 |
 |
Fermentation with flour or Rice
Name: Jay
Status: Student
Grade: Other
Location: NY
Country: United States
Date: September 2008
Question:
Is it possible to have a fermentation process with flour
or rice, and without using yeast?
Replies:
Fermentation in its commonly-used sense (converting sugar to ethanol) can
start with wheat or rice, but it does need some kind of microorganism, and
that organism is yeast. A broader definition of fermentation means using
microorganisms to produce any useful product (not limited to ethanol).
So-called industrial fermentation can use many different microorganisms
including bacteria or yeast to produce lots of different products (such as
chemicals or pharmaceuticals). It would typically be possible (although not
always advantageous) to use wheat or rice in industrial fermentation.
Hope this helps,
Burr
Yes, it is definitely possible to ferment (wheat) flour or rice.
Yes, it is possible to do so without yeast.
In every common definition of "fermentation", yeast or bacteria convert
carbohydrates into either alcohols or acids. Usually the yeasts produce
alcohol (beer, wine), and the bacteria produce acids (yogurt, sauerkraut,
sourdough), but there are exceptions. Often the yeast and bacteria
collaborate.
Sourdough bread is an example of *wheat* being fermented by bacteria (and
yeast, to some degree, depending on source). Bokashi is another example.
An example of fermented *rice* would be 'arroz fermentado' (South American),
or Tapai (Asian).
If you are interested, I recommend the book "Wild Fermentation" by Sandor Katz.
It illuminates (and provides recipes for) humanity's long tradition of
fermentation, including...
Beer, wine, mead, bread, pickles, sauerkraut, kimchi, miso, tempeh, yogurt,
cheese, buttermilk, sour cream, amazake, kombucha, chicha, chang, vinegar.
P. Bridges
Click here to return to the Molecular Biology Archives
| |
Update: June 2012
|
|
