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Failed Experiment
Experimentation can be fun and we can learn a lot from them. Experiments don't always succeed but that's how we learn what works and what doesn't.It is well known in baking that salt counteracts yeast activity. This inspired a bright idea. I made a sourdough loaf as I usually do, using a one-hour auto... | That ain't no failed experiment!
Not at all. It was rather illuminating! Thanks for sharing. |
Problems with my sourdough
I have big problems with my wheat sourdough but my rye sourdougt works better. If you have any tips or can see what I do wrong or what I can do instead,just shoot it out :) I have done few wheat sourdough but the result is the same.I have for example following problem:1)After just few days (... | Always in the fridge?
If the process you described is exactly what you do, and you don't ever let the sourdough live outside of the fridge, you are probably reducing the yeast count every time you feed it. You should let it stay outside the fridge for some time when you feed it. If you haven't been doing that, then I w... |
Vermont Sourdough w/Rye sandwich loaves
I used the recipe by J. Hamelman in Bread to make a couple of sourdough sandwich loaves. I just like roast beef on rye for lunch. For the most part I went by the book. Here are the exceptions:home milled whole rye flour was used.1 ounce additional water used.20+ minutes of han... | salt and sliding
For the salt, you can cut back to 1.5 %without making adjustments. The fermentation might go a tiny bit faster but not much. If you prefer the taste with less salt then go for it. There has to be some salt in there, but typical ranges are 1.8 to 2.2%. You can go a little lower without much difference o... |
Differences between starters
Do you maintain (using identical steps) more than one starter because they taste or behave differently? Janet | Personally
No, my preference is to just maintain one rye starter with which I can build preferments to make anything else. Occasionally if I know I am going to bake a few white loaves I will maintain a white starter alongside the rye starter but only for convenience.
With a rye starter I can make either a 100% rye pre... |
Pain de campagne hydration...
Hi guys, as some of you may know from my previous posts, Im currently working in a bakery that is now converting over to "arrisan" methods to produce the majority of there products, along with introducing some new bread lines. I have been given the task of developing these new breads, expe... | If you want larger holes in the crumb
you could cut the whole grains down to 15% instead of 20%, make a smaller preferment say 25% so it will ferment longer, do a 1 hour autolyse for the dough flour and liquid and up the hydration to 72% but I think I would keep the whole grains in there and see if some combination of... |
Seeking recipe ideas for a long acidic fermentation sourdough
Loafers,
I have done much research on TFL and all over the web (two weeks)and I am not seeing the solution to my quest. I have the Hamelman bread book on reserve at the library and I hope it will teach me a lot about how to design a proper recipe, as I see i... | A link for you
http://myceliaglutenfree.blogspot.com/ |
Sourdough Rye Knackebrod
I'm reviving a dark rye starter and thought the extra I was about to toss away after being fed would work well in a knackebrod recipe I found that uses a sourdough starter over on a site called bead and milk and blackberries, but the site is now set to invitation only. This is a long shot, but ... | Knackerbrod
HI thereI have had success with the recipe on Anne's Food, just adapting it to use with my starter.There is a Youtube video of Jamie Oliver working in a Swedish chef's kitchen that I found helpful, that section starts around minute 17.Also you could check out the Sourdough Surprises group sourdough crackers... |
New Sourdough Starter
Hi,Wondering if anybody has any insight about my sourdough starter? I have tried to create a new starter twice this month unsuccessfully and wondering what did I do wrong. Started with a 10 g water & 10 g whole wheat 50%/bread 50%. Room temps were 77-83 F. Feed it 1:1:1 for 7 days. Day 1 (next day... | Read through these posts. It
Read through these posts. It should help you with getting your starter going. It sounds to me like you were feeding your starter before it was established and you were discarding your bacteria/yeast before you had a strong population.Good luck! https://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/10856/pin... |
Type of flour
Hello all, I want to make healthy sourdough bread using the healthiest flour I can lay my hands on. Where I live, resources are limited and getting bulk is restricted to mills who only sell by 50kg bags.My choices are between whole wheat hard berry claiming no additives and no enzymes added and having pro... | For sourdough, option #1, the
For sourdough, option #1, the whole wheat, however, I would add a small quantity of diastatic malt, also known as malted barley flour. Do a Google search on those terms and see what comes up. |
Feeding the starter, lazy yeast?
I keep a small amount of starter in the fridge and bake two or three times a week. Most of the times I use all of it and expand as nessesary, instead of just taking a small part and feeding the rest. I allways do at least one expasion at room temperature before using it; for example, if... | Normally
When a recipe calls for 20% (or any percent) sourdough it's 20% of the flour. The flour always = 100%So as an example recipe...Flour 100%Water 66%Sourdough starter 20%Salt 2% It will be.... Flour 400g (for example)Water 264g (66% of 400g)Starter 80g (20% of 400g)Salt 8g (2% of 400g) |
Help with sourdough...
Hello everybody!i have been looking at this site quite often and I have some questions. I have a sourdough starter which I made myself about two years ago. Every-time when I want bake I take it out of the fridge and start to feed it. First 1/4 cup starter + 1/4 cup water and 1/4 cup of flour. I l... | The baker's yeast you're
The baker's yeast you're adding competes with the lactobacillus for the available maltose in the dough. The lactobacillus is what gives the bread its tanginess. That explains the loss of flavor.Big commercial bakeries now make "sourdough bread" with baker's yeast and the flavor is all gone. It ... |
wild yeast
hey alli have a more advanced subject question. i want to know. I went on vacation recently to Ukraine to visit my wife's family and i decided that i would collect some wild yeast. so i set out to collect it and i was successful. now I have a wonderful new born yeast culture and im back in America...so he... | I doubt there is a species
I doubt there is a species/strain of yeast indigenous to Ukraine that isn't present elsewhere in the world. |
Overfeeding?
