12/12 Note: this post has been updated to reflect how I use sourdough now and the lesson is: have patience and with time and practice regular sourdough bread is a real possiblility!
When I started down the sourdough path last year I had visions of turning out great breads on a weekly basis using just the wild yeast that hovers around us (this, by the way, completely freaks my daughter out- she’s always asking about how that works and if we’re “killing” them when we cook the bread. My answer? I don’t really get how it works, either, I just go with it).
I had read about the benefits of sourdough and even that some people think all our grains should be soured before consuming. I knew that we loved sourdough bread. And if you’ve been reading here long, you can guess I liked the idea creating my own bread starter and not always relying on store bought things- how frugal is it to not have to buy as much yeast?
However, in the last year I’ve discovered some things about me, my family, and sourdough (now with updates from December 2012):
- It takes a LOT of planning time- usually the night before, which in all honesty, just doesn’t happen for me very often. In order to make one artisan loaf, I have to start making it 24 hours before I’d like to serve it and be home for the times I need to deal with it. Hence, it’s hard to fit into our lives on a regular basis, unlike the Easy Artisan Bread I like to make a couple times a month. (UPDATE: I have perfected a quick and easy sourdough artisan loaf and which I can make on a weekly basis!)
- After many failed attempts (read: brick-like loaves), sourdough will not keep our family in sandwich bread. Our 100% whole wheat sandwich bread provides our family with loaves that are soft enough for sandwiches with minimal time output. (EXCITING UPDATE: I use this soft sourdough sandwich bread from my friend, Gina, that is wonderful and has replaced our yeast-based sandwich bread – it IS possible, so keep trying!)
- There are some sourdough recipes that just. don’t. work. Sourdough pitas? Ugh- awful. Sourdough tortillas? Even worse. (Sadly, no update here – I haven’t found any recipes that have worked for us…sigh).
- Sometimes weeks will go by where I haven’t even thought about sourdough or the starter languishing in my fridge… (update: this is a constant, though, and the reason why these tips are still relevant)
All this has lead me to the conclusion that I am an occasional sourdough user (Updated to read: weekly – I just need more time and practice).
Here are the sourdough tips that I’ve learned along the way:
1. Use an online guide to grow a starter. I made my original starter over a year ago by following the steps outlined at Heavenly Homemakers. It took 7 days and worked perfectly. I’ve read that some people have trouble and resort to buying starter, but at $10 bucks a pop, I’d try these steps an awful lot of times before buying anything.
2. Don’t try to make bread with it right away. No matter if it looks bubbly to you, it needs to be fed and grow for months, actually, before it will be strong enough to raise a loaf. Make things like waffles, crackers or even English muffins to grow the strength of your starter before trying a bread recipe.
3. A once-a-week feeding is best, but every two weeks is okay, too. Keep it at room temperature for 24 hours after feeding and in the fridge for the rest of the time. When it’s in the fridge, keep it in a quart jar with the lid on the top, but not screwed down, and when it’s being fed, use a bowl with a muslin cloth over the top and put it in a warm place- like the top of the refrigerator. However, sometimes I forget and…
4. Surprise! It doesn’t die easily. Fish it out from the back of the fridge, dump it into a clean bowl and feed it with 1/2 c. flour and 1/2 c. warm water. The blackish water that forms on the top is normal and called the “hooch,” and wet starters will have more of this. If little white things are floating in it, it’s just particles from the starter – I’ve never had mold form. One time it had been almost a month (I think around the holidays) and I really thought I’d killed it, but I saw bubbles 12 hours after one feeding, so I fed it twice more (over the course of three days) and put it back in the fridge. Voila! Wonderful starter again.
5. Don’t throw away starter. Many sourdough guides say to throw away almost all the starter and feed only the 1/4 cup or so that remains. I suppose I don’t need to tell you that I would NEVER do this- there’s no way I could throw away perfectly good food (or potential food). And I’m here to say you don’t have to! Just plan to use some of it in a recipe, and feed the rest. But if you don’t have time to make anything- go ahead and feed all the starter without taking any out. It’s OK, it works, I’ve done it many times and I’ve kept it alive for more than a year (update: more than two years!). No way am I goin’ to all this effort and then throw the stuff away. No way (gee- you don’t think I have any real feelings on this subject, do you?).
