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alfie

(522 posts)
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 08:29 AM Mar 2020

Have any of you made sour dough starter from scratch?

I have not been able to get any yeast for a couple of weeks now. I like to bake and decided I would try to make some sour dough starter. I started it Wednesday and have been adding equal parts of water and plain flour every day. It is the consistency of a sauce and has a rather neutral smell. It is bubbling. Does this seem like it is on the right track? I was thinking it should have had a denser consistency.

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Have any of you made sour dough starter from scratch? (Original Post) alfie Mar 2020 OP
sounds about right....i love sourdough but the dang gnats hanging around the starter samnsara Mar 2020 #1
I use polycarbonate tubs from the restaurant supply Major Nikon Mar 2020 #5
Covered my jar with cotton cloth. Throckmorton Mar 2020 #2
Yes, I've made it. Sounds right to me too. Auggie Mar 2020 #3
Yes, many times Major Nikon Mar 2020 #4
If it's bubbling and doesn't smell rotten Aquaria Mar 2020 #6
I've always used tap water and have never had a problem Major Nikon Mar 2020 #10
Same here, although I do filter mine Warpy Mar 2020 #11
yup, sounds about right but.... getagrip_already Mar 2020 #7
Don't throw it out Warpy Mar 2020 #12
Thanks alfie Mar 2020 #8
I started one right before my state was locked down Mad cow Mar 2020 #9
TYhose sound yummy alfie Mar 2020 #13
I used to keep a starter spinbaby Mar 2020 #14

samnsara

(17,570 posts)
1. sounds about right....i love sourdough but the dang gnats hanging around the starter
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 08:34 AM
Mar 2020

..kind of turned me off to making it. I still have all the massive clay jugs but more for dust collectors now.

Major Nikon

(36,814 posts)
5. I use polycarbonate tubs from the restaurant supply
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 08:59 AM
Mar 2020

You usually have to buy the lids separately, but they work great for starter.

Throckmorton

(3,579 posts)
2. Covered my jar with cotton cloth.
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 08:47 AM
Mar 2020

Keeps the gnats, spiders, etc. Out.

I have a batch of sourdough from my own starter I made in November. I feed it weekly, and keep it refrigerated. I use the discard for this weeks baking.

I also bought a 2 lbs brick of red star yeast 4 weeks ago. That will last me 3 months or so.

Major Nikon

(36,814 posts)
4. Yes, many times
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 08:56 AM
Mar 2020

If it is bubbling, then it is working. It takes about a week of daily feedings before it is ready to make bread, but that’s if you follow a defined method which optimizes development. Otherwise it just takes longer.

Feeding with some whole wheat flour is a good idea. I generally start with mostly whole wheat and then work towards less. I like to use rye, so once established I do about a 1:4 ratio of rye to white flour.

50/50 is the right ratio of flour to water to start, but that is by weight, not volume. As it develops you will throw out progressively more of the previous days batch. With a fully developed starter you will throw out almost everything leaving only 100 grams of starter. When it’s mature I feed with a 80% hydration instead of 100%, so a little less water.

Your starter should start to smell like beer eventually, and there will be no doubt it is working as it will bubble profusely a few hours after a feeding.

 

Aquaria

(1,076 posts)
6. If it's bubbling and doesn't smell rotten
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 09:10 AM
Mar 2020

You are on the right track.

However...

When making sourdough without yeast, what becomes important is the flour and water you use. You need to use whole wheat flour, because it will have a better flavor, and—bonus—it has wild yeast in it already. Also, use distilled or mineral water, not tap water for you starter. Chlorination/fluoridation can inhibit your starter or even kill it before it gets started.

If you need more advice on a good starter, this is a terrific video for how to get sourdough starter right, every time:

https://m.

Major Nikon

(36,814 posts)
10. I've always used tap water and have never had a problem
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 10:49 AM
Mar 2020

Not all municipal supplies are the same, so that may not be the experience everywhere.

Pretty much all commercial flour has wild yeast in it, but it's more difficult, if not impossible to start a batch using bleached flour. You are correct in that whole wheat flour produces a better flavor, but once you get the starter going you don't have to use 100% whole wheat. Once I have a starter going, I will usually feed with 75% of the cheapest flour I can get my hands on, and 25% good quality rye flour.

Warpy

(110,913 posts)
11. Same here, although I do filter mine
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 03:03 PM
Mar 2020

I'm so close to a pumping station that it sometimes reeks of chlorine, which makes my tea weird and kills off yeast.

Filtering mineral water takes most of the minerals out of it.

getagrip_already

(14,250 posts)
7. yup, sounds about right but....
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 09:18 AM
Mar 2020

remember to throw out as much as you add when it gets to be about 2 cups. Otherwise you will be wasting a lot of flour. Also, don't be tempted to use what you are throwing away. Just be patient.

alfie

(522 posts)
8. Thanks
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 09:20 AM
Mar 2020

Thanks for all the replies. You make me feel better. I am making mine in a glass canning jar. I started off with whole wheat and now am adding only plain flour. I am covering it with a hand towel and so far haven't had gnats. They will probably head this way as soon as it starts smelling like beer. Mine is bubbling well. I'll keep up with what I am doing and will post later how my first batch of bread turns out.

Mad cow

(92 posts)
9. I started one right before my state was locked down
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 09:49 AM
Mar 2020

Because fresh baked goods are a real treat and I have plenty of time on my hands. Your starter sounds just right.

I've been using the discard to make an easy recipe for english muffins. Somehow they make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich feel gourmet ☺

Here's the recipe for anyone interested. I mix up the first part before going to bed.

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/272371/sourdough-english-muffins/

alfie

(522 posts)
13. TYhose sound yummy
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 04:33 PM
Mar 2020

I may try those for a trial run before I try to make a loaf of bread. I love home made English muffins. Usually make them with regular yeast. I have found my electric griddle at 450 is perfect for cooking them.

spinbaby

(15,073 posts)
14. I used to keep a starter
Sat Mar 28, 2020, 05:03 PM
Mar 2020

One thing I learned is that, when you feed the starter, you can use what you’d ordinarily throw away in place of yogurt or butter milk in recipes. I didn’t bake sourdough bread all the time, but often used the throwaway portion from feeding starter in biscuits in place of buttermilk. They really are sublime biscuits—yeasty and flaky. I also made devil’s food cake using sourdough starter in place of buttermilk. Dang, I’m getting in the mood to grow another starter.

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