Hi all, So I'm at it again...this time I got a scale to weigh the ingredients.Yesterday at around 6pm I mixed 50g of ww flour with 50g of water. It was a very thick paste. I figured that since it's very warm where I live, my fermentation will probably go quicker. I think I read that here or online somewher... | all depends on...
...how often you bake and how much you need to build.If you bake everyday or every other day and you use it in pre-ferments you might wish to give it a very good feeding once a week and simply take from it to use in your pre-ferments. When it looks as if it's running low feed again. So a schedule migh... |
Sourdough fermentation
having issues with sourdough, all a little new to me... My starter etc is absolutely fine, it's the bulk time and proofing time that seems to be causing me issues. I'm currently experimenting with a light rye sourdough, using a levean that is at 60% hydration and 25% of the total flour preferment... | Got a pic
Sounds under proofed but it could also be lack of steam. Your timings sound about right if your dough is in the mid 70's range. But a picture speaks a 1,000 words. CheersJosh |
How to completely stop "oven spring"?
I think it's called "oven spring." Sorry... I'm a newbie to *real* bread making beyond simple rolls and bread.Anyway, I've tried to make animal shaped rolls like this with my sourdough sandwich bread recipe: http://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/recipes/61930/recipe-cheesy-animal-bread-ro... | Shape skinny animals?
Let the rising and baking puff them out? Or try reducing dough hydration to the minimum when mixing up the dough. Leave out some of the water. |
Sourdough Starter
Hello and thank you for taking the time to read my post. I am very new to bread baking only taking it up a couple of years ago, and like many I guess eventually found my way to the mysteries of Sourdough bread. Although I grow a very healthy starter I am at a loss as to when I can use the starter aft... | Your starter will peak
and begin to fall. Right after it's peaked and it begins to fall this is the best time to use it. If you are feeding it 1:1:1 then you're looking around 12 hours after feeding. Having said this as long as your starter is active then you can successfully make a loaf. I don't stand there measuring ... |
Just Got a Starter, Now What Do I Do?!
A friendly fellow Angeleno gave me 36g of her starter so I didn't have to start one from scratch (wanted to avoid the waste that is part of starting one from scratch). Per instructions I've found throughout the Interwebs, today I fed the starter 18g of white and 18g of whole wheat... | I still remember the day I
I still remember the day I got my first starter given to me. But along with it I also got Theresa Greenaway's Discovering sourdough book, which has been my go to resource. I strongly suggest getting it. I do wish though that someone had told me to keep my starter refrigerated, otherwise a lot... |
Sourdough fail...what happened?
Years into making sourdoughs, I've finally hit on a dough formula and method that doesn't work at all, but I'm mystified why it doesn't work.Here's what I did (my notes during the "experiment"):0730 15SEP14 - separated out 200g of active 60% hydration levain, added 200g water, 300g bread... | Sounds like runaway fermentation
Did I read correctly that you fermented the levain 24 hours, with a starting temperature of 80F? No cold fermenation? Ambient room temperature was approximately __F?My first guess is that the long (24 hour) fermentation at warm (80F to start with, anyway) temperatures allowed the deve... |
No Knead Sourdough Focaccia
IMG_3374.jpeg
IMG_3373.jpeg | 75% hydration (cool water) ,
75% hydration (cool water) , 12-18 hour bulk ferment. 2 hour proof. Most fun part is dimpling it with your fingers. |
When to remove grapes from starter?
Hi everyone, I tried this recipehttp://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/sourdough_starter_with_45126a few months ago but even after 4 or 5 tries I couldn't get it to react again after the first feeding. I half hoped that it was because it was too cold during the days/nights (Jan/Feb time) ... | Grapes
Since the starter can be made without the grapes, it won't matter when or if they are removed in the feeding and discard process. And a bit of grape in a kilo of dough won't hurt anything. Those starter instructions are kind of thin. Do a search for King Arthur flour sourdough starter for one that is a bit more ... |
Sourdough from Scratch
Hi Everyone,Has anyone ever made the Ankarsrum Sourdough Starter? I was finally able to get a ceramic container and made it this morning, as school is almost done (Yay! Doing a happy dance!).This is the recipe: 2 dl (1 cup) lukewarm water, 37°C (98°F) 200 g (1 cup) flour 100 g (1/2 ... | Good luck.
Never made a starter other than my first using flour and water only. From what I understand, the skin of the fruit is where the yeast resides so peeling the apple may not be what you wanted to do. The red flecks will eventually disappear as you feed and use/discard the starter. Unless you are supposed to ke... |
My Starter Lost Its Spirit
First off, hello! I've been reading all the amazing posts here for a couple of years and I've learned a lot about baking. I have more to learn...About three years ago I made my own starter using the method from the Wild Yeast Blog, and it's been in and out of the refrigerator during that time... | when nothing happened and...
...you fed it again did you discard any? |
Discarding Starter...why?
First, let me say that I've done some searching and not found an answer to this specific question, so please read on before directing me to an existing thread. I know this topic has been discussed exhaustively.Lots of natural levain methods described in the literature require the "discard" o... | It doesn't always apply
I think that in real life the practice of discarding a lot of the starter is chiefly relevant to people who don't bake often enough to keep it healthy any other way. You bake with yours every day, so it naturally gets refreshed when you develop it for each bake. But if you only used it once a we... |
Fun Rainbow Sourdough Loaf
Just for fun,I used my sourdough potato bread recipe to make this for the kids. | I would bet any kid would want to eat that
Rainbow bread! Very cool, well done andHappy baking |
Darn no knead Frisbee!!
Another unsuccessful attempt at a no knead sourdough in my cast iron dutch oven.I used a recipe I found online:1 cup (5 oz.) whole wheat flour2 1/2 cups (11 oz.) white bread flour (I accidentally grabbed AP instead of bread flour)1 1/2 tsp. salt1 1/2 cups purified water1/4 cup starterThis is my ... | Starter build, proof time, oven temp, baking time
Those'd be the factors I'd look at. I haven't actually done NK SD, but from everything I've been reading lately I suspect it needs longer proofing - and your experience seems to bear that out. As so many people here have said, let the loaf, rather than the clock, tell y... |
Brotform success!
