how to make a sourdough starter. It's easy to make and use.
93sourdough bread
I have both the Bread Bakers Apprentice, and the Bread Bulder's, and would reccomend them both very highly!
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The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread
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The Bread Builders: Hearth Loaves and Masonry Ovens
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Crust and Crumb: Master Formulas for Serious Bread Bakers
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Bread: A Baker's Book of Techniques and Recipes
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Make your own sourdough!
Making bread at home is incredibly rewarding. Nothing beats the aroma of a fresh loaf in the oven, and your family is sure to applaud any homemade bread making efforts.
Homemade bread is almost always going to taste great; but to make really outstanding bread, you need to take a few steps to slow the bread making process down a bit; and sourdough baking is a great way to do this.
Today's baking products are all designed with speed and convenience in mind. Bread improvers, fast acting yeast, etc. Unfortunately, while these products will get a loaf of bread ready for the oven in record time, they also tend to result in a fairly bland and one dimensional loaf.
Great bread has a chewy and dark crust, with a substantial inner sponge. Great bread has a complex flavor, that will change in the mouth as you chew it, and will linger long after you've finished eating the bread. It is very worth your time to slow down the process, and start making better bread.
You might have a great baker in your area that is producing these types of flavorful loaves, but 99% of all the bread sold, even the country loaves or baguettes sold by most bakeries, are really just an accelerated white bread recipe; and the result is a boring loaf of bread.
Make your own sourdough bread and be astonished at what truly great bread can be.
Bread making involves a biological reaction between the yeasts added and the sugars extracted from the wheat. There is a fermentation involved, and it is the byproducts of this fermentation that will give great bread its extraordinary flavor. These fermentation by-products take time to be created, so if you accelerate the rising time, you will not achieve a complex flavor profile. Sourdough breads do not use added yeasts, but instead have naturally occurring yeasts.
These yeasts will work much slower, and the result will be more flavorful bread. Sourdough bread also benefits from the addition of a significant quantity of sourdough starter, and because this starter can by weeks, month, or even years old, there will be a lot of interesting and delicious flavors added from this starter.
Sourdough bread, is of course, sour. Some people love the tart deep sour of a San Francisco sourdough, and some people don't. You can take some steps to control the sourness of your bread, but your bread will always have that characteristic sourdough tang!
Sourdough baking is of course, more difficult, than straight yeasted dough's; and your bread may not look perfect on your first attempt. Even these "failures" though, will taste better than the best of the quick and straight yeasted method. With time and practice, you will develop good techniques, and will start producing what will be a truly world class bread.
The first thing that you need to do though is make yourself a sourdough starter.
This is the starter that will live in your fridge, slowly bubbling away, ready for the next great batch of bread.
The instructions as followed are basically taken from the book "The Bread Bakers Apprentice" by Peter Rinehart, and I cannot speak highly enough about this book. If you are interested in taking your bread baking skills to the next level, you should buy this book.
Sourdough starter culture
This will take a few days, but is not at all difficult. It's quite amazing that with the repeated additions of only wheat and water, you will develop an active and living sourdough starter!
Day 1
Mix together 1 cup of whole wheat or rye flour with ¾ cup of water. Make sure that all the dough is wet into a ball. It will be stiff, but don't worry about it. Keep in a clean container covered with plastic wrap at room temperature.
Day 2
Mix together 1 cup bread flour with ½ cup of water. Add this mixture to the mixture from yesterday, and mix it all together. Yesterday's dough will likely be a little bit softer than it was, but there will not likely have occurred any rise. Cover with plastic wrap as before, and leave at room temperature.
Day 3
Mix together 1 cup of bread flour with ½ cup of water. Take the dough from the day before, and discard half of it. Mix the new and old dough's together. It will be getting wetter, and there will probably be some rise by now. Cover with plastic wrap, and leave at room temperature.
Day 4
Repeat the procedure exactly as from Day 3. A few hours after you have mixed the dough's together, your starter should have doubled in size. It is now ready for use.
Take 1 cup of your active sourdough starter, and, mix with 3 ½ cups of bread flour and 2 cups of water. Mix together well and cover with plastic wrap. After about 6 hours, the dough should have doubled in size, and become quite bubbly. It is now ready to use in a sourdough bread recipe!
You can use this starter right away, or it can be held in the fridge until you are ready to use it. I keep it in a clean large covered Tupperware container in the fridge, and take it as needed.
The starter is a living thing, and as such it needs to be fed periodically or it will die. You should feed you culture every 3 days, and after every time you use it. To feed it, take away half of the culture, and mix in an equal amount of flour and water in about a 3/2 ratio.
You can much more than double it if you wish. Doubling the starter will make the sourest bread, and adding 4 or 6 times the amount of the starter while feeding the starter, will make a starter that will produce less sour bread.
