Five components of Yeast Nutrient Base (YNB) of Difco have been identified as required nutrients for Candida shehatae ATCC 22984 in fermenting xylose to ethanol with ammonium sulfate as the nitrogen source. They are potassium phosphate monobasic, magnesium sulfate, zinc sulfate, thiamine hydrochloride, and biotin. The fermentation results in the minimum medium containing only the five required nutrient components plus xylose and ammonium sulfate have been shown to be comparable to those in the full YNB plus xylose.