I bought a brotform some time ago, used it once to disastrous results (sticky, doughy mess), and put it away to focus more on recipes, dough technique, etc. Well, I've gotten tired of my round, dutch oven loaves, so did some research here on TFL on how to prep the brotform to best effect, and achieve... | Super happy!
This one might be my best tasting loaf yet! Nice crisp crust, love the crumb, and the flavor is exactly what I was looking for.Money shots:
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1-2-3 formul |
New to sourdough - a bread recipe I am pleased with
My second attempt at making a loaf with my newly acquired sourdough starter Marilyn. I tried a new recipe with better results this time and I think a big factor was light handling of the dough.It is recipe I found on the net which is an adaptation of Jeff Hamelman’s ... | Looks nice! well done.
Looks nice! well done. |
Now that was fun...
... I used my 100% hydration Starter because I had to feed it anyways so I thought I take some out, feed it for a 2 loaf batch of bread.The Recipe that I made up for those loafs where :430g mature 100% hydration Starter made of 50/50 strong bread flour and Whole wheat flour.600g of strong bread flou... | pics!!!
... or it didn't happen ;-) |
First Rye Sourdough (Thanks PiPs!)
I love rye bread, but have never made one, so got started today by following PiPs illustrative post of his 40% Rye w/Caraway (I left out the Caraway.) Everything went according to plan, no major issues, except for when I was shaping after the bulk proof. As I tightened the sheath on... | Looks great
the slight char is always a sign og a well baked bread. The tearing is signaling overdeveloped gluten, Its good that you see this as very key to work dough to limit, then you know you bring flavor to the table. With more runs you will know when to stop kneading or S & F so that its just borderline gluten wo... |
Whole Grain & Sourdough, a match made in heaven!
God Bless Virginia Beach Barry, aka Barryvabeach! Barry is a sold out whole wheat, home milled baker. Lately, I’ve been influenced by him to go back to basics and give 100% home milled whole grain bread a try. It has been years since a bread of that nature came out of my... | Gorgeous loaves!
So well done, Danny. I've been increasing my whole grain percentage from about 20% to 45% lately, but you're inspiring me to try a 100% whole grain loaf. What was your hydration level? Ilene |
Should I turn out banneton on parchment first or straight on to oven stone?
What is the best method of transferring the bread from the banneton to the oven stone. (I'm fairly confident they'll turn out ok, as they banneton was primed generously with rye flour - but one can never be sure!Should I transfer to the parchm... | oil....
I'm not sure it's necessary to spray oil on to your oven stone. I never do on mine, and nothing ever sticks. |
kali, what is it?
as found in an old 1805 book:https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=NSoEAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&authuser=0&hl=en&pg=GBS.PA79 Thank you !anna | Kali
I found this online...: http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=kali Seems it would serve the same purpose as modern baking soda??? Laura |
Starter and dough proportions
Hello,This week I had a day of orientations here at my work, with a baker from our flour supplier, and she advised me on some issues that I came about. When we tryed to bake with my starter, she pointed out that the starter should be accounted as water (even being a stiff starter). I star... | No
You should consider your starter what it is made up of. In your case your starter is 45% hydration which is quite low even for a stiff starter. You could probably adjust your ratio to 50% which will make the math easier. That is to say 1 part water to 2 parts flour. You must need to feed your starter every 3-4 h... |
Smell of sourdough starter and dough consistency
HiI am new to making sourdough bread. I was given a starter last week which I fed yesterday morning then used to start my first loaf in the evening. I have some questions which I'd really appreciate help ..I'm using a recipe which required me to make a "sponge" last ni... | Hope this helps...
Sourdoughs generally have a higher hydration than other breads. The consistency of your dough "sounds" fine.As far as smell goes the general rule is... when a starter is fed it smells sweeter and after it's risen, and fermented, you get that characteristic "sour" smell.I cannot advise you if what you... |
Starter smells like alcohol
Today is like day 6 of my flour/water starter. I was trying two different starters in case one failed. One uses pineapple juice, the other I used water with rye and wheat flour. This is about the water and flour only starter. Day 4 I started adding in a bit of white flour with rye. And ... | Clarification
May I ask what quantity of starter you are maintaining and how much water and flour are you adding at each feed?It is normal for the smells to change throughout the process as the yeasts and bacteria multiply and begin to ferment. Ethyl Alcohol is one of the by-products of that fermentation as well as CO... |
Make Ahead Sourdough Potato Bread
As I mentioned in a previous post, I am not an artisan baker. I am a SAHM who homeschools 3 young kids and wants to feed them the healthiest bread possible while still catering to their "We love white bread" tastes. I modified a make ahead potato sandwich bread like this:1/2 cup active... | One thing to keep in mind is
One thing to keep in mind is that SD breads will keep much longer than yeasted versions especially if you add potatoes as well. You may want to make a larger loaf which would last you 4-5 days simply wrapped in some plastic wrap.I'm not sure how fresh your starter was, but if you want a le... |
Simple Country Loaf
125g 100% hydration starter (AP flour)250g water325g KA AP flour50g KA WW flour9g saltAutolyze for 30 mins. S&F 15-20 times each every 30 minutes for 1.5 hours. 2 hour rise, shape, 2 hour proof. Baked in lodge dutch oven @ 450f covered for 25 mins, uncovered for 20 mins.I didn't get quite as much... | Simple is good
That's a classic 3-2-1 formula that has proven itself time after time in the ovens of many home bakers that post here. Baking this particular formula as a free form loaf takes some practice to be as successful as you are here but it can be done. Don't forget to show us the crumb. |
Sourdough + Yeast?
