Sourdough bread bakers--starter management ?

[Jayne J]

I have been using a starter to bake sourdough bread for a few weeks now, and have had great success with it so far. Now that I am settling into a pattern, and getting used to the process, I want to find out the best way to keep on keepin' on. So, how do you manage the feeding of your starter? Up to now I have pulled it out of the refrigerator, let it warm up, fed it, waited for it to grow, baked the bread, and re-fed the starter before putting it back into the refrigerator. I can do all this on one day, if I pull the starter first thing in the morning and bake the bread right before bed.

 

Do I need to feed it again when I pull it out to warm up? Am I over feeding it needlessly? I bake about 3 times a week, and at this point I am wondering about just leaving it on the counter, but I don't know how often I would have to feed it and don't want to waste flour. Any pointers about the most efficient way to manage this starter would be appreciated!

[justamouse]

I just leave mine on the counter but as the house warms up I may have to cool it. And I feed when I take out.

 

Lisa told me to keep it at the consistency of a thick batter-that it would be happier, and so far she's right. (of course she's right)

[Shelly in IL]

Just another plug for Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes A Day. My husband travels extensively to Europe. He says this sourdough in this book is the best he's ever tasted. Best part no feeding!

[Parrothead]

I have no idea what to do with this stuff. My instructions say to take it out for 2 hours, feed it, let it sit 8 hours, then bake. I don't have that kind of time in the evenings to bake. I don't want to bake in the evenings.

 

So I have started in my fridge that I don't know what to do with. It has been in there 2.5 weeks untouched. Oh, and the last time I baked, nobody ate it. I tossed out a loaf and a half. :cursing:

[Jayne J]

My starter seems supercharged--I can't leave things to rise overnight or I return to a fallen gooey mess. I tend to pull it out in the morning to warm, feed it about 9ish, mix up my loaf about 1ish and let rise til 6 or so, punch down and reform my loaf and then let it rise until 9 or so, when I bake it. It really does seem to work really quickly, so the extra long rise times don't really work for me.

 

Am I over feeding it by feeding it after I take it out, and then again before I put it back in the refrigerator? My loaves are excellent, light and sour, so things seem to be going well. Maybe I should leave well enough alone? But I do feel like I am feeding it all the time and I wonder if it is really necessary.

 

 

Parrothead--maybe you could take the starter out and feed it right before bed, then bake first thing in the morning? I know the timing is really a pain! Sourdough makes the best toast in the world, if yours don't like it for sandwiches, etc. Or just toss the whole mess and never speak of it again. If no one will eat it, don't make it. LOL!

[justamouse]

I have no idea what to do with this stuff. My instructions say to take it out for 2 hours, feed it, let it sit 8 hours, then bake. I don't have that kind of time in the evenings to bake. I don't want to bake in the evenings.

 

So I have started in my fridge that I don't know what to do with. It has been in there 2.5 weeks untouched. Oh, and the last time I baked, nobody ate it. I tossed out a loaf and a half. :cursing:

 

 

 

Make croutons and breadcrumbs with it.

[LostSurprise]

There's nothing wrong with taking it out, feeding, letting it sit overnight, feeding again, then baking later in the morning.

 

Its fairly easy to leave out all the time, especially if you like sourdough pancakes. The extra flour doesn't feel like a waste then. If I was baking every 3rd day I would consider that.

 

I leave mine in the fridge a lot. Maybe once every 3-5 weeks I remove it in the evening, feed, overnight, feed, bake, and replace in the fridge.

[Jayne J]

I just leave mine on the counter but as the house warms up I may have to cool it. And I feed when I take out.

 

Lisa told me to keep it at the consistency of a thick batter-that it would be happier, and so far she's right. (of course she's right)

 

How often do you bake? I usually make 2-3 loaves a week. Could I just keep mine out? How often should a starter be fed at room temp, if I don't make bread for a few days?

[justamouse]

How often do you bake? I usually make 2-3 loaves a week. Could I just keep mine out? How often should a starter be fed at room temp, if I don't make bread for a few days?

