Author Topic: Sourdough starter  (Read 5159 times)

Larabeth

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 279
  • Location: Alabama
Sourdough starter
« on: February 12, 2016, 04:40:17 PM »
My sourdough starter is ready to use to bake tomorrow morning!!!

I'm totally excited and feel like I have another pet with as much as I have had to feed/care for it. Haha.

Had anyone else baked with starter? Any tips?

xdan

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 9
  • Age: 47
  • Location: San Diego, CA
  • If not for Pete I'd still be in a cubicle
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #1 on: February 12, 2016, 05:18:21 PM »
I've had a sourdough starter for many years, I keep it in a jar in the fridge.
Got it for free here: http://carlsfriends.net/source.html

I tend to use the "San Francisco Sourdough" recipe near the bottom of this page:
http://carlsfriends.net/OTbrochure.html

I usually find that I have to add a bit more flour (about 1/2 to 1 cup) to my stand mixer then the recipe says (depends on how wet your starter is maybe?). I just keep slowly adding to the stand mixer until the dough mostly pulls away and cleans the bowl...

Some thoughts:

If you let it rise longer it will be more sour - I often let it rise in a cooler area for a whole day and it's really nice.

When you form the final loaf put it on parchment paper, this makes it much easier to slide onto the baking stone in the oven (you can just leave the paper in place the whole time it is baking). I usually do 2 loaves and just bake them one after the other.

I form into a kind of football shaped loaf and let it sit for an hour or so and then right before baking I make several cuts (about 1" deep) across the short way every couple inches. This lets it get a good spring from the oven.

I keep a metal broiler pan on the rack under the baking stone and right after I put the bread on the stone I pour a cup of water in the pan and close the oven door. The steam gives it a really nice crust.

Sourdough makes a great pizza too! Just tear off a baseball/softball sized hunk from your bread batch and put in a ziplock bag (with a quick spray of olive oil first) and keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. When it is pizza day let it warm up for an hour or two on the counter before you roll it out. (You will have to burp the gas from the bag every few days in the fridge)

Al1961

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 225
  • Age: 62
  • Location: Alberta - B.C.
  • Dad of a husky Husky
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #2 on: February 12, 2016, 08:32:22 PM »
Pretty much what xdan said.

I often bake a boule in a 7 quart dutch oven. You get a good oven spring and crispy crust with just the steam that comes out of the dough. Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes, then remove the lid and bake for another 15 minutes at 400 degrees F.

MayDay

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4953
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #3 on: February 13, 2016, 07:09:54 AM »
We do sourdough.

I am what I call a lazy baker.  I don't use a recipe.  I have my starter in a 2 gallon glass crock.  I pour in a bunch of flour, then add warm water until the dough is the right consistency, then I stir it up, then I plop 95% of it onto the counter to knead.  The remaining 5% is the starter for next time, which I try to remember to either feed, or put in the fridge. 

It works fine, not fussy, bread just takes a lot longer to rise if we haven't remembered to keep the starter fed. 

itamarst

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 2
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #4 on: February 13, 2016, 07:53:52 AM »
Best waffles ever, for four people. My wife has stopped ordering waffles at restaurants because they're never as good as these.

Apologies for non-metric measurements.

0.5 cup starter (from fridge)
1.5 cups flour (I use "white" whole wheat, but have also used all-purpose wheat flour, soy flour, buckwheat and will try chickpea flour tomorrow. Soy is a little bean-y, but still pretty good, and the sourdough loves it.)
0.5 cup corn meal (for crunchiness, but you can just use flour instead)
2 cups milk (substitute half with yogurt or cultured buttermilk for better flavor, or just use water for less flavor)

Leave out overnight someplace warm.

In morning add:
1 stick butter, melted (==8 tablespoons)
0.75 teaspoon salt
4 eggs, beaten (or more)

Mix.

Then add 0.5 tsp baking powder.

Make waffles in waffle iron.

GuitarStv

  • Senior Mustachian
  • ********
  • Posts: 23128
  • Age: 42
  • Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #5 on: February 13, 2016, 08:08:35 AM »

Larabeth

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 279
  • Location: Alabama
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #6 on: February 13, 2016, 08:18:39 AM »
Best waffles ever, for four people. My wife has stopped ordering waffles at restaurants because they're never as good as these.

Apologies for non-metric measurements.

0.5 cup starter (from fridge)
1.5 cups flour (I use "white" whole wheat, but have also used all-purpose wheat flour, soy flour, buckwheat and will try chickpea flour tomorrow. Soy is a little bean-y, but still pretty good, and the sourdough loves it.)
0.5 cup corn meal (for crunchiness, but you can just use flour instead)
2 cups milk (substitute half with yogurt or cultured buttermilk for better flavor, or just use water for less flavor)

Leave out overnight someplace warm.

In morning add:
1 stick butter, melted (==8 tablespoons)
0.75 teaspoon salt
4 eggs, beaten (or more)

Mix.

Then add 0.5 tsp baking powder.

Make waffles in waffle iron.

This is happening!! Sounds awesome. :)

purephase

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 17
  • Age: 58
  • Location: Glasgow Scotland
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #7 on: February 13, 2016, 01:49:14 PM »
I love the idea of making a sourdough starter. I think this thread has finally inspired me to do it.

