My Starter

[BGKYSmoker]

I started my SD Starter in S, FL bout 2.5 years ago and still going strong.

In April when we were set to go on a cruise I did a small discard, transferred to new jar, fed and in fridge. When we got back I thought I could make a SD loaf but no time as we were heading to Colorado. Fed again and in fridge. The past week I have been feeding 2x daily and my starter has been bout tripling in volume. Maybe this coming week a SD bread will be made.

My feeding flour is a mix of KA Bread and dark rye.

I have a new bread tool coming next week. I bought a Brad & Taylor sourdough starter home.

 

[02ebz06]

That is pretty cool item. I have their proofer, but I did not know Brod & Taylor had the Sourdough Home.
One more thing to add to my buy list. Wife will kill me. Haha

 

[indaswamp]

Man Rick.....I totally forgot about my starter when I started building my shed! Guess I'll have to start over....

 

[mosparky]

Ok, you got me curious about this whole process.
How much starter do you use at a time for small batched of bread dough ?
When you reduce the starter by half (per everything I've read so far) can you use the discard as a jump start for another batch ?

 

[BGKYSmoker]

That is pretty cool item. I have their proofer, but I did not know Brod & Taylor had the Sourdough Home.
One more thing to add to my buy list. Wife will kill me. Haha

I have their proofer also.

 

[BGKYSmoker]

Ok, you got me curious about this whole process.
How much starter do you use at a time for small batched of bread dough ?
When you reduce the starter by half (per everything I've read so far) can you use the discard as a jump start for another batch ?

Depends on the bread recipe you're making. Sometimes the starter can be like 25g or as high as 120g. Yes you can use discard for just about anything or put in container and fridge for backup

 

[Gonna Smoke]

Lately, my wife has been having trouble with her starter not rising like it should and she's not sure why. She's been researching on the interweb, but no eurekas, yet. She has started all over from scratch. I'm not a bread maker so I can't offer her any advice. Any ideas?

 

[02ebz06]

Did she buy starter or is she trying to create it? How is she feeding it ?
Normally (but variable), you feed it twice a day with a ratio 1:1:1 (Starter:Flour:Water) at room temp.

 

[BGKYSmoker]

Lately, my wife has been having trouble with her starter not rising like it should and she's not sure why. She's been researching on the interweb, but no eurekas, yet. She has started all over from scratch. I'm not a bread maker so I can't offer her any advice. Any ideas?

Go with 25g flour (bread or a mix of bread and rye) Use non bleached King Arthur bread.

25g flour
25g water
Cover loose or with cheese cloth, room temp or on top of fridge.
It may take a day or two to see anything. Discard all but 25g, feed with the 25g water and 25g flour 2x daily.

 

[Jarhead6870]

Ok, you got me curious about this whole process.
How much starter do you use at a time for small batched of bread dough ?
When you reduce the starter by half (per everything I've read so far) can you use the discard as a jump start for another batch ?

The amount of starter I use determines the maturity and fermentation times of the dough. I only keep 20 grams of starter for my base and depending on what I’m making/baking will determine the amount I feed. I feed what the formula calls for which will always leave me my base of 20 grams.

A loaf of 600-625 grams is perfect for my wife and I. My formula is:
307 grams flour (I use unbleached King Arthur bread flour)
202 grams water
1 teaspoon salt
90 grams of starter
*1/4 tsp IDY (Instant Dry Yeast) I don’t have a proofer so this is added if I need a faster fermentation due to time restraints

I keep my starter in the refrigerator until the night before I bake and feed it before I go to bed. If needing 90 grams as per the bread formula, I feed my base with 45 grams of water and 45 grams of flour. It will take 10-12 hours for this starter to mature and be ready use the next morning. After pulling the 90 grams for the bread, I put the starter back in the refrigerator until needed again. I usually bake every 3-4 days

If one uses a larger starter base, let’s say 45 grams, and feeds 45 grams water and 45 grams flour, the starter will mature faster but the length of maturity will be shorter, meaning the optimum window for use is narrower.

 

[Gonna Smoke]

Did she buy starter or is she trying to create it? How is she feeding it ?
Normally (but variable), you feed it twice a day with a ratio 1:1:1 (Starter:Flour:Water) at room temp.

She had created it and the first couple of times she made bread, it worked perfectly. Now, it won't rise. That's really all I know about it...

 

[Gonna Smoke]

Go with 25g flour (bread or a mix of bread and rye) Use non bleached King Arthur bread.

25g flour
25g water
Cover loose or with cheese cloth, room temp or on top of fridge.
It may take a day or two to see anything. Discard all but 25g, feed with the 25g water and 25g flour 2x daily.

Thanks a lot, I'll give this recipe to her...

 

[BGKYSmoker]

Thanks a lot, I'll give this recipe to her...

Dont add any yeast to your starter. Your starter will pick up wild yeast.
Adding yeast will only give you a yeast bread so why even make a SD starter?

Thats just me, do what works for you.

 

[Jarhead6870]

Dont add any yeast to your starter. Your starter will pick up wild yeast.
Adding yeast will only give you a yeast bread so why even make a SD starter?

Thats just me, do what works for you.

You are correct about adding yeast to your starter base. Hopefully my post doesn’t confuse people.

If one does not have a proofer and the ambient temperature is low, as it is during the winter, adding a small amount of yeast to a “dough” will reduce the overall time of fermentation and proofing if wanting to bake the same day. If cold fermenting overnight in the refrigerator then it’s probably not necessary for most people. I prefer not to cold ferment because my starter tends to make the crusts too hard and difficult to cut/bite/chew.

 

[02ebz06]

You can get some starter for free.
Go to --> https://carlsfriends.net/source.html

 

[kelbro]

A small amount of rye flour works magic on stubborn SD starter. Whole wheat works almost as well if you can't find rye.