 

I bake about 4-6 loaves a week. I normally do three at a shot.

 

Although yesterday I made KILLER bread. I used water kefir for part of the souring mix and man the yeast got SO happy happy happy.

[Jayne J]

There's nothing wrong with taking it out, feeding, letting it sit overnight, feeding again, then baking later in the morning.

 

Its fairly easy to leave out all the time, especially if you like sourdough pancakes. The extra flour doesn't feel like a waste then. If I was baking every 3rd day I would consider that.

 

I leave mine in the fridge a lot. Maybe once every 3-5 weeks I remove it in the evening, feed, overnight, feed, bake, and replace in the fridge.

 

Pancake recipe? Pretty please?

Anyone have a great pizza dough recipe? We eat pizza once a week here, and it would be nice to use the starter for that too.

[LostSurprise]

Here's one.

http://www.thefreshl...rdough-pancakes

 

I have another from the book Alaska Sourdough. Its basically a few cups of starter, a few TBL of sugar, a few TBL of oil, an egg, pinch of salt, and a teaspoon of baking soda diluted in a TBL of water. Mix everything into the starter, add the baking soda right before you're ready to cook. Melt butter in a frying pan and fry it up. Add blueberries if you wish. This makes a small batch. Play with it if you want to increase the amount or change the flavor a bit. This is a traditional, old-time, Alaskan recipe so it has minimal sugar, no vanilla, etc. It has an interesting flavor, every so often I get a taste for it. Its not much like IHOP though. The flavor is much more complex.

[Jayne J]

Thanks! I look forward to trying these. I need to find a few ways to use the starter, and then I'll be using it frequently enough not to have to feed it between bakings, which is why I bake 3 or so seperate loaves per week rather than doubling my recipe. If I can make pancakes once a week, bake bread 3 times per week and find a good pizza dough recipe for our weekly pizza night, I'll be set!

 

Do you ever mix up the pancake batter in the evening and add the baking soda in the morning? A few recipes I looked at had you make a sponge, then finish it in the morning. That would make me much more likely to make them--I am not generally an elaborate breakfast maker (like more elaborate than toast...).

[momto2Cs]

What is the best/easiest recipe for making a sourdough starter? I googled it, but there are SO many recipes out there!

[LostSurprise]

I have never tried that, urp. I'm a spur-of-the-moment pancake eater. I don't see why it wouldn't work. It might be a little flat because its gone through all the food, but you can stir in a little flour to get it going again and then add the baking soda.

 

G, I just did a 50-50 of tepid water and all-purpose flour. I kept it in a warm place (back of my stove). Each day I fed it a bit more water and flour. It takes 7-10 days. By the second day you should see some bubbles. By the end of the week you should see it rise after eating and fall when it finishes eating. You will probably need to get rid of some of it as it continues to develop. Just make pancakes or dump it down the sink. Once you have a strong colony going you can refrigerate it until you want to use it. Whenever I use it I pour off any liquid on top and dark matter. Then I stir in some water until I see everything bubble. Then I add an equal amount of flour. Sit in a warm spot overnight and its ready to use the next morning. Either that or take some out and make a poolish or other pre-ferment with it.

[KungFuPanda]

I like to neglect my starter. I abandon it for weeks on end. I tend to pull it out and feed it the night before I want to use it, then I feed it before putting back in the fridge so I can keep about two cups on hand. I do this partly because I'm lazy and partly because a neglected starter makes for a tangy-er, sour-er loaf. It does take longer to rise, so sometimes I mix the dough at night, stick it in the fridge, and finish the next day. Yep, it's a lazy, three-day process for the good stuff. If I want to short-cut it, I have a Big Cheater yeast recipe I use. My starter still gives an unmistakable sourdough flavor. I've even bought it back from near-death after months of neglect.

 

Just another plug for Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes A Day. My husband travels extensively to Europe. He says this sourdough in this book is the best he's ever tasted. Best part no feeding!

 

 

I love no-knead bread, and I love sourdough, but in my mind they are definitely separate entities.