I encounter some sourdough bread recipes that include commercial yeast as well as starter. I read somewhere that this isn't advisable, as the little beasties try to kill each other. Could this possibly be true? | Whatever they might be trying
Whatever they might be trying to do to each other does not happen on 2-3-4 scale that it takes to raise the dough. Besides, the experiments like that are typically done in pure sourdough cultures, not in very diluted medium like a dough. Bottom line is, those recipes are perfectly fine. |
SUCCESS WITH SAURDOUGH STARTER
Dear all, with the help of this forum, and using the rye flour pineapple juice recipe I am totally thrilled to finally build the seed culture and the levain for sourdough breads. My first dough is sitting proving now, and instead of throwing the culture I used it to bake some delicious cr... | Depends...
I, for example, live in Ireland. Even in the summer my starter never goes into the fridge. During most of the year I can get away with one good feed a day but in the summer I had to go to two feeds a day. I also have a rye starter in the fridge which I stir and feed only twice a week.But if you're in a much ... |
when can I start using my starter
Hello, I just made a culture its been 2 weeks, it is pretty much active and sometimes overflows from the air tight jar. I fed it yesterday noon and am planning to use it tonight for my preferment is it too soon or safe to use? | You should feed it about 12
You should feed it about 12 hours before baking:) |
Sourdough bread is flat - please help
Hi TFL team please helpI managed to learn a tip from a bakery, he mentioned to keep the starter without a lid for some time and then cover it.It just worked great and the rye starter was rising and bubbly. But when i went to make a rye bread, mixed the rye flour with some AP flour... | Without seeing your recipe
Rye breads tend to use a big percentage of preferment and don't do well with refrigeration. From the description it sounds like the dough was too far gone. Over fermented!Far better, should you find yourself in that situation again, would be to split the dough in two and use each half as a pr... |
Crumb of sourdough bread
I've tried three sourdough recipes that do not add use any commercial yeast, but do call for a small amount of whole wheat flour (about 11%). The crumb of the bread is different from bread I've made with instant yeast. It looks shinier and glutinous, and is tougher—almost rubbery. Is this typic... | It can be. A large presence
It can be. A large presence of lactic acid will impart the texture you describe, especially tough and rubbery. Shinier crumbs could simply be due to a lot of free water in the dough. I presume you're using a wet starter?Please post your formulae and method for further scrutiny... |
rye liquid levain
I've been wanting to reproduce a torpedo bread I bought in the old city of Bilboa (casco viejo) some years ago.It's unlikely that it will ever happen. But I'm fairly certain it was rye based. In any case, my regular starer/levain is hi hydration, perhaps 85%, but not quite liquid of >125%.Has anyone ... | Mike Avery
I use the recipe for New Bohemian Rye that Mike Avery gives, with some modification, of course. He used the three stage Detmolder process. Don't worry too much about the temperatures, if your temperatures are between 70°F and 80°F. http://www.sourdoughhome.com/index.php?content=newbohemianryeFord |
How to bake a sourdough Kouign Amann?
Hi TFLers!I have been following some sourdough recipe posters on here for a while and trying to create a sourdough loaf! I've only baked bricks so far, but I'm working on it! I just started a san francisco sourdough starter 3 weeks ago, so it is still quite immature.Now my question... | Variation using SD starter
You might use the following link as a guide for baking kouign amann using a sourdough starter:http://sourdough.com/recipes/kouign-amann-breton-cakeThe link within the link : http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2005/08/long-live-the-k/ has the most wonderful recipe and also has some related links wi... |
Frustrated!!
I used the starter listed here in TFL (http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/10251/starting-starter-sourdough-101-tutorial) The first starter did great had a very good taste even with my first loaf, but after that it went downhill. I am learning so I know problems are to be expected. I tried a few more differ... | Hi, I was reading through the
Hi, I was reading through the recipe and wonder where you read about 3 cups of flour?You do not at all put this amount in during the entire time of building your Starter. |
Will this recipe work with sourdough starter?
My starter is coming along nicely. I keep it a room temp and feed twice per day. I've made 3 loaves so far. One failure. One semi-success. One not-that-great (should've risen longer, but I was impatient).Anyway, I confess, I am not in the sourdough game to make bakery-worth... | Yes this could work
The dough will continue to sour further each day in the fridge and eventually start to smell not so great. A better way may be to make dough on day one. Let sit room temp for 2 hours (fold after one hour) and then refridge 24 hours. Remove all of dough and divide into portions and freeze in bags ... |
Naming your Starters?
I have read where people name their starters... I was calling my the beasties... (as in yeastie beastie)... but after reading a really pleasant book wherein the pets were named Shirley, Goodness, and Mercy... I decided I like those names for my starters. So my white flour starters are Goodness a... | Just the one
I have played around occasionally with extra starters, but it never seems to work out. I guess in the end I'm just a single starter kind of guy.Bret was named after a friend who said that he would be honored to share a name with a fungal/bacterial culture. |
Help With Saurdough Seed Culture
Following the instructions and formula from Peter Reinhart book on whole wheat breads, I started the seed culture. So I used pineapple juice and whole rye flour, for the first 2 days it did not show much action but there smelled fragrant fermentation I fed it twice so far with daily sti... | Give it time
Just follow the instructions like you have been, and all should be well. |
Starting and maintaining a live sourdough culture in Southeast Asia
Hi! I have been making homemade bread for almost a year (and hopefully I can do this until forever) so I can say I know some basic ins and outs of bread baking. I use instant dried yeast because that is what's readily available here, and I know no sour... | Growing culture in South East Asia
Hi there, I am pretty new in this forum and also just a newborn in bread making. I started making my own culture and had no problem with the humidity here. My culture has been with me for past two months now. To start with, this is a good place to be. I had learned and hv much more t... |
Slow sourdough starter
Hi, I started a sourdough starter 5 days ago, but so far, no great activity. I think that's it alright stil because it doesn't smell or anything, but what do I do from here. It's winter here in Australia so I guess it's not hot enough, but do I keep feeding it or just wait.Thanks for any help you... | Keep on feeding it and try to
Keep on feeding it and try to find a warm space in your house.You can put it in the Oven just with the light on , for example.Your Starter is still very young .I would say do stir you Starter 2 times a day and feed it as you did before. |
Basic SD loaf (or, starter still works!)
