Sourdough Starter: Day 04 onwards

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Sourdough Starter: Day 04
Its been very active yesterday and overnight. So it's pretty much a case of replenishing it every day now until it's established. I like to give mine as long as I can really to get established but most literature I've read suggests a minimum of 10 days to 2 weeks before it's established. That means ready to be used and at full flavour, full of life and also ready to be put to sleep. Don't worry, that doesn't mean what you think it could, it just means it's safe to replenish it one last time and put it straight into a fridge. I've done this for somewhere between 15 and 18 months without touching it, then bringing it out and feeding it (just mix the liquid in) not replenishing it. Just add tho it for a few days until it's really bubbly and happy again, then replenish it. Once you've replenished it once or twice, it's ready to use. If it's only been in the fridge for a month or two, you'll be able to use it sooner. BTW, I've read, but can't confirm, that you can also freeze it, defrost and feed, (not replenish) and it will also come back to life if treated properly.

Ingredients
50g flour (always assume organic and 50:50 mix wholemeal: rye)
50g spring/mineral water

Equipment
1 or 2 sterile teaspoon(s)
1 sterile new jar (optional but it makes life much easier)
Scales

Method
  • You need to remove all but 1 teaspoon of starter and add it to the flour and water mix. So if you've got 2 of these kilner jars, life is easier. Simply weigh out the 50g of flour and 50g of spring or mineral water into the new sterile jar. Don't worry about mixing it in, you'll do that in a minute. Also don't fret over 49g of flour or 51g of water. It's a roughly thing. If you've gone over massively on water, just add more flour to get back to roughly the same consistency. Roughly 1:1 is all that matters (other than it fitting into the jar and not bubbling over onto whatever it's standing on).
  • Now transfer just 1 teaspoonful of starter from the old container into the new one using a clean sterile teaspoon. Mix well and return to wherever you were keeping it warm.
Done.

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As you can see, it's as happy as anything.

So this is just repeated daily or every other day (if not all food is being consumed) until 2 weeks are up. However, there's nothing stopping you trying to make a loaf from what you want to...

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I'll cut into it later, but my gut feeling is that the starter needs much longer to mature.
 
This is how it looks Day 4:

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Not very bubbly but still some bubbles. I wasn't sure what to do so I fed it again. Maybe I should have thrown most of it out and started a new lot using just one teaspoon of this?

If so - I will have to do that on Day 5.
 
Maybe I should have thrown most of it out and started a new lot using just one teaspoon of this?
Absolutely. And that is what you should be expecting to do daily (or 36hrly, it's all depending on if it had used all of its food and got some liquid on the top). From what you'd said previously, I'd been expecting you to do this step last time around.

But either way, can you see how it is much thinner than before and also a paler colour (the colour will be more noticeable when you refresh tomorrow. )
 
Blimey - how long do I have to keep throwing most of it out everyday? There is no liquid on top.
That's the routine now until it's well established and developed the sourdough smell (and taste). Plus it's what you need to do to use it to make a loaf with.

I class it as having a pet you need to remember to "feed" once a day.

It will need it for several weeks at least. The more you do it, the better the flavour will develop. This is why people get so excited over sourdough mothers and swap samples so that others can jump straight in. But establishing your own is worth it as well. That way you know what is involved and how to care for it so that it doesn't go bad and does get the local flavour. Each area has it's own variation of fungal spores in the air so is different for everyone. I tested and proved this when I established one whilst away on holiday once. Despite using my normal flour which I'd taken with me for my starter and also to cook with, I established a new one whilst up there and the difference was stunning.
 
OK - tomorrow...

It does smell better and I tasted it and its pretty sour. But when its 'established' how will I know?
 
OK - tomorrow...

It does smell better and I tasted it and its pretty sour. But when its 'established' how will I know?
Kind of that several weeks to a month stable, always doing the same thing with a 'routine' up and running. Nothing particular just time to go from being an infant to a toddler... forwards the weekend you could try a test loaf to see how it responds.

Once it is stable and producing good loaves, that's when you can allow it to consume all its food and put it in the fridge instead of somewhere warm.
 
Right, if you read this, there's s recipe for sourdough pizza base and garlic bread.
A standard loaf would just be more flour and combination of flours. A drier dough will give a normal loaf but will need longer proving in the fridge off you want a cold proofed loaf, for full flavour (as full as yours will allow currently). If you want just bread and don't mind how long it proofs for, just treating it's rising ability and your skills, rather than going for taste, then warm proof it instead.

https://www.cookingbites.com/threads/sourdough-pizza-base-or-soughdough-garlic-bread.4929/
 
Right, if you read this, there's s recipe for sourdough pizza base and garlic bread.
A standard loaf would just be more flour and combination of flours. A drier dough will give a normal loaf but will need longer proving in the fridge off you want a cold proofed loaf, for full flavour (as full as yours will allow currently). If you want just bread and don't mind how long it proofs for, just treating it's rising ability and your skills, rather than going for taste, then warm proof it instead.

https://www.cookingbites.com/threads/sourdough-pizza-base-or-soughdough-garlic-bread.4929/

Thank you.
 
OK - I nearly gave up. Replenished and it flat-lined. Nothing, nothing... no pulse or signs of life. I left it another day. Nothing (it was now day 5). I remembered what you said about it being a pet - so I stroked the jar, talked to it (really!) and set it down in the warmest place in the house. By the evening it was getting bubbly again!

Fed it again this morning and it has bubbled up again. Now leaving it until the morning.

I made some bread from the discarded starter from day 4 (just to see what happened). It took until today to prove and rise. I'll post a photo tomorrow - but gosh it was acidic. As if I tipped a load of lemon juice into the bread mix. Is that 'cos its too young?
 
That will depend on exactly how much of the discarded starter you used, what recipe and exactly how long you left it to prove.

I used 100g of discarded starter, 350g of flour, salt. It turned out as a very wet dough but I kneaded it by the 'slapping' method and left it until today. I then added more flour this morning to get it to shape into anything. It then rose again. So it proved for 2 days and a bit.

I was experimenting really. It is far too acidic though. And the bread ended up a bit 'soggy' despite a very good crust and air bubbles.
 
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