film. Otherwise the product will spoil. Pay special attention to air humidity.

During shock freezing, the liquid quickly crystallizes. As a result, the taste of the dough deteriorates. This becomes noticeable after preparing the dish for which the semi-finished product was made.

How to determine delay

To avoid misunderstandings and not spoil the impression of aromatic baked goods, adhere to the following recommendations:

When purchasing a factory product, pay attention to the date of manufacture: choose the most recent product.
The presence of a sharp sour or unpleasant odor indicates that the dough has lost its consumer value and has deteriorated.
Make sure that the packaging is intact when purchasing: do not take it if it is swollen.
Pay attention to the composition: if yeast, eggs, sugar are present, it will spoil faster.
The appearance of a white slimy coating is characteristic of overdue delivery.

How to freeze yeast dough

Chilled dough must be frozen regardless of its origin, whether it is a homemade or factory-made product. Some stores sell already prepared dough - this is especially convenient for housewives who do not want to waste time. If you don’t plan to bake any baked goods in the near future, put the purchased yeast dough in the freezer.

As for the home product, the sequence of actions is somewhat different. You need to follow a few tips to get a quality result.

If you are going to store homemade yeast dough in the freezer, prepare it in a special way:

Knead the lump well so that all the carbon dioxide comes out;
Divide the mass into several parts;
Roll each lump well in wheat flour;
Place the parts into bags;
Place the workpiece on the refrigerator shelf;
Time yourself for a few hours;
When the dough has cooled, transfer it to the freezer;

The shelf life of the semi-finished product reaches 90 days. Of course, you need to create optimal temperature conditions - namely -18 degrees. It is not recommended to refreeze yeast dough, as the quality of the yeast deteriorates greatly. As a result, the taste of the finished dish suffers.

Freezing yeast dough products

You can store raw or ready-made baked goods based on yeast dough in the freezer. For example, you can make pies with different fillings. To freeze, it is recommended to place them on a wooden board dusted with wheat flour. Then cover with plastic wrap to prevent the surface of the flour products from getting chapped. And put it in the freezer. After 5 hours, you need to take out the blanks to transfer them to plastic containers.

You can also use regular plastic bags. A similar sequence of steps is suitable for freezing yeast buns. The roll is pre-coated with jam, preserves or other filling. Then it will be divided into several parts. And put it in the freezer.

The advantage of this method is quick preparation. Ready-made flour products do not need to be defrosted beforehand and no additional time needs to be spent. They can be immediately placed in a frying pan or in the oven. If you decide to defrost the buns, first move the products to the refrigerator, where they will gradually warm up. And only then take it out.

Pizza dough

If you often make pizza, make a large supply of yeast dough. This advice will help save time. There will be no need to constantly prepare the dough before preparing Italian pastries. Divide the semi-finished product into several parts that you will use every time. You can also bake croissants, cookies and other flour products.

The sequence of actions is almost the same. You will only spend half an hour. For 1 liter of cow's milk, take 1.5 packs of dry yeast, 1 pack of margarine, 3 chicken eggs and 3 tablespoons of granulated sugar. Add just a pinch of salt to suit your taste. Wheat flour will need from 1 to 1.5 kilograms.

The test preparation is carried out in the usual way. First, dissolve the yeast in warmed milk. Salt the mixture. Add a little granulated sugar and flour. This stage is called dough. Then add the rest of the ingredients. Distribute the finished dough into several bags. Store in the freezer. Now before each preparation of pizza you do not have to waste time kneading the dough. Just take another portion from the freezer.

For puff pastries

The main feature of puff pastry is sequential rolling with butter. If you don’t want to waste time on several steps, you can chop the flour together with the butter. Then add some yeast. The mixture does not need to be kneaded for too long, as it will no longer be flaky.

The finished semi-finished product is excellent for preparing various baked goods - strudels, puff pastries, pies. If you're tired of puff pastries, try making other flour products.