So, I baked my first loaf with my starter since I so horribly neglected it, and it appears to have forgiven me completely! :) Details:125g 100% hydration starter250g water325g KA Bread flour50g KA WW flour8g saltMixed together all ingredients except for the salt, and let rest f... | Yep, I would say it still
Yep, I would say it still loves you! |
Ratios and time
Has anyone compared ratios to see the difference in time it will take to peak?For instance, does 1:1:1 take HALF as long as 1:2:2?I would like to feed my starter once every 24 hours instead of twice a day if possible. Possibly even 48+...Thanks in advance!! | Expo Growth
Growth is exponential, so half as much flour will not take half the time, it will take less. To double the time you would need 4 times more flour (2^2). But it's not as clear cut as that since the microbes have a lag phase before entering exponential growth and the lag time is longer at greater dilutions...... |
Active starter in two days (Rus Brot)
Before moving to Switzerland I went back home to Moscow, and staying here for 1-2 months. I wanted to continue baking, but I forgot to bring some starter with me (all dried and packed to be shipped to Switzerland). Wanting to make one I turned to the method recently shared on youtu... | Kvass = CLAS + yeast water ?
Am I correct, Ilya? When Rus posted a video about making Kvass, I was very interested in giving it a try. But I also started learning to use CLAS at that time; picking up another technique was a bit too much. I did not realize how important Kvass's role was in ancient breadmaking. After re... |
Norwich Sourdough
Hello All,I was just wondering if anyone out there has made the Norwich Sourdough from the Wild Yeast blog. In her blog, Susan states that she gets 5 loaves out of the recipe. I actually get 3 good-size loaves, I can't imagine them being much smaller. Susan's loaves don't look that small in the pic... | Her recipe makes 2 kg which
Her recipe makes 2 kg which can be divided into whatever sizes you like. I've made it as 2 loaves at 1 kg each which was too large for me. So I prefer to do 3 loaves at ~650g just like you did or 4 loaves at ~500g. The loaves pictured on her blog seem to be about 500g each based on her pho... |
Resilient little bugger!!
It's been a while since I have participated here, but I just had to post this am. I am amazed at what a resilient little bugger my starter is..... For reasons I won't go into it has been neglected a LONG TIME in my fridge. In fact, last night, when I decided to pull it out, I literally had t... | Welcome back
We understand and care; welcome back and feed those little buggers! |
So what is this thing?
I finally got my own starter going! I first tried my hand at sourdough last year and failed at making my own starter, so I ordered KAF starter online. This helped me to get some experience and find out what it's supposed to smell like and how it looks like when it rises properly, etc.So this year... | The stuff in your
starter comes from the flour you use - not from the air where you started it or keep it. If you use whole meal flour instead of white you will get many more LAB and yeast since they are on the outside of the grain and make it through into the final whole flour mix. White flour has the outside of the... |
Need some starter help
After reading a lot of inspiring stuff on here I started a sough dough starter just over two weeks ago using the pineapple juice method and flour described as stoneground wholemeal bread flour which the store told me was whole grain flour. Two weeks on and very little has happened. I have few or... | Are you fedeing
equal volume or equal weighit of flour and water? |
Newbie Question: How do I use the starter if the recipe says "fresh" or "active"?
Okay... so I have no idea what I'm doing. lol Can someone help this newbie?My plan: Make starter based on some of the wonderful tutorials here. After it's ready to use in bread (6-7 days, as I understand it), put in fridge for storage and... | My method...
...I say "my method" as you'll find 800 users here with 800 different methods. I'll give you mine, everyone else will give you theirs and you must choose what works for you. Take ideas and see what's best to make the 801st method. I bake once per week to. My baking needs call for 60g of starter. But I need... |
To cover tightly, to cover loosely or not to cover?
HI! I'm new to sourdough baking and am excited! I have been reading and researching a lot. My starter is lively and ready to use. (King Arthur Flour starter which I have prepared for usage)My question is about storing in the refrigerator. I am holding half of my ... | Not tight.
I keep my starter in an old ice cream container with a plastic lid which has been known to balloon in the fridge, so I would not cover your starter tightly at all. Possibly use plastic wrap, or put a lid on very loosely. |
Sourdough Crumb/TEXTURE
How do you get the irregular holes in sourdough bread? My sourdough bread has a nice regular crumb/texture, but it does not have those irregular holes that "store bought" bread has. Any suggestions?The FORMULA is the FIRST LOAF from DISCOVERING SOURDOUGH.STARTERStarter 384g of 100% starterWat... | couple of ideas
looks like your final hydration is 64%. Generally 75%-ish gives more open crumb.Delicate handling during S&F and shaping is important too, so as not to degas the dough.Steam in the oven during the first 20 minutes (ish) of baking will keep the crust from hardening early and permit a more open crumb.Big ... |
Liquid Levain Timing Dilemma
Hi, fellow TFLers
Lately, I 've been having some tough time figuring out liquid levain maturity timing. I know that temperature, flour mix, ..etc all contribute, but thought to ask all of you:
How on planet earth do you manage to Bake sourdough with a liquid levain, save for getting up at m... | Increase the yeast population
I have never timed my levain but it doubles in a lot less than 11 hours. I would try taking a small amount and doing some intensive feeding over a week's time to increase the yeast population-then bake.
I have been known to take the jar and some flour to work during an intense feeding peri... |
Starter Timing
Hello Bread Experts, I am new to this sight and I read a lot of supportive comments from nice people. I feed my starter once a day. It looks healthy and has around a 24 hour life span (start level, maximum level, and re-feed level.) At what stage of the starter's daily life is the best time to make l... | 3-4 hour after feeding until
3-4 hour after feeding until your normal time to feed your starter, is usually fine to use it. |
Do I always use rye flour or regular when feeding and proofing??
