My mother starter after a feeding
You are going to want to have about a month of time to nurse your starter and get it good and strong so that is why we are giving you a "heads up" about the May bread. You are also going to want some experience baking with a starter under your belt before we bake May's bread but first I want to talk a little about starters.
There are lots of places on the web, like Mike Avery and Darrell Greenwood's excellent sites, where you can get solid information about sourdough breads and starting a sourdough starter. You can even purchase a starter or get a starter for free. I am by no means an expert in the area of sourdough starters or even bread making for that matter, but from time to time I do get emails from folks asking me about sourdough bread and in particular how to start and care for a sourdough starter.
Over the past few months, I've shared with some of my fellow bread bakers in the Daring Bakers, who where interested in starting a sourdough starter of their own, a recipe that I've developed over the years for a pretty fail proof starter. Now, before I get all sorts of comments from the militant sourdough bakers out there about how this isn't a "real" sourdough starter because my recipe contains a pinch of yeast and sugar in the seed mixture, I'm going to share a little of my philosophy behind sourdough starters and baking bread in general.
Nothing breeds curiosity and the desire to learn more about bread baking than success at bread baking. I firmly believe the reason so many people are scared to death of baking with yeast, any type of yeast, is because they have tried before and failed or have heard horror stories about how hard it is to make bread. I think that is sad. Even sadder is that there is this whole group of bread bakers out there who pride themselves on ridiculing and talking down to beginners.
No place does this attitude seem to be more prevalent than in the world of sourdough bakers and some of the online bread and sourdough forums that cater to sourdough bakers; where I've seen all manner of rude, nasty, and evilness directed towards newbies. This is a shame because there is nothing more satisfying in this world, in my humble opinion, than ripping into a boule of your own sourdough bread and using it to slop up a great sauce you poured over some pasta or munching on a piece of your own sourdough toast with jam schmeered on it at midnight while the rest of the world is asleep.
There seems to be something about sourdough bread making that brings out the "cranks", militant bakers, and the ultra competitive my rise was higher than your rise; complete with pictures of cut loaves with rulers next to them, in baking forums and usenet groups. This includes an attitude of derision towards anyone whose starter isn't 100% wild. Maybe the zealots are right and maybe not but, over the years I've been baking with sourdough starters, I've seen so many novices get frustrated with the whole process when their completely "wild" starters fail that they never even try again.
About four years ago, after playing with several starter recipes, I developed a recipe for a starter that is super stable, easy to take care of and produces really nice breads with a gentle tang. This recipe is so stable, that I have one starter that came from this recipe that lives in the fridge at my mother's house in Michigan and only gets fed about two or three times a year. It perks right up and bakes beautiful breads for me when I'm home. Now, I'm not claiming this starter recipe is completely fail proof, all I'm saying is it is super stable and everyone I've shared this with has had success with sourdough bread. Basically, I consider this starter recipe the training wheels of sourdough starters.
A few things you need to know about this starter:
- You won't get really good loaves of bread until about Day 10 - 14 of this starter's life. However, after about Day 7, you can make quick breads and pancakes. I'll post recipes for both in a few days so you can have fun with your starter.
- Get used to "tossing off" (throwing away) part of the starter every time you feed it. Yes, this feels very wasteful but unless you are baking every day with the starter, all you will end up with by saving the toss off is a bunch of containers all over you have to keep feeding. (Trust me on this one. I speak from the experience of once having twelve containers around my kitchen of starters at various stage of proofing). If this really, really bothers you, see if you can find someone who wants a sourdough starter of their own but don't feel bad about just throwing the toss off away.
- While this has been debunked in some quarters of the sourdough world, unless you 1000% sure your utensils are not any other metal but stainless steel, do not use metal to store or mix your sourdough stater. Some metals will react with the acidity of the starter and cause the starter to go bad and/or the starter will corrode your metal bowl/utensil. I like those nice quart size snap and seal Ziplock containers for mine. All six of my starters live these starter condos and have for years.
- Never tightly seal your starter, either in the fridge or on your counter. If you do, the build up of gas will literally blow the lid off and you will have a mess all over the place. This is also a good way to "kill" your starter. After all, it is a living thing.
- A healthy starter should be bubbly and foamy about two hours after each feeding.
- Hooch is the liquid that forms on top of starters between feedings. This liquid is slightly alcoholic and is the 'waste product' of the yeast after feeding on the flour. There are two camps about hooch in the world of sourdough. Some people say it is bad and a sign your starter is starving. Others say, it doesn't mean a thing other than your yeast ate and you should just stir it back in and go forward. I happen to be in the later camp and unless your hooch is some strange color or has mold or something else weird about it, just stir it back in and feed away!
- If at any time you notice the following, throw out your starter and start over:
-Strange colors other than gray
-Strange smells other than sour or vinegar (i.e. wet gym sock, bad chicken)
-Mold - One last thing, after you have nursed your starter for one week, you can name it. Don't name it before because this considered bad luck and a sure way your starter will die. Don't ask me why, it is an old sourdough wives tale. Ironically, most starters I know are named after men even though the main starter you use to bake with is a called a "mother starter". My mother starter's name is Fred. I also have a Larry (my whole wheat starter), Curly (my rye starter) and Moe (my sour, sour, sour starter) along with Herman (who isn't a sourdough starter but is my Amish Friendship Bread starter), Gertrude (my sweet sourdough starter), and Bob, my newest baby whom I'm growing to help you out on this mission. With the exception of Bob, who is gurgling through his teenage years right now on my counter, my starters all live on the bottom shelf in the back of my fridge.
