The Sourdough Primer
compiled by Bill Brent

The Food Forum

Sourdough Starter

A true sourdough starter is nothing more than the flour and milk or water which sits at room temperature for several days and catches live yeast bacteria from the air. Most starter recipes today include yeast as an original ingredient as it is much easier and less time consuming. In addition, many sourdough bread recipes also indicate usage of yeast itself as it does provide a higher rising, lighter loaf.  A sourdough starter should be kept in a glass or plastic bowl which has a tight fitting lid. I recommend a bowl instead of a jar as you can "feed" your starter right in the bowl easily. To make your starter, mix together:
INGREDIENTS:
    2 cup lukewarm milk
    2 cup bread flour
    2 1/2 tsp yeast (one package)
Mix the starter with an electric or hand held mixer on the lowest setting. Cover your starter and place in a warm, draft-free location for 4 to 7 days, gently stirring it once a day. You may notice that the mixture bubbles and in some cases it may even overflow the bowl. This is an indication that you have a healthy starter which should simply be poured off and discarded. If your starter ever changes colors, to purple, for example, discard and start another one.
After allowing your starter to sit for 4 to 7 days it is ready to be used. Take out whatever portion your recipe calls for and put into the machine as you would any liquid ingredient. After removing a portion from the starter, the starter must be "fed". Simply add equal portions of milk or water and flour as was used. For example, if you used 1 cup of starter, replace it with 1 cup of water and 1 cup of bread flour.
Some hints on feeding your starter: always use the same kind of flour. If you used bread flour in your original starter, use bread flour to feed it. Also, alternate between milk and water for each feeding. Since your original liquid ingredient was milk, the first liquid feeding should be with water. If you forget which you used last, that's okay, but try to alternate at least every other time. After feeding your starter, let it sit at room temperature for about one day and then refrigerate.

Many cookbooks suggest stirring the starter once a day even when being refrigerated; I find that it is not necessary. You must, however, use a portion of the starter at least once a week. If you choose not to bake sourdough breads that often, then remove a cup of your starter and feed it as though you used some during the week. If this is not done, your starter will turn rancid and have to be replaced. Should you be away on vacation or otherwise not able to tend to the starter, freeze it. Upon your return, thaw it in the refrigerator and then remove a portion and feed it as soon as you are able.
You may be thinking that this sounds too complicated, but it really is not, nor is the starter overly fragile. A friend of mine had the same starter for 14 years! My first few loaves of sourdough were not very sour and I feared it was my starter. After allowing the starter to mellow a little by sitting in the refrigerator and using only once a week, it and the breads became more sour.
Another hint is to put the bread in on the timer cycle for early morning baking. The milk put in the night before adds a little more sour taste. If the bread is getting too sour for you, feed with water more often than milk.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Drying & Reconstituting Sourdough Starter

DRYING SOURDOUGH STARTER: Use a cookie sheet with a lip. Place a sheet of plastic wrap over the cookie sheet so in effect you have a "plastic pan". Pour 1/2 cup of starter evenly over plastic. It should be a thin layer. Place on top of refrigerator for 1-1/2 days. Peel pieces of dried starter off of plastic and turn over to continue drying other side 1/2 day. Be sure starter is thoroughly dry or it will mold or spoil.
When starter is dry put pieces in a blender or food processor and process until it looks like coarse flour. Store in an airtight container until needed.

RECONSTITUTING STARTER: Add one cup of water, 1/2 cup flour and 1 tsp. sugar to dry starter in a plastic or glass container and follow directions for any starter use. It takes about 24 hours for starter to activate.

----------------------------------------------

Title: King Arthur Flour - Sourdough Starter Tips 1

What is a Sourdough Starter? "A sourdough starter is a wild yeast living in a batter of flour and liquid. Yeasts are microscopic fungi related distantly to mushrooms. There are many varieties of these tiny organisms around us everywhere. Wild yeasts are rugged individualists which can withstand the most extreme of circumstances. Some will make delicious loaves of bread; others will create yogurt and cheese out of milk; still others will turn the juices of grains and fruit into beer and wine." "Active dry yeast, the kind we can buy in packets at our grocer's, is a domesticated descendant of these wild relatives, one which has been grown for flavor, speed of growth and predictability. But domestic yeasts are much more fragile and can't be grown at home without eventually reverting to their original wild state."

"If you can imagine a world without any packets of active dry yeast, you can imagine how important your sourdough starter would be to you. Without it, you would be doomed to some pretty awful eating. It is no wonder that sourdough starters were treasured, fought over, and carried to all ends of the earth. To the early prospectors, it was such a valued possession (almost more than the gold they were seeking), that they slept with it on frigid winter nights to keep it from freezing. (Ironically, freezing won't kill a sourdough starter although too much heat will.)"

Fermentation (or the Microscopic Magic of Yeast): "As we mentioned above, yeast is a microscopic fungus. As it feeds on the natural sugars in grain, it multiplies and gives off carbon dioxide (just as we do when we breathe). This invisible activity of yeast is called fermentation. When you make bread with wheat, by kneading the long elastic strands of wheat protein (called gluten) into an elastic mesh, you create traps for these carbon dioxide bubbles causing the dough to expand as if it contained a million tiny balloons."

"Keeping a sourdough starter is somewhat like having a pet because it needs to be fed and cared for. But its requirements are simple and not time consuming. Baking with sourdough is also a simple process. All it takes is a little planning and timing. The results are so satisfying, you'll grow to treasure your invisible pet the way our ancestors did."