I made my first sourdough starter by following the one on TFL. It says:Day 1:Ingredients: 1/3 cup rye flour and 1/4 cup waterSo I used RYEDay 2:Ingredients: 1/4 cup unbleached AP, bread, or high gluten flour; 1/8 cup waterMy question here is since I st... | It depends on what kind of
It depends on what kind of starter you want to have.Rye is a very good flour for Starters and gets active very quickly, you can keep on feeding your Starter with Rye, that is not a problem.Later, maybe you want a white starter, just take 20g of your rye starter and keep feeding it with bread ... |
Autolyse in fridge?
In the interest of time management, I was wondering if it Is possible to do an autolyse overnight in the fridge.I normally do bulk fermentation overnight in the fridge and final proof at room temperature. | How warm is room temperature
where you are? And more importantly, what's in the autolyse? |
Stiff Starters
I am looking forward to trying Petra's beautiful Rustic Loaf which is featured on the home page. All my starters are kept at 100% hydration and in the frig. I am in the process of converting a small portion of my WW starter to 50% hydration (only on 1st build at this stage). It is so different to what... | It usually takes a few feeds
or days to convert to a stiff starter so don't rush the starter. If it is still quite stiff, let it ferment longer. When ripe it will be rather soft so my suggestion is to wait until it is soft and smells fermented before using or feeding it. Making a starter with a lower hydration will ... |
Sourdough like taffy and sticky
What are some things that could cause sourdough to be like taffy but so sticky it's like touch the dough it just sticks to your hand in chunks along with everything else the dough touches. The dough comes out like this right after the autolyse and I can tell when I'm scraping it out of ... | What hydration is your
What hydration is your starter? Looks like the straight dough w/o starter is 59% hydration. If your starter is 100% hydration (equal parts flour + water by weight) this would put your dough at 75% hydration which is pretty stick as is. If your starter is even more watery, then certainly it will b... |
sourdough starter
I've been using yeast I get from sourdo.com. I've been trying to make a good san fran style of bread for YEARS! Not much success. And I'm in Denver. No oven spring at this time of year, and I have to bake bread in bread pans. Period. The problem is, that I can get the dough really tangy, but there's n... | why no oven spring this time of the year?
If your oven is switched on and preheated then you should get oven spring summer or not. People don't use their ovens in the summer because it makes the kitchen too hot but doesn't mean you won't get oven spring if you do use your oven. |
Whole wheat starter ratios...
Hi, I'm trying to build a new starter with 100% whole wheat. I tried this recipe but the 'starter' turned into a dry dough since ww absorbs more flour than white. http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/10251/starting-starter-sourdough-101-tutorialAny ideas? Follow if you could tell me what I nee... | WW flour
does absorb a little more water than white, if your beginning a starter just make sure its wet enough so like a thick paste. 100% hydration is what you want. If you feel needs more water just add a little more do not make it soupy as when starter ferments it gets more looseSo first day 50g WW with 50g water (b... |
discarded sourdough
Hello bread headscan i use discarded sourdough ( so as not to throw it out) as part of my flour and water in a recipe ALONG with the active starter (that will leaven the bread?) If so, how much of the discarded sourdough starter can I use to replace the flour and water? 50% of the recipe ? more? les... | Hi
There is no need to be discarding any of your mother starter. You need to establish a schedule of how often you are likely to bake each week, and how much starter your recipes call for. Then simply keep a tiny amount of starter in the fridge and use tiny portions of it as the basis for building up separate levains... |
Greenstein's Sourdough Rye (Rye Sour) care and feeding, illustrated
Eagleswings' struggles with a rye starter and the current interest in Jewish sour rye and corn bread have prompted me to re-post my response regarding the care and feeding of rye sour. After making sour rye breads last weekend, I took some photos of my... | rye starters & Detmolder
Hi David: Jim again here.You seem to have a good knowledge foundation on the rye starters. Maybe you can help me (and the rest of us at AgroEast Baking & Milling Co.) with the following:We are searching for variations to the 3-Stage Detmolder technique for our sourdough rye with caraway seeds. ... |
Almost given up...ww sourdough
Hi, I'm new here and to sourdough baking. In the last month, I've tried to make a starter twice and failed. I think part was due to the type of flour I used (it doesn't say whether it's bleached or not) and that I don't have a scale...like I said, I'm new to all this. Going through this f... | By the way, I don't mind
By the way, I don't mind using commercial yeast if it's needed for the rise or to make it extra fluffy. Does anyone think I can just use a regular ww bread recipe and add in the starter?I'm open to no-knead options as well since they seem easier.....<-need an encouraging successful bake to push... |
Wholewheat Starter
Today I took 100g of my 100% hydration Wheat Sourdough Starter and fed that with 100g of Whole wheat flour and 100g of water.I wonder, should I go for a 100% Wholeweat Starter or a 50/50 made of Wheat and Whole wheat?At that point I am not sure, if anyone has any advise that would be great.:) | Hmm
That's a lot of starter (300g). Are you baking daily?
Are you using preferments for all your breads that require starter? If so, imo it makes little difference what your starter is made of. With preferments you will start with a miniscule amount of it (10g ish) and build the volume up using whatever flour the re... |
Newbie tutorials or videos for cultivating yeast/starters
Hi. I'm a little new here, and have been recently introduced to the joy of baking my own bread. So far I've done jalapeno cheese bread, french bread, and cinnamon rolls (which were 9 shades of yum).As I fear I have become hopelessly addicted to amateur baking as... | Welcome
to The Fresh Loaf
Your questions are amongst the most commonly asked here. There is a plethora of useful information to be found on the subject of "starters" or "wild yeast". I suggest you use the search box at the top right of your screen and search for "starters" and go from there.
Here's a link to be goin... |
Poor gluten development?