Your sourdough starter will last indefinitely, as long as you remember to feed it regularly, and it will get better with age. There are some bakeries in SF that claim to be using a starter that is over 100 years old!
It sounds a little complicated, but there is really very little effort involved in making and maintaining a sourdough starter…and your bread will taste better than ever after you start baking delicious, flavorful, crusty, sourdough loaves!
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Comments
Sourdough baking is harder to master, but not all that difficult to attempt. The great thing about it is that your first few attempts will likely produce a really delicious loaf, even if they don't look as you might have hoped.
The biggest difference in the bread making technique while using sourdough for leavening, is the increased time required. A sourdough bread will require pretty much a whole day to make, BUT, almost all of that time is just waiting time. The actual work involved is not much greater.
I really hope you get inspired to make some sourdough bread, as it's really rewarding to make something truly great when you bake bread.
Good luck!
I believe "The Bread Baker's Apprentice" is by Peter Reinhart, not Arthur Rinehart!
I just checked, and you are right. The author is Peter, not Arthur, Rhinhart, and as he wrote such a great book, he at the very least deserves to get his name quoted correcty! I have edited the text to correct this mistake.
Thank you Roger for pointing this out.
Question:Which part is the starter-the original mixture, or the mixture that you get when you mix your starter with flour and let that sit? Can you just use the original starter directly in recipes? thanks, T
The starter is what you end up with after you have taken your original mixture and added the last flour and water to it, prior to putting it in the fridge, or using it.
I've never tried to use the pre starter for a bread, but since it is bubbly and active, I think that it would work. Sourdough develops flavor and character as the starter ages, and I think that by skipping one step, you would notice some loss in flavor.
Thanks for the comment,
John
I think you gav e a very simple and honset way of making a huge difference in your menu by adding a "real" bread to it. i loved it and thank you for sharing the info. I am very exited o start one tomorrow monring.
By the way, since you are a cheff, do you know a nice peanut butter sause that is flavourful but not spicy to be used with rice or meat?
John Lee -
The plural od dough is doughs, not dough's, as in "mix the new and the old doughs together"
Thanks...Grammar Bitch,
I'll try to be more careful! Maybe you should be too, lol (read your comment)!!
ignore the good lsdy, she is jealous at your apparent ease with dough.
Perhaps she thinks you sahould share it
John - Im ready to start my starter - can you point me in the right direction of how to actually bake the sourdough bread? Or can you recommed the procedure yourself?
Thanks!Allison
The dough you say to discard--what can I use it for? Thanks
I've followed the Peter Rhinehart method for five days and have a problem that is not covered in the book: my seed culture did not double on the fourth day, so I left it an additional 24 hours on the counter, as directed. Still nothing. So, I went ahead and discarded half and added the one cup of flour and 1/2 cup of water. It has been 18 hours and there is no movement; there are bubbles, though. Should I leave it out on the counter for awhile longer? Thanks for any advice.
It'd be really helpful to have some information on how to actually bake the bread it self, I'm so excited to try it!!
I love sourdough.
I have done some baking with it but have been lax for a while. I want to start again. I have made a few different starters. I think the best one was made with poataoes. Once it was fermented the fumes would knock you on your butt, but it made great breads.
I have read that with a basic starter it is a good idea to place it outside for a few days, covered with cheese cloth, to collect the wild spores in the air. have you ever done this?
I have always built my starters in an open air kitchen - but I think that the spores in the air would be minute enough as to enter inside the home, unless you live in a hermetically sealed environment. Interesting point though. I would wager that it doesn't make a difference - but won't bet the farm on that one!
Anyone have a definate answer?
Hello john lee,
I follow your instruction to make sourdough starter.
Day 1 normal.
Day 2 after first feeding, the batter is rising up but not to double size, before day 3 feeding, it decrease to half.
today is day 3, before feeding it has not rising, only has more small bubble and much sour smell. I feed the batter again threw half out.
I want to know is the batter go to worst, what can I do now, discard it?
THX!
Hi Newnew
Not having much of a rise by three days isn't uncommon. I'd definately give it another day before assuming the worst. Haviing a rise by the second day is unusual though...
Wait and see - and cross your fingers!
Hi John D Lee,
In regards to the wild spore comment, I have read that the wild spores are actually already present on the grain. If you expose the mixture to the outdoors, it will add other non grain dervived spores, that may change the taste/texture of the bread, and some like this difference other people don't. Its a matter of preference from what I can tell.
Instead of placing the mixture outside, the best way to increase spore content in the begining (if one is worried about this) is to use organic whole grain berries and grind them yourself. Using organic will remove toxic chemicals that disrupt spore growth. Using the whole grain will insure that the bran (which is the outside part that has the most spores on it) is part of the mixture. Grinding the grain itself will insure a fresher starter that also impacts spore growth.