If you are making strudels, roll out the dough as thin as possible. The finished dish will be especially tasty.

In a refrigerator

The duration of storage directly depends on the composition, quality of ingredients used, temperature and light conditions, and humidity levels.

A self-prepared batch is usually placed in the refrigerator for no more than 24-48 hours.

The presence of yeast reduces the shelf life of the product.

According to the requirements and norms of SanPiN, industrial test semi-finished products must be stored at a humidity of 85-90%, excluding direct sunlight, at a temperature of 4 ± 2 ° C:

9 hours – yeast for pies, buns and other flour products.
24 hours – unleavened puff pastries for cakes and pastries.
36 hours – shortbread for cakes and pastries.

Manufacturers often add various stabilizers, preservatives, and thickeners to the composition in order to extend shelf life.

How should you defrost the dough?

Some housewives prefer to heat the semi-finished product in the microwave to save time. For this, manufacturers provide a special mode. But this approach greatly worsens the taste of yeast dough. Never use this method. It is best to remove the dough from the freezer in advance and place it on the kitchen counter. The dough is brought to room temperature gradually - over several hours. Gluten should be completely restored. Never work with cold dough, otherwise the finished flour product will be of very poor quality.

Advice! It usually takes about 4 hours for the dough to defrost. The exact time is determined by its variety and serving size.

Main stages:

Remove the product from the freezer;
Remove plastic wrap;
Place the dough on the surface of a wooden board;
Time 4 or 5 hours;
When the piece becomes soft, start preparing baked goods from it.

Defrosting in the refrigerator

Transfer the dough from the freezer to the lowest shelf of the refrigerator;
It's best to place the piece on a plate to prevent it from sticking;
Record approximately 8 hours of time;
Then leave the workpiece to sit at room temperature;
The finished dough will retain all its taste properties.

Correct freezing technology

Modern freezers have sufficient power to ensure deep freezing of yeast dough and long-term storage. At the kneading stage, two nuances need to be taken into account.

Firstly, you need to use fresh yeast, quick-acting yeast is not suitable, and add 5-7% more yeast than is prescribed in the recipe.
Secondly, preference should be given to “strong” flour with a gluten content of 30-32%.

How to freeze yeast dough:

The dough is thoroughly kneaded. Give 5-10 minutes to “rest”.
The kneaded dough is divided into large parts if you plan to bake pies or bread from it in the future. Or into small ones, for example, for buns, which are immediately formed into “balls”.
Next, choose a storage format. In the first option, the divided dough is placed in containers or baking dishes, greased with vegetable oil, and covered with cling film or foil on top. In the second, they are rolled in flour, put into bags, squeezed out the air, and tied. The formed small products are laid out on a board sprinkled with flour and covered with film. The rolled out pizza dough is placed between two layers of siliconized parchment, placed in a large bag, and the edges are folded.
The packaged dough is briefly cooled in the refrigerator to slow down the fermentation process, then transferred to the freezer. By this time, the lowest possible temperature should be set at which the dough should be kept for at least a week. Then stored at an average temperature of -15 °C.

Excess dough that has already risen but is not used for baking can also be frozen. Its quality after defrosting will be slightly worse than that of a specially prepared one, especially if quick yeast and flour not rich in gluten were used. However, at least you can bake a pizza or a short pie from it.

Subtleties of preparing butter and yeast dough. Find out more.

Storing, freezing and baking

Thus, yeast dough can be stored in the freezer for a very long time. The main thing is to learn how to place it correctly in the freezer. Before freezing, dust the container with wheat flour, otherwise the contents will stick. If you use a plastic bag, squeeze out the excess air. And only then fill it with dough.

Place the formed portions as tightly as possible. Otherwise, they will have time to come up and take up free space on the shelf, taking away space for storing other products. The shelf life of the semi-finished product reaches 4 months. It is recommended to use the dough as quickly as possible, since the taste properties deteriorate over time.

