Finally, real sourdough..

[Jafo232]

I lived in the Catskills for a long time. I had a pretty decent starter there. Now in the Adirondacks. The starter I had here was great while it lived. Unfortunately I killed it by not paying attention. I actually preferred my Adirondack starter much more, but i think your right. In the end, it is what YOU like more than anything else.

[MAGOULIANITISSA]

Ive been reading your comments on sourdough and I am very impressed by all of you
and your knowledge on how to make it! I grew up in a small village, my mother had her
sourdough which she used every time she baked bread.She would used it up all every time
and she kept a little dough to use as sourdough the next time she made fresh bread.
Where can I find a recipe to make my sourdough?
I love to bake bread but I start with commercial yeast and the results are not so
satisfying.

[KYHeirloomer]

There are numerous ways of starting a sourdough. One of the simplest is to make a biga, and let it ferment about three days. Put it in the fridge, and feed it once a week by discarding one cup and replacing it with 4 ounces each of flour and water. Over time, the commercial yeast will be replaced by wild yeast.

Or you can start with a "levain," which is the French approach. Here are the instructions, adapted from Dan Leader's Bread Alone. First make a "chef":

Day 1:

4 oz bran wheat flour
4 oz spring water
Pinch (less than 1/16 teaspoon) dry yeast.

Combine flour, water and yeast in a tall plastic container with a lid. Stir to make a thick, soft dough. Cover with the lid and let satnd in a warm place for 24 hours.

Day 2:

4 oz bran wheat flour
4 oz spring water

The chef should have almost doubled in volume and there will be tiny bubbles on the surface. Add the flour and water to the mixture and stir vigorously to distribute the fresh ingredients and add oxygen. Texzture will be like a soft dough. Scarpe down the sides, cover, and place in a warm, draft-free place for 24 hours.

Day 3:

4 oz bran wheat flour
4 oz spring water.

The chef will now have the texture of a thick batter. It will have almost doubled in volume and be quite bubbly. It will have a pronounced musty, but not bitter, flavor. Scent will be aggressively vinegary.

Add the flour and water and stir well to make a thick batter. With a marker pen, mark the level of the chef on the side of the container. Scrape down the sides, cover tightly, and let stand in a warm, draft-free place for 24 hours.

You now have a fully ripe chef, ready to make into a levain (which is what Americans call a "mother" or "starter."

About 8 hours before you intend starting your dough you make the levain. For the Levain starter:

6 oz bran wheat flour
full batch of the chef

Add the flour directly into the container with the full batch of room-temperature chef. Stir vigorously to add fresh oxygen to the mixture. This will form a stiff consistency, more like a stiff dough than a batter. Scrape down the sides, cover tightly, and let stand in a warm, draft-free place for 8-10 hours.

The levain should have doubled in volume. Texture will be somewhat light, with many tiny bubbles throughout. Do not let the levain stand for longer than 10 hours or the yeast will become exhausted and not raise the final dough.

Maintaining the chef is quite simple. Use all but 1 cup of the levain. To the remainder add 2.5 ouce bran wheat flour and 7 oz water. If you'll be using it within 36 hours you can leave it out (this actually helps the fermentation and makes a more sour starter). If not, put it in the fridge, and feed it at least once a week. To feed:

Remove one cup of the chef and use or discard. To the remainder add 4 ounces each of water and flour. Stir well to incorporate oxygen. Store in the fridge.

All of this is time consuming, but not difficult. I started my levain in November, using these directions, and make bread, rolls, or pancakes with it about once a week, at the same time I feed it.

[The Ironic Chef]

I made my Sour Dough Starter just about the same way. The only difference, I used unbleached flour instead of bran flour. The type of flours from one country to another vary though, I would suggest the use of flour in a starter should be whatever flour you use to make your favorite bread. The less refined, the better.

[MAGOULIANITISSA]

Thank you both so much for the recipe and the suggestions. I am really impressed
of all the trouble you go to in order to make a trully good bread! I am a bread lover
and so is my family and I will definately try your recipes!

[KYHeirloomer]

I don't know if "going to the trouble" is really the right phrase. Bread making is something you either are passionate about or not. If the passion is there, you do whatever is required.

I didn't grow up in a baking environment. For many years, if I made bread at all, I slavishly followed a recipe, with no clue as to what was really going on. This all changed only a couple of years ago, with my "discovery" of Peter Reinhart's work. Now I bake bread at least weekly. And I figure maybe, in another 20 years or so, I can actually call myself a baker.

>.....starter should be whatever flour you use to make your favorite bread...<

Or whatever you have available. I think the flour used in the starter is the least important part of the equation. The goal is to capture wild yeast and provide them with an environment in which they can grow and reproduce.

[chubbyalaskagriz]

I know bread is something folks are really passionate about. Me? I just don't get it! But, honestly- I know I'm in the minority- so I know better than to make fun...

[MAGOULIANITISSA]

Dear KYHeirloomer

You are so right, "going to the trouble" was not the right choice of words!
I just meant you do or have to learn so much to make good bread and most
of all, love doing it. I am 61 years old, I have been watching my mom making
bread for many years (she would bake it outdoor in a wood-burning oven,and when
she took it out the smell and taste was incredible!) I have been making bread for
my family for 10-15 years and never imagine that there are so many "secrets".
I was never quite happy with my bread, but did not know what to do about it
till I joined this forum.
Thank you so much for all the advice!