Q 01/05

The oldest evidence of bread-making, about 14,500 years old, was found in which country?

A) Jordan

B) Turkey

C) Egypt

D) Iraq

Answer · why

A) Jordan

The site belonged to the Natufian culture; grain farming only took off a few thousand years later.

Q 02/05

Which two by-products does yeast give off as it ferments the sugars in bread dough?

A) Oxygen and nitrogen

B) Carbon dioxide and ethanol

C) Hydrogen and methane

D) Carbon monoxide and water vapour

Answer · why

B) Carbon dioxide and ethanol

Carbon dioxide and ethanol. Bakers want only the gas, which inflates the dough, while brewers and winemakers using the same yeast are after the alcoho...

Q 03/05

Which protein complex gives wheat dough its sponginess and elasticity?

A) Casein

B) Albumin

C) Gluten

D) Keratin

Answer · why

C) Gluten

Gluten. Kneading links two wheat proteins, glutenin and gliadin, into an elastic network that traps the gas from fermentation and stretches with it, w...

Q 04/05

Which species of yeast, also used in brewing, is most commonly used to leaven bread?

A) Brettanomyces bruxellensis

B) Aspergillus oryzae

C) Candida albicans

D) Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Answer · why

D) Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Packaged baker's yeast is a pure culture of it, grown by methods that followed Louis Pasteur's work, which is why it acts fa...

Q 05/05

Besides wild yeast, which bacteria ferment a sourdough starter and give it its tang?

A) Lactobacilli

B) Clostridia

C) Streptococci

D) Salmonella

Answer · why

A) Lactobacilli

Lactobacilli. The lactic acid they produce gives the loaf its sour taste and also helps it keep, so a sourdough stays good for longer than an ordinary...