Whole grains make heavy breads but if you just use whole grain for the starter, the difference is minimal and you have a higher quality starter. I have also heard that whole rye berries make the best starters, but I have not noticed a difference myself.
Jecca
Hey John
I believe that this article is Hands Down the best article I've been able to find (and boy have I seen alot). I've been using several different resources for my sourdough attempts and your article has all of the info that is not misleading or incomplete. Your wording clears up any confusion that sometimes occurs while explaining yeast cultivation without getting bogged down by technical theory. I REALLY do appriciate your time spent educating the masses on this topic. Thank you!
Wes
Hi,
Great page! Thank you for taking the time to keep replying. I made a starter once, but as I had a baby and toddler, I just forgot to feed itand never got around to actually making bread! So! 20 years later, here I am reading up on it and was surprised to read that you can get a 'bad' starter if you get 'bad' spores! Yikes. What are your thoughts on this? I read that you should do mail order to get specific wild spores that have been tested, etc. Seems that it would take 1/2 the fun out of it and they are expensive. Have you ever had a bad batch, one that tasted bad? I would really like to make my own and have my 9 yo. son join in the project. Thanks.
Hi,
Thanks for the article! Does the Bread Baker's Apprentice talk about baking other breads w/o the use of fast-acting yeast? I'd like to make more "real" foods in general, and the "fast-acting" yeast doesn't seem to fit.
Thanks!
Perhaps I've been doing it wrong all along, not to mention a plethora of other folks who've posted century old starter recipes online. What ever happened to the basic 1 cup of flour (your choice), and 1 cup of water? Day 1 - remove about half, add 1/2 cup of flour, 1/2 cup of water and so on? Ditto for day 2 and so on until one has their bubbly/frothy starter to then be fed once weekly?
just one question: instead of discarding half can you use that other half for a second starter?
Hi Patricia,
Yes, you could certainly do that - and once you get your starter really going well -a cup full of sourdough starter makes a great gift for anyone who likes to cook!
Awesome Process!!! I have a question regarding my sourdough which still in progress. During the third day the mixture had a realy strong smell (like if I was making cheese). I was told that as long there was no fungus it was OK... Any comments?
I have heard that sometimes the starter in progress can get pretty stinky, although oddly enough, I have ever had that happen (except for one time when I overheated it and it went off).
The different strains of bacteria and yeasts in different environments can make different smells I think; until the good bacteria and yeasts start to dominate. I would give it another day, and see if it doesn't start to smell better - if after the fourth day it still smells terrible, I think you may want to start again.
Best of luck,
John
Thanks for your response John. However, I'm still not very clear when I have to remove half of the mixture and add flour and water... is it every 24hrs or when the mixture bubbles and begin to rise? here is what's going on...1st Day - Everything went well.2nd Day - Prior the removal of the mixture, moderate bubbles occurred during the 24hr. and some rise as well. The same day 8hrs. after, my mixture bubbled and almost triple its size, shortly after went flat.Any comments?Thanks,Pedro.
Pedro, are you making this in a very hot room? The instructions above work for people baking in a room temperature environment - in a hot room, things work faster and the starter can go "off"
Hello John, the average temperature in my kitchen is between 76º-80º. What I'm not very sure is to understand "the moment in which I have to remove half of mixture and add some more". Is dictated by "time every 24hrs" or when "the mixture rise". Thank you, Pedro.
Does they type of water make a diference? Should we use bottled (non-chlorinated) water?
I am really confused..I have just done what is required for day one...but don't understand how it can be all wet and stiff at the same time......I added quite a lot of extra flour....more than a cup.....as it did not form a ball...seemed too wet and would not be able to form a ball with it...
Please tell me how you can have it all wet and stil be stiff?
Hi Deborah - sorry for confusinsg you! On the first day you want all of the flour to be hydrated (wet) but the dough to be quite stiff. I just mean that you don't want to leave any losse dry flour in the bowl.
Hope that clarifies
Hi PL,
Yes, non chlorinated water is a great idea.
Did you start with the wheat or rye flour? Which ultimately tastes better in the finished product?
Hi Peggy,
I've started with both and they ultimately taste the same. Peter Reinhart suggest that rye flour can get get things going faster though...
Pedro B.,
Sorry to be so long in replying. You should wait a full 24 hours.
Hi John,
thanks very much for your response..still a bit confused.....because when I put 1 cup of flour and 3/4 cup water...was more like a paste and would not roll at all...so i must have added atleast 3 tablesppoons of extra flour and sort of turned into a ball..i've since noticed it has kind of oozed out of the glad wrap...so i put some more plastic wrap around it........
any extra help would be greatly appreciated!
