The Reason Your Homemade Bread Never Rises, Hiding In Your Kitchen

Your yeast might be quietly dead.

You mix, you knead, you wait, and your dough just sits there like a stubborn lump refusing to grow. Before you blame yourself, check the one ingredient everyone forgets to test: the yeast.

Yeast is alive, and it dies over time or when it meets water that is too hot. Liquid above roughly comfortable bath temperature can kill it on contact, leaving you with dough that never stands a chance.

Test it first. Stir your yeast into warm water with a pinch of sugar and wait ten minutes. If it foams and bubbles, it is alive and ready. If nothing happens, it is done, and so is your loaf.

Keep your yeast sealed and cool, use lukewarm liquid, and give the dough a warm draught free spot to rise. Nail those basics and you will finally pull a tall, airy loaf from your oven.