And never refreeze yeast dough. It will spoil and become tasteless.

How long does frozen dough last?

Properly frozen dough can be stored for up to three, maximum four months. The sooner it is used, the better the baked goods will turn out. If the refrigerator model has one common door for both chambers and, accordingly, the temperature in the freezer is not constant, then the dough should be put to work early, without waiting for the expiration date.

See also: How much salt to add when cooking dumplings and whether it is necessary to add it at all

The shelf life is also shortened by a long absence of electricity, leading to temperature fluctuations.

If for some reason the dough is defrosted, it can no longer be re-frozen; it will have to be used.

For pizza

The shelf life of yeast pizza dough will depend on the amount of yeast and its other components. But usually the shelf life is limited to 2 - 3 days in the refrigerator.

When frozen, this product can easily be stored for 3 to 6 months.
Ready-made semi-finished products from such dough have a shelf life depending on the type of filling.

General storage table

Type of test	Room temperature (hours)	Refrigerator (days)	Freezer (months)	Recommended cookware
Yeast (sour)	1	1-2	2-3	Plastic bag
Fresh (yeast-free)	1	2-3	6	Cling film
Puff	1	1-2	1-2	Cling film, container
Puff pastry without yeast	2	2-3	1	Cling film, container
Custard	1	3	1	Cling film
Sand	3-4	2-3	2-3	Cling film, bag
Biscuit	1	3	6	Container with lid
Pancake	2-3	1	1	Pan, container

Pizza dough that can be frozen for future use.

for dough
1 tbsp. warm water
2 tbsp. dry yeast
2 tsp sugar
for test
4 tbsp. flour
1 tsp salt
4 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 egg

Our respected federal culinary specialist posted a pizza recipe that I would like to join. Our recipes are very similar, only I add an egg and a little more flour. From this amount of products I get 4 cakes, which I also freeze in the freezer, wrapping them in cling film. It’s very convenient, you bake it once, and then just take it out of the freezer, throw on whatever you want, and in 20 minutes you’ll have fresh pizza ready. So here's the recipe.

Mix everything for the dough and leave for reaction.

Mix everything for the dough, add the dough and knead very well, about 10 minutes. The dough should be homogeneous, smooth, when you hit it with your palm, the sound will be like a ball.

Cover with a towel and place in a warm place for 1 hour.

When the dough has risen, knead again, divide into portions, roll out and place in the mold. I line the pan with baking paper or you can just dust it with flour.

Prick the dough vigorously and often with a fork and bake for 10 minutes.

When the cakes have cooled, wrap them in film and put them in the freezer. That's basically it.

If you want pizza, take out the frozen crust, spread it with your favorite sauce, then grated cheese (to bind the filling to the dough), any topping, olives and grated cheese again.

Bake for 20 minutes. And you can enjoy delicious home-made pizza.

Prepare yourself too. Bon appetit.

It is very convenient to take frozen pizza crusts with you to the dacha. There is no need to fuss with the dough and you can make excellent pizza any time.

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Factors affecting storage

So, it is clear that yeast dough is very capricious and does not like long-term storage anywhere, even in the “minuses”. Its shelf life depends on:

storage temperatures;
degree of readiness;
presence of sugar in the composition.

Sweet mass intended for baking spoils the fastest. Even frozen butter dough can be stored for no more than thirty days. This is provided that it was not even partially defrosted. If you defrost it, there are two options: either put the baked goods in or throw them away. Yeast dough cannot withstand repeated freezing for future use. Unleavened dough “lives” longer, but it is better to use it as soon as possible.

Baking

The shelf life of rich yeast dough will be shorter than that of unleavened dough. The presence of sugar in this product increases the rate of fermentation. This happens because sugar is an excellent nutrient medium for yeast. Based on this, sweet pastries should be made on the day the dough is made (maximum on the second day).

Dough for fried pies, pizza, kulebyaki can be safely stored in the refrigerator for 2 days.