Question for sourdoughers!

Germelli1 · 09-09-2011, 10:17 PM

So I have been culturing up a few wild sourdough starters. I had my starter fed up to about 18 oz so I decided to put it to work. I used a simple recipe for basic sour dough bread. I took out 8 fluid oz of starter and baked a loaf of bread. It blew me away how good it came out with such a simple recipe. It was the perfect blend of sour!

Now to my issue. After I harvested that 8 oz and reduced my starter to about 10 oz, I started feeding it again at 1oz H2O and 1 oz flour every day. Since it was reduced it has turned VERY vinegary (smell).

I read online many bakers have to try and find a balance between bacteria (Lacto and aceto) and wild yeast. I am at a loss on how to do this. I know the starter can be wrangled back in, I am just unsure how to do so! I thought about adding a wee bit of [brewing] starter slurry next time around, but I want to know how to do it properly.

Any suggestions?

**seabass07** · 09-09-2011, 10:44 PM

The way I've always done it is to use about half the weight in starter of the amount of flour you are feeding it. IOW I typically use 75g of starter, discard the rest, add that to 150g of flour and 100g of water.

My understanding is that this method helps to keep a single bacteria from overpowering the others. I'm sure there are a lot of other methods that work as well though.

Germelli1 · 09-09-2011, 10:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seabass07

The way I've always done it is to use about half the weight in starter of the amount of flour you are feeding it. IOW I typically use 75g of starter, discard the rest, add that to 150g of flour and 100g of water.

My understanding is that this method helps to keep a single bacteria from overpowering the others. I'm sure there are a lot of other methods that work as well though.

Thanks so much for the input! I have been doing some more reading and found some stuff that corroborates your advice. One person says they keep only 20% of the old leaven when stepping it up in order to promote yeast growth over bacteria...then starve it if you want more sour. Others say to leave it and it should go from vinegary to alcoholic to a nice sour-creamy smell.

I guess time will tell and I totally feel like a nervous new brewer posting about yeast concerns!

Tubba · 09-14-2011, 03:51 AM

Sounds like you have been keeping it too cold. "Vinegar smell" is the smell of acetate, which is produced at low temperatures. Germans like their sour dough this way, I hear.

Germelli1 · 09-14-2011, 03:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tubba

Sounds like you have been keeping it too cold. "Vinegar smell" is the smell of acetate, which is produced at low temperatures. Germans like their sour dough this way, I hear.

Well it is kept in my un-air conditioned kitchen so I don't think it is too cold. I dumped 70+% of it, refed with 4oz/4oz (weight) flour water, added a dash of sugar and it is even better than before!

I actually just took a loaf out of the oven that I let rise over night in the fridge.

CHefJohnboyardee · 09-27-2011, 06:11 PM

i used to keep a five gallon starter going at a restaurant (they are still using it today after 4+ years)

there also isn't a need to feed it everyday. best time to feed it is when it starts to look like it is dying and losing size.

at home i keep a quart mason jar with old dough in it. i toss it into the flour and water then just divide the dough out and put it pack into the jar.

Germelli1 · 09-27-2011, 06:26 PM

Thanks for the information!

As an update I just made my third loaf of bread from this culture. I tried a honey recipe and I don't love it. It definitely is not bad bread, but to my palled honey and sourdough do not compliment each other.

I have also been using whey for all the liquid in the starter feeding and actual baking recipes!

Making some pizza dough on thursday to make some all scratch pizza on friday (made my first batch of mozzarella)!