Hi Deborah,
It sounds as though you are using a low gluten flour and if so you did the irght thing by adding a little extra flour- Don't worry about that, it should be fine.
Are you keeping the starter in a bowl covered with plastic wrap? Make sure you put it in a bowl that is big enough to allow for some rise, as the starter will start to bubble and grow, once it becomes even slightly active.
I hope that this helps. Good luck!
Hi John,
thanks alot again....it is certainly looking really good with lots of bubbles in it...did you mean wrap the starter in glad wrap or cover bowl with glad wrap....I wrapped the actual starter in glad wrap which is what I think you meant......cetainly looks good!The bowl is plenty big enough.
Do you worry at all about the plastic contaminating the mxture?
Hi John,
also i was not aware of my flour being low gluten...did not mention it at all on the packet.....i am using biodynamic bakers white flour..
also i am excited to say the starter is expanding as well......thanks very much!! I tried another recipe 8 days ago and don't seem to be having much luck with it..
this mixture of yours seems to be working very quickly....it is in a warm room with a wood fire going..perhaps around 26 degrees..sometimes a bit warmer!
Hi John,
sorry,,was thinking of my other mixture..with your recipe i have used biodynamic wholemeal light flour
actually..i just added ingredients for second day...but added less water...
the starter was so runny...a bit of a sticky nightmare...so i have added extra fflour so it is not all sticky..hope it works
Hi Deborah,
I have always just added the starter to the bowl and covered the bowl with plastic wrap - otherwise things could get messy (as you mentioned) when it starts to grow and expand!
I am glad to hear that it is working out for you (fingers crossed). Keep us posted about how it turns out!
John
Hi John,
I must admit I am a bit confused now....I put the mixture in a container and put glad wrap over container...but lost all its bubbles.......the bubbles looked so good when it was all wrapped in glad wrap. and very moist. I have now followed 3rd day procedure...It is all a bit lumpy and very sticky..all wet..like a sticky damper......any ideas why it lost the bubbles..it seemed to me that being really moist helped to create heaps of bubbles....It was definitely moist but not extremely runny like before.
Should I aim to make it really very wet?
Thanks again for all your help...as I first started about 9 days ago on another recipe...the waste of flour with failures is getting rather annoying!
Deborah
Hi Deborah,
No don't aim to make it very wet, it's not necessary. It's very possible that when you handled the dough it lost its bubbles, which is not a problem. Try the quantities in the recipe and see what it looks like tomorrow.
Best of luck,
John
thanks very much again John......at the moment there is just one bubble and it has been added to about 2 hours or so ago....i imagine I would keep repeating procedure day 3 until it works..what do you think?
i am actually making 3 at a time...so hopefully atleast one should work..
one has just wholemeal..one has white with rye and one has just white.using alot of flour and time with this procedure!
Deborah.
Hi Deborah,
I would just repeat the day three procedure for a couple more days, or until it gets good and bubbly!
Hi John,
I am very excited...one of my bowls has definitely risen considerably and the other 2 have quite a few bubbles now too!I will need to look at what to do then...when everything has gone as it should.....
That really bubbly one looks ready now!
thanks again for all your help!
Deborah.
Hi John,
is it ok to leave for more than 6 hours..for example if i am going out or whatever and want to leave it for 10 - 12 hours...what do u think?
i mean the starter with the flour...
Deborah.
Hi Deborah, it should be fine - just remember to feed it when you get home (once it has doubled in size)
Hi John,
thankyou.....also i'm not ready to make bread just now.......do i throw half out and feed and leave 24 hours.....a bit confused with all the starter..but have just made a bakers loaf so just not ready to make one with the sourdough!
Deborah.
Hi Deborah, Here are the relevenat instructions for you:
Once you have an active sourdough starter...
Take 1 cup of your active sourdough starter, and, mix with 3 ½ cups of bread flour and 2 cups of water. Mix together well and cover with plastic wrap. After about 6 hours, the dough should have doubled in size, and become quite bubbly. It is now ready to use in a sourdough bread recipe!
You can use this starter right away, or it can be held in the fridge until you are ready to use it. I keep it in a clean large covered Tupperware container in the fridge, and take it as needed.
The starter is a living thing, and as such it needs to be fed periodically or it will die. You should feed you culture every 3 days, and after every time you use it. To feed it, take away half of the culture, and mix in an equal amount of flour and water in about a 3/2 ratio.
thanks again John...my starters are looking superbly bubbly and have definitely expanded but more like around a third bigger not double.........should i continue to feed and hopefully they'll double in size.....
also when you feed them..do you feed then put straight in fridge or do you have to leave out for a whiile..sorry for all the questions!
Deborah
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tshirtscene says:
2 years ago
This is excellent information. I'm not sure if I am ready to attempt this, but I will sure give it try!