I've been trying to make a Tartine loaf for about seven months now and am still struggling to get any consistency. I'm not used to working with high hydration doughs (this is 85%) and so maybe I am overlooking something.After the bulk fermentation it's usually pretty clear that my dough doesn'... | It looks broken
What type of flour are you using? is this a picture after preshaping? How many folds are you doing? What is your starter status? If you put the mass of dough in the fridge after 4:15 with the levain incorporated for 3 hours it may have over fermented hence some gluten breakdown. It sure looks like s... |
Rye Berries Substitute to make Sourdough
Hi TFL members, am looking for Rye berries substitute to make a sourdough starter and rye breadDue to the low glycemic index, it was suggested to eat Pumpernickel or rye bread. These breads have suited me fine. But baked in limited quantity and expensive and have many other addi... | Look at these posts
I started a rye sour culture with organic whole rye flour earlier this year, but initially thought it was a failure. I found some good advice in these posts:https://www.thefreshloaf.com/comment/487334#comment-487334https://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/68012/please-help-my-starter-i-feel-ive-tried-every... |
Whole wheat starter
I ordered a starter from Sourdough International which I thought I could use for making 100% whole wheat bread. I have now learned from SI that it is not intended for whole wheat. My question is can any starter be activated by feeding 100% WW and then used for baking WW bread? | You can feed starter with whatever flour you wish
as long as its a gluten grain. My starter has been through changes. Started off 100% Rye, been fed Spelt, Khorasan, Einkorn and we're back to 100% Rye again. When you use a starter it doesn't have to necessarily match the flour you're using for the bread except if you'r... |
Reviving an old starter
About 5 and a half weeks ago I made my first loaf of sourdough using a homemade starter. At that time, I put the remaining starter in the refrigerator and, sadly, neglected it. Part of the reason is because it is a rye starter and I have to go quite a ways out of my way to get rye flour that d... | Less rye, more building
You might need to do another feeding or a few more feedings to get it nice and vivacious again. That said, you can probably do smaller amounts overall and go through less of your rye flour in the process.Right now, you're doing a 100% hydration starter with 25% starter, or a 1:4:4 feeding (start... |
Anstellgut on Ploetzblog
I've recently discovered the Ploetzblog website. I've been baking with sourdough starters for awhile and have both firm and thin. I see that many of his recipes start like this (recipes are different, this is just an example):100 g rye flour100 g water15 g AnstellgutMix and let rest overnight.... | I think most of the recipe
I think most of the recipe call for a 100% hydration Starter * Anstellgut * because you create the levain with those meassures. |
Is There a Way To Obtain Local Yeast??
From what I have read, fungi is everywhere. I just read a thread about beginning a wild yeast sourdough with the fungi that is on the purchased wheat berries.I have heard that even though you can start with an obtained source for sourdough starter, eventually, local fungi will tak... | ?
It is wild yeast and lactobacteria that are present in and on the wheat grown by farmers. This is all you need to create a good viable wild yeast starter. The bread you make will be made from flours from such berries so surely the best source of wild yeasts is that already present from that same flour source. |
starter destroying the gluten>
I've been a baker since I was a child at my mother's apron about 50 years ago and I've been an avid bread baker for probably 15 years. About 5 years ago a friend gave me some "pineapple juice" starter and I used and fed it regularly until about 2 weeks ago. I have noticed over the past ... | you are not alone
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/comment/121566#comment-121566this is Debra Wink's response to a long thread about just such reactions... see if it applies... you can save the starter with the right feeding method. :) |
Sourdough Help
I have been following the sourdough guide in Peter Reinhart's 'artisan breads every day' but have now come to a standstill. There is no information on how one goes about using the starter currently in my fridge for other recipes in other books (e.g. BBA or CRUST from Richard Bertinet). I have tried to ... | You can feed your Sourdough
You can feed your Sourdough Starter, than take half of it in a different Jar and use it to feed with the Rye Starter.You can also take some of your existing Starter to convert it to whatever hydration the recipe calls for.I convereted part of my 100% hydration Starter in to a 50 % hydration ... |
Reg. Stiff Starters
I had converted my 100% hydration wheat Starter in to a 50% hydration Starter.When I feed after 12 hours it is nice and , well, kind of dry.When I feed it after 24 hours it is really sticky and difficult to remove from the container and it sticks to my fingers, the jar ...Right now I keep it on the ... | Sounds about right. I keep
Sounds about right. I keep mine at 66% which I find a little easier to handle. I sometimes will use some cooking spray inside the starter container to make it easier to handle. |
stinky starter
Hi all,I had to start a new starter, cause my old one went south. Anyway, started it and after about 3 days noticed some bubbles and a fine crust. However it had a very strong vinegar, cheesy smell and taste. It has been warm at my place. Should I start over or will this be ok to use? Thanks in advance | Keep going.
Keep going as the starter becomes sour the "stinky bacteria" (leuconostoc) will die off. The pineapple solution avoids this development.Ford |
First try at Tartine County Bread. Success!
I started baking sourdough just about two years ago. In the past two years I've made a lot of bread, and have worked on refining techniques with just a few basic recipes. I've moved toward higher hydration dough. I've worked on my loaf forming techniques. I've discovered... | Ovations!
Congratulations, DD, you nailed it!Cathy |
A Tale of Two Starters
So, I've been keeping two starters for a while now - my own, started from scratch, and one made from rehydrated Carl's Oregon Trail starter. I recently reduced their hydration levels to 50%, and I'm really liking the way the stiffer starter works.Anyway, they had both been languishing in the fri... | Just refresh the sluggish
Just refresh the sluggish starter a couple of times and you should be good to go. |
bulk fermentation
Sorry if this question has be addressed before, but when does bulk fermentation time start. Does it start after autolyse? I mix all the ingredients together at the start including the starter and salt. Then autolyse for an hour. Then I shape into a ball and after half an hour start my series of s ... | For me bulk fermentation
For me bulk fermentation begin when yeast start consuming the dough. |
This is getting to be too much work!