"During the time the starter is stored in the refrigerator, it becomes relatively dormant which is why it can survive so long with so little attention. You'll find that a clear, amber colored liquid will accumulate on the surface of the starter. This liquid contains 12% to 14% alcohol."

"When yeast is in contact with air, it produces carbon dioxide; when it's not, it produces alcohol. When you blend the alcohol back into the starter, it helps produce the unique flavor you find in good sourdough breads. For milder flavor, you can pour off some of the alcohol if you wish although this will thicken the starter requiring a bit more liquid to return it to its "pancake batter" consistency. (To "sweeten" a starter in another way, see Troubleshooting which follows.) The alcohol itself dissipates during the baking process."

"In a couple of hours you may see tiny bubbles appear on the surface. If so, cheer your brew on by keeping it warm and covered overnight. In the morning, celebrate by making sourdough pancakes They are delicious and quick. Give the remaining starter another feeding, let it sit for 12 more hours to ensure its reawakened vigor before you tuck it back in the frig. Then quietly heave a sigh of relief and congratulate yourself on your rescue." How to Decide if You Need to Start Over:

"If your sourdough begins to mold or develop a peculiar color or odor instead of a "clean, sour aroma," give a sigh, throw it out and, if you're patient, start again. Along with the vital yeasts, you may have inadvertently nurtured a strain of bacteria that will not be wonderful in food. This happens very infrequently so don't let this possibility dissuade you from a sourdough adventure."

Starter Variations:

"Here are some variations on the basic flour/liquid/yeast combination that will produce sourdough starters with different personalities.

*Substitute 1 cup of stone ground whole wheat flour for 1 of the unbleached all-purpose flour.

*For tap water, substitute water from cooking potatoes. It contains nutrients which any kind of yeast loves and along with making the yeast happy, it creates great flavor in bread.

*Substitute buttermilk for tap water.

"Once your sourdough pet is cold and relatively dormant, it can survive quite a long time between "feedings." It is certainly not as demanding as children, or more traditional pets, but it isn't happy just sitting for months on end like a packet of commercially dried yeast either." "Freezing: You may be able to ignore your starter for a month or even much longer, but if you know you're going to be away for a time, you can store it (unlike children or pets) in the freezer. You may want to transfer it to a plastic container first as it will expand as it freezes. When you are ready to use it again, give it a day to revive, feed it a good meal, give it another day to build up an armada of fresh, new wild siblings and it will be ready to go to work."

"Drying: An alternative storage method is to dry your starter by spreading it out on a piece of heavy plastic wrap or waxed paper. Once it's dry, crumble it up and put it in an airtight container. Store it some place cool, or, to be safe, in the freezer. To reactivate the dried starter, grind it into small particles with a hand cranked grinder, a blender or a food processor. Pour 1 to 1 1/2 cups of warm water (what feels comfortable on your wrist) into a glass or ceramic bowl. Stir in and dissolve a tablespoon of sugar or honey. This isn't necessary but it gives the yeast an easy "first course." Blend in an equal amount of flour and dried starter. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and watch for small telltale bubbles which should begin to appear on the surface within a few hours. Once you see them you'll know it's alive and well. Let it continue to feed and grow for a further 12 hours before you cover and refrigerate it." How to Remove Some Starter for Baking:

"With a spoon or wire whisk, blend the liquid back into the starter and then measure out the quantity required by your recipe. Replace the amount taken with equal amounts of flour and water. Since many recipes are based on using 1 cup of starter, you would return to your starter pot, 1 cup of flour and 1 cup of water. (This actually makes 1 1/3 cups more starter but you can adjust the amount whenever you want.) As you did when you first fed your starter, let it sit at room temperature for at least 12 hours to give the yeast a chance to "feed" and multiply before you chill it again."

Feeding Without Baking: "If you have been busy or away, you can always feed your starter without baking anything. Stir the mixture together, take out and discard 1 cup of starter and replenish as above, stirring in 1 cup water and 1 cup flour. (Or instead of discarding the starter you removed, ask a neighbor if he or she would be interested in adopting a starter of his/her very own.) Let the resuscitated mixture sit at room temperature for 12 hours or so before you return it to the refrigerator."

Treating a "Sluggish" Starter: "If you feel that your starter is just not "up to snuff," dissolve a teaspoon of yeast in the cup of water you mix into the starter when you feed it. (If you live in an area where water is chlorinated, let some sit out overnight to allow the chlorine to dissipate to preclude any interference with the development of the sourdough micro-organisms)."

Sweetening a Starter: "If your starter becomes too sour, take out 1 cup, dispose of the remainder, and add 2 cups of each of flour and water to refreshen it."

Increasing Your Starter: "If you want to grow a large amount of starter to give some to a friend or to do a lot of baking, simply increase the amount you feed it."

Resuscitating a Neglected Starter: "If your sourdough starter has sat in the refrigerator months beyond the point of health, give it a fighting chance for survival before you throw it out. A little warmth and a good meal of strong, high energy carbohydrates may be all it needs to get it off and running again."

"The layer of liquid on the surface will probably be very dark, making it look as if the starter must surely have expired. Quell your fear, wrestle the top off the jar and give it a sniff. If it smells the way it should, though exceptionally sour, it may just be sitting there in a dormant state waiting to be fed. The only way to know is to give it a meal."

"Blend it back together and pour it into a glass or ceramic bowl. (Take this opportunity to give its jar a good wash.) As the starter will probably be quite thin, mix in 2 cups of flour and 1 cup of water to nourish and thicken it. Leave the bowl out on the counter where it will be warm and visible."