And one of my favorite ways to use my starter is to make these incredible waffles, as well as the other recipes you’ll find in AOC’s recipe index.
Do you keep a starter and use it? Do you have any recipes you like to make with sourdough?
-Jami
This is linked to Sunday Best @ Feels Like Home, and Tasty Tuesday.
those waffles look delicious-I’ve always wanted to do sourdough -I like how you explain how to use it occasionally because that’s how I would be too.
Vickie
I know nothing about sour dough starters and was curious on how to make them. And feeding them.
Wendy- If you follow the links in tip #1 for the starter, one will take you to a previous post I wrote on my experiences and the other to the site I used to create my own starter.
A sourdough starter is basically flour and water that when set at room temperature gathers wild yeast from the air which starts it “souring” bubbling, etc. This is a traditional method for making breads before the advent of commercial yeast.
“Feeding” a starter is simply adding a bit more flour and water for the yeast to “eat” on a weekly (or so) basis. This keeps the yeast active to be able to produce those bubbles that give us a light bread with air pockets.
Hope that explains it a bit better!
I am so impressed, Jami. I’ve never ventured into the world of sourdough.
I did have an Amish friendship bread starter once, but it made the heaviest, most dense cake ever. It was delicious, but I just couldn’t imagine using it too often. You may have convinced me to give this a try, though.
I like foods that have an element of science experiment to them. 🙂 But black water? Seriously?
There is something about sourdough bread that I just LOVE. I always make my Sourdough bread with starters from Sourdough’s International, never disappointed with what they have!
Hi, I have a question. I’ve read a few starters, & created my own based on the general concensus of feeding it equals parts everyday. Then I got a little distracted. It’s been on my counter for weeks now, the brown hooch has accumulated & been dumped several times. Not noticing much bubble action. Definetly smells “sour” & jar hasa ring of crust just above the fill line. I hate to dump it. Is it save able??
I would transfer half of it to a new container and feed with flour and warm water to see if it will grow and get bubbly again. The other half I’d get rid of or maybe use in a baked good that also used yeast or soda (King Arthur flour has some recipes that use both) so that the outcome wouldn’t be totally dependent on the starter. Hopefully, that’ll do it for you!
I never waste my starter either. Look for recipes that use “unfed starter” to use the “waste”.
Thanks for the tip, Kathy!
When you feed the starter, do you throw away the hooch or mix it in?
I mix it in to help create a more sour product. Some people I know throw it out – it’s up to you!
Do you have to feed the starter after scooping some out? I fed mine before using some in a recipe & am wondering if I have to feed it again right away or if it can wait.
If you are going to store it in the fridge, you don’t need to feed it again, Ashley. After storing you can feed it when you want to use it again to ‘wake it up.’ If you are leaving on the counter, I’d feed it a little each day.
Can you feed starter everyday and leave it on the counter or should it go in the fridge? I feel like I will forget about it. It is not looking “bubbly” either??
As long as you are using it regularly, you can keep it on the counter and feed it daily. It’s when you won’t be using it for a while that you’d store it in the fridge. It won’t look bubbly in the fridge – they yeast are ‘quiet’ and they only wake with warm temps and feeding. 🙂
What a wonderful guide you’ve created! Many thanks. I do have a question. Do you add more flour/water to your starter if you have more than 2 cups in the jar? Or is it the same ratio no matter the amount you have in the jar? Thank you kindly!
It depends on how much starter I’m needing, Carmen. If I’m really growing and feeding, I use a larger 6-8 cup glass meauring cup to feed and grow the starter well, use what I need and then return a cup or so to the jar for storage. If it’s in the growing stages, I would pour out some if it’s getting too much for the jar. Does that answer your question?
I just made the artisans bread with a starter that I had been feeding for 8 days, so very new. I love it though! I have mine one the counter and plan on making bread often and freezing – have you done that? Also, do I need to change the mason jar? The rim of the jar has hardened flour/water and not sure if I should just start a new jar? I am going to try your English muffins next! Thanks for sharing your work.
Great to read, Christine!! When I feed the starter, I move it to a 8-cup glass measure, so I can track the volume better (when it rises double, it can really rise that bread!) – that’s when I clean the mason jar, though with just water to not introduce anything into the jar. If you want to keep using the jar (though it will become too small when your starter is strong), yes, grab a new jar.
I think you’ll love the muffins, too!