Description
Brewer's yeast is exactly as it sounds -- that used to make beer. Also known as Saccharomyces cerevisiae, this tiny fungus is different from bread-raising baker's yeast and is not related to Candida albicans -- the species that causes yeast infections.
Yeast is a single-cell organism and can be grown on anything sugary. It will divide approximately twenty times before it dies. These divisions themselves divide within days, as do their offspring, resulting in millions of yeast cells over a very short period of time.
Yeast typically requires the same vitamins and amino acids needed by humans. As they are grown on foods lacking in some nutrients, the yeast is forced to manufacture its own amino acids and vitamins through biochemical reactions. In the end, the yeast becomes a more complete food for those who consume it.
As with baker's yeast and hot ovens, the live cells in brewer's yeast are destroyed during the brewing process. However, the nutrients accumulated by the yeast remain.
"Brewer's yeast" and "nutritional yeast" are two terms often used interchangeably. However, nutritional yeast refers to any yeast grown for the purpose of becoming a food supplement. It may be brewer's yeast, but can also be yeast from another species.
Brewer's yeast contains vitamins B1/thiamin, B2/riboflavin, B3/niacin, B6/pyridoxine, B12/cobalamin, folic acid, and the minerals chromium (in relatively large amounts), copper, iron, phosphorus, selenium, and zinc. It also contains protein, accounting for slightly more than half its weight.
Brewer's yeast tastes slightly bitter and has a strong taste of yeast-rich bread or sweet bread dough.