Larabeth

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 279
  • Location: Alabama
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #8 on: February 13, 2016, 03:00:11 PM »
I love the idea of making a sourdough starter. I think this thread has finally inspired me to do it.

Yay!!!!

JOIN US... hahaha

It really was surprisingly easy. I'm in the kithen every day anyway so it wasn't something I had to struggle to keep up with, and the yeast is extremely forgiving

spokey doke

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 514
  • Escaped from the ivory tower basement
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #9 on: February 14, 2016, 02:22:25 PM »
go check out The Fresh Loaf...lots and lots of us baking sourdough...

http://www.thefreshloaf.com
« Last Edit: February 14, 2016, 02:29:38 PM by spokey doke »

Larabeth

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 279
  • Location: Alabama
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #10 on: February 15, 2016, 07:10:44 PM »
go check out The Fresh Loaf...lots and lots of us baking sourdough...

http://www.thefreshloaf.com

AWESOME thanks!!!

I definitely want to get into fancier baking, just because it is enjoyable. ^_^

Turnbull

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 157
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #11 on: February 15, 2016, 10:24:44 PM »
I've been eating homemade sourdough bread from starter my whole life. My single mother was a teacher and sold her bread to other teachers to help fund our vacations when I was a kid. She got my wife started on it before we got married; we've been married almost sixteen years now and have never bought a single loaf of bread.

We've always noticed a difference in the density of the bread depending on the season. In the summer it seems to rise more and be less dense than it is in the winter.

Homemade sourdough will ruin you on any other french toast, garlic bread, cinnamon toast, grilled cheese, etc.

xdan

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 9
  • Age: 47
  • Location: San Diego, CA
  • If not for Pete I'd still be in a cubicle
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #12 on: February 20, 2016, 10:07:49 PM »
Fresh out of the oven - the house smells amazing now!
« Last Edit: February 20, 2016, 10:11:01 PM by xdan »

Larabeth

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 279
  • Location: Alabama
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #13 on: February 20, 2016, 10:17:55 PM »
Fresh out of the oven - the house smells amazing now!

*drools*  Yummmm...

I made some the other day but it was a much heavier bread than I expected!!  Not bad, just surprising.

Kimchi Bleu

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 107
  • Location: Indiana
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #14 on: March 01, 2016, 05:37:20 PM »
I love the recipes from The Wooden Spoon Bread Book from Marilyn Moore.  Have used this book for over 15 years with great results every time.  There is a section just on sourdough breads - waffles - etc.  She has a 3 day sourdough bread recipe that I've used because I don't have to feed a starter or keep it in the fridge.

Melissa

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 160
  • Age: 49
  • Location: Columbus, OH
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #15 on: March 02, 2016, 08:07:35 AM »
I've never done sourdough before. I usually just make whole wheat bread or pizza crust. It looks delicious though so I'm home going to have to give it a try

NonprofitER

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 246
  • Location: Texas
  • Reaching FIRE w/ High Purpose (Low Pay) Nonprofit
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #16 on: March 02, 2016, 08:22:14 AM »
Our starter is a couple years old now, and the further along I've gotten into baking bread, the lazier I get with following ratios/recipes. :)  I can see several other bakers have also resorted to the "add some flour and water til it looks right" routine.  That's the beauty of the learning curve, I suppose. Eventually you can sort of wing it, and your starter is usually forgiving.  Edited to add: When I first started, I read through breadmaking websites like the Fresh Loaf, buts its easy to get bogged down with too much information. So I'd recommend finding one recipe, making bread daily for a week or so, tweaking the recipe as you go and making some notes for your own future reference. I'm not making bread for the Queen of England or anything... so I didn't need perfection. Just tasty bread.

We also make crumpets with leftover starter relatively often:
http://chocolateandzucchini.com/recipes/bread-brioche/sourdough-crumpets-with-natural-starter-recipe/

We don't have true crumpet rings, but I spray canning jar lids (without the flat piece) with PAM or coconut oil and it functions just as well. Place on a cast iron skillet, pour the crumpet mix, let set on one side, then remove the lid and flip the crumpets to cook the other side. 
« Last Edit: March 02, 2016, 08:25:28 AM by NonprofitER »

RedmondStash

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1114
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #17 on: March 02, 2016, 08:29:17 AM »
I got my starter about 6 months ago from a couple of tech guys where I work, and it's great! I'm also a lazy baker, so I tend to use the 24-hour New York Times recipe. It comes out well. Mostly I make it with whole-wheat flour only, so it comes out a little dense.

Often, I'll let it rise for about 16-20 hours, and then punch it down, shape it, and put it into a loaf pan for its second rise. I bake at 350 for 55 minutes, like a normal loaf. That way, it's easy to slice for sandwiches.

I'm not fussy about feeding it. I make bread every week or two, and I feed it after I pull some out for a new loaf. Other than that, it sits ignored in the fridge.

I've made pizza dough with it too. Not bad.

Mongoose

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2461
Re: Sourdough starter
« Reply #18 on: March 04, 2016, 07:11:39 PM »
I saw this thread and thought "oh no, I haven't used mine for a long time." Bad news...it's dead. I had converted it to gluten free and used it extensively to make waffles for DD. :-(

I'll have to get a replacement from my mom and convert it. Bummed. In the meantime, I'm making the a temporary version. It will not be quite as good but will still beat the price and taste of frozen GF waffles (one of the only things I have been buying premade).