Loaves of sourdough cinnamon raisin bread made today with my sweet sourdough starter, Gertrude born from this recipe. My mother starter is almost 5 years old. This is young by starter years. I know some people baking with starters over a hundred years old. I only bake with it about once every other month but as you can see, hanging out in the fridge doesn't seem to hurt it.
Breadchick's Sourdough Starter or Training Wheels Sourdough Starter
Starter Recipe: All in ingredients should be room temperature
You will need both rye and unbleached all purpose flour for this starter.
1 cup warm water, 80 - 90 degrees
1 cup room temperature rye flour
1 pinch yeast
1 pinch sugar
Combine ingredients in new 1 quart ziplock container with lid or large wide mouth glass Ball jar. What every you store it in, you want it to be easy to feed it and pour it off with a wide mouth. Loosely fit lid on container and let sit 12 hours in warm place.
First Day Feeding:
Toss off 1/2 of the starter. Feed starter with 1 cup warm water and 1 cup rye flour, stirring until combined. Don't worry about lumps. Let sit in warm place for 12 hours. Stir in any hooch (the clear liquid on top of starter) and toss off 1/2 of starter. Feed with 1 cup warm water and 1 cup rye flour, stirring until combined. Let sit in warm place for 12 hours. Starter should be bubbly and frothy about 2 hours after each feeding.
Second Day Feeding:
Toss off 1/2 of the starter. Feed starter with 1/2 cup warm water and 1/2 cup rye flour, stirring until combined. Don't worry about lumps. Let sit in warm place for 12 hours. Stir in any hooch *clear liquid on top of starter* and toss off 1/2 of starter. Feed with 1/2 cup warm water and 1/2 cup rye flour, stirring until combined. Let sit in warm place for 12 hours. Starter should be bubbly and frothy about 2 hours after each feeding and smell like vinegar
Third Day Feeding:
Toss off 1/2 of the starter. Feed starter with 1/2 cup warm water and 1/8 cup rye flour and 3/8 cup All Purpose flour, stirring until combined. Don't worry about lumps. Let sit in warm place for 12 hours. Stir in any hooch *clear liquid on top of starter* and toss off 1/2 of starter. Feed starter with 1/2 cup warm water and 1/8 cup rye flour and 3/8 cup All Purpose flour, stirring until combined. Let sit in warm place for 12 hours. Starter should be bubbly and frothy about 2 hours after each feeding and smell like vinegar
Fourth Day Feeding:
Toss off 1/2 of the starter. Feed starter with 1/2 cup warm water and 1/2 All Purpose flour, stirring until combined. Don't worry about lumps. Let sit in warm place for 12 hours. Stir in any hooch *clear liquid on top of starter* and toss off 1/2 of starter. Feed starter with 1/2 cup warm water and 1/2cup All Purpose flour, stirring until combined. Let sit in warm place for 12 hours. Starter may be bubbly and frothy about 2 hours after each feeding or may not and smell like pickled vegetables or strong vinegar.
Do not worry if the starter isn't as bubbly as it was the first three days. This is normal for the 4 - 6th day of this starter's life. As long as the starter isn't strange colors like orange, pink, or green and doesn't smell like dead fish or wet gym socks you are fine.
Day 5 - 7 Feeding: Follow Day Four feedings
Day 8 Feeding:
Toss off 1/2 of the starter. Feed starter with 1/2 cup warm water and 1/2 All Purpose flour, stirring until combined. Don't worry about lumps. Let sit in warm place for 12 hours. Stir in any hooch *clear liquid on top of starter* and toss off 1/2 of starter. Feed starter with 1/2 cup warm water and 1/2cup All Purpose flour, stirring until combined. Let sit in warm place for 12 hours. Starter will be begin to be very bubbly and frothy about 2 hours after each feeding again and smell and taste very sour.
After Day 8, you can use it to bake and cook with. I suggest starting with pancakes and quick breads that don't require big rises.
Day 8 - Day 15 feeding:
Toss off 1/2 of the starter. Feed starter with 1/2 cup warm water and 1/2 All Purpose flour, stirring until combined. Don't worry about lumps. Let sit in warm place for 24 hours.
After Day 15 you should be able to make bread with the starter. If at any time during day 8 - 15 you notice any off smells or off colors (pink, green, orange, blue) or any mold. Throw away the starter, sterilize container and start over. If you notice the starter turning gray and lots of hooch, go back to 2X a day feedings for 2 days and then back to 1X a day feedings.
Day 16 - 20 feedings:
Toss off 1/2 of the starter. Feed starter with 1/2 cup warm water and 1/2 All Purpose flour, stirring until combined. Don't worry about lumps. Let sit in warm place for 24 hours.
After Day 20 you can put the starter in the fridge until you are ready to bake or cook with it. This is called a "Dormant Starter". We'll talk about baking with a dormant starter in a later post. First, let's get you going on having a starter on your counter, OK?
If at any time you have any questions or are wondering if your starter is doing OK, drop me an email and we'll talk about what is going on! If you want to send me pictures, please compress them.
With that said, Ladies and Gentleman.... Start Your Starters!!