I love my sourdough bread, the taste is beyond words, but gosh I am finding it really hard now to keep making it.I purchased my starter last year from a place called Hobbs Bakery here in the UK. When I got it I followed the instructions, which was to add some flour and water, leave... | Hiya
I'm in the UK and my starter is loving the weather. Fed it last night at 9.30pm and by 5am this morning (I know, I get up far too early) it had doubled. Tell me a bit more about your starter? Is it 100% hydration? What flour do you feed it? How do you store it in-between feedings? How much do you feed it? I'll giv... |
QUESTION
If I want to double the amount of starter in my recipe, how much water should I reduce? Thank you. | It depends
It depends on the hydration of your starter. Your recipe should reduce the amount of flour by the weight of the flour in your starter, and should reduce your water by the total weight of the water in your starter. So, and example.If the original recipe calls for 500 grams of flour and 500 grams of water, a... |
How sour?
I'm in the middle of creating the very liquid to very firm starter. My starter has a pretty strong vinegar smell to it. Is that usual? I think that is the purpose of creating a starter like this but I don't want to be way off base on this. It is for a SF type SDAnybody care to comment on their experience? ... | S.F. sourdough shouldn't
S.F. sourdough shouldn't smell or taste vinegary. |
Soda Water in Starter Instead of Pineapple?
I just read the wonderful "pineapple juice solution" by Debra Wink. Wow. I have a question that the chemists or biologists on this site might know the answer. Wikipedia states that the ph of soda water is between 3 and 4, due to the formation of carbonic acid.Would it work fo... | The crumb would have plenty
The crumb would have plenty of bubbles. |
Totally overwhelmed noob!
Wow! There is SO much to learn on this website and my brain cannot absorb it all! I recently came across a recipe for sour dough starter and though, "Hey, I can do this." I started following the recipe, which read as follows: Day 1: Combine 4 ounces flour and 4 ounces water in a 2-quart con... | Have you noticed any bubbles
Have you noticed any bubbles or life from your starter? To see if it is ready to use you try refreshing it by keeping a small amount and mixing it with twice the amount of flour and water. Let it sit overnight and it should double.If your starter shows no signs of life you may need to sta... |
50% hydration Sourdough Starter / Fridge
I want to store my Stiff 50% hydration Sourdough Starter in the Fridge for a week as wont be able to bake for 1 Week next week.Do I feed it and wait 1 hour or longer before I can put him in the fridge.And when I pull him out in a week, do I need to feed it again or can I use it ... | Once hes been in the fridge
Once hes been in the fridge for about a week, bring him out to room temp while he warms up, will probably still puff a while longer (since he's stiff) My rye starter from fridge was left out for 1.5 days at +/- 70F and was growing happily, You can use straight away, though feeding is a nice ... |
Autolysis Question
I watched this video and like the guy's knowledgeable explanation.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a17Il6F_i8UHe says to mix only the flour and water for autolysis, with no yeast or salt. My question is, for sourdough would there be any advantage or disadvantage to adding starter at this stage, before... | If you work with Sourdough
If you work with Sourdough Starter the Starter is given at the start with the flour and water, mix, Autolyse and than add the Salt. |
Basic sourdough questions from a newbie
Hello. I'm currently in the process of making my first starter and a few things have befuddled:1) Does it matter what flour is used for the starter? The book I'm following now recommends a certain brand of whole wheat flour. While I have it on hand, it's quite expensive and not v... | You can feed sourdough starter any type of wheat flour
Sourdough starter is a slurry of flour and water that contains wild yeast (which are different varieties than commercial baker's yeast) and lactobacillus (similar to cultures that are in yogurt). Those yeasts and lactobacillus are naturally in the wheat fields and ... |
Time for a rest
Nothing ambitious. Just my last loaves before going on vacation for a week (still just using the 123 recipe with my "discard" when I feed it. I upped the hydration just a smidge). This is the fifth or sixth time I've baked bread (successfully) with my starter and now we will see if it can survive a week... | They look pretty nice to me.
They look pretty nice to me. :)Enjoy your vacation. |
Rye Starter Acetone Smell: When is it ok, and when is it bad?
I've just tried starting my first sourdough starter! I'm using a recipe that requires just a small amount of rye flour and water, and started it last Monday night, on a 24 hour feeding schedule. The last time I fed it (increments of 30ml of water to 30g o... | Acetone smell is an
Acetone smell is an indication to me that it's not getting fed often enough or is being kept somewhere too warm. I feed mine every 12 hours and it's kept in the house that's no warmer than 75F. |
Not rising when retarding
I tend to retard my shaped sourdough batards in my refrigerator (set at 37 degrees F) for 12 - 18 hrs. My question involves how much of a rise I should expect from the dough during that time. The dough does seem to rise, but not a large amount. It does pass the poke test straight from the frid... | Amount of time during warm
Amount of time during warm bulk (and temp of dough) affects how much activity there is in the dough going into the fridge. Less warm bulk and lower temp of dough going in would cause a slower process in the fridge.Also fridges arent necessarily evenly cooled. Top rack may be warmer than botto... |
You know you got to know your dough...
.... when you can go by feel and know you have added enough Flour/Water and of course when the dough has proofed enough without going by the clock.When I started baking with Sourdough I had to do EVERYTHING by the book and had to use recipes all the time.Now, 14 month later I can ... | Good observations and advice, Petra
Isn't it amazing, the difference between experience and book knowledge? Don't worry, you will come to understand bakers percentages and formula formatting just as well, too.Paul |
Squeeeeeee!!!! It totally worked!
Thank you so much to everyone who has answered my questions! I started the 123 Sourdough recipe that someone recommended with yesterday afternoon's discard and my bread actually rose and everything. I converted my 67% hydration whole wheat starter to 100% by adding 33% of the starter's... | Now you are hooked.
This has to be tasty as well as pretty. Well done andHappy baking |
Ferment
Hi everyone,I'm new here. I live south of Sydney, Australia. I'm new at baking. Made about a dozen bricks that no one would eat and then a dozen that are much better. Well at least they are eating them. I would like to make a ferment (hold back some dough) like Bertinet suggests in his book 'Dough'. At what sta... | I think i would
pull it right before you start your bulk ferment and let it ferment by its self in the fridge before use. |
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