Thursday, March 24, 2016

How-To Tuesday Wild Sourdough

 
 
 
This is Mary Jane. She looks pretty in the jar, but I now keep her in a crockery bowl.

  
 
How to start your own sourdough:

flour, water, jar, cheesecloth, screw top, time, done.
 
Now wasn't that easy!!!!!  Really, it's that easy.

(You can purchase sourdough starter, but what's the fun in that?)

There's a gazillion "how-to's" out there, but the simplest is the best.   Get a canning jar. (Clean, of course.)  Add approximately 1/2 cup water (don't you dare use tap water!) and approx 1/2 cup of flour.  These DO NOT HAVE TO BE EXACT.  It's going to depend on how much moisture content is already in your flour.  You need  SOUPY sauce-like consistency. So, if it's too runny, add flour; too thick add water.  A 1/2 cup each is a good size to begin.  You can use more or less depending on your baking needs.  Just keep the flour:water ratio equal.

Stir it up and put it in a glass jar, top with cheesecloth or other suitable breathable fabric.  Just remember, the WILD YEAST NEED TO GET IN so you cannot put a lid on it.

Now, the fun part. Wait at least 12 hrs...usually it takes 24 hrs.  The ambient temperature will be a factor.  Cooler temps=longer time    Warmer temps=shorter time





If the wild yeast have arrived, it will have little bubbles in the flour mix.  If it doesn't, they haven't!  I get so excited when I see those bubbles!!!  Welcome little wild ones!!!

Sometimes I get a LOT of bubbles, sometimes I get NONE.  Don't give up!!  If you get a brown liquid on top, that's OK, just stir it in.
 
GOLDEN RULE:  Each day  feed your starter an equal  amount of flour/water, let it sit 12/24 hrs and repeat! 

 If you have a lot of bubbles you can feed every 12 hours, otherwise wait the 24.  It may take SEVERAL days before you get bubbles or it may only take 12 hrs.  Keep feeding.  If you are not getting bubbles after several days, you may consider composting it and starting over, although I think perseverance usually pays off.

Another consideration:  if you don't want or need several cups of sourdough, then use small increments of water/flour.  Say 1/8 or 1/4 cup each.  If you have a large family use 1 cup flour:water.  And, you can also take half the sourdough out (after the first day.  And it must be bubbling), compost it then add your feeding mix of flour/water.  This will help keep it to a manageable size. However, I don't like waste, so this "discard" can be used to make things that don't need a big boost to rise such as pancakes, waffles, etc.

You will outgrow your jar, so transfer to a clean bowl (or you can start out with a bowl--crocks are nice); you still need to cover it with cheesecloth.  Use a clean jar or bowl EVERY time you feed.  DO NOT USE PLASTIC.

A word about flour:  They say rye is the best for attracting wild yeast; I have not seen a difference myself. It doesn't contain as many phytates as wheat and maybe that effects it.  You can use any kind of flour white (not recommended-but if you do use white use unbleached), whole wheat, Einkorn, etc.  I LOVE EINKORN. You can START your sourdough with rye then BAKE with any kind of flour.  Be brave--make your own rules.  It's your kitchen!
 
You can also "enrich" your sourdough by adding sugar and/or using milk as the liquid.

After a couple of weeks you should have a concoction that smells a little yeasty. It should have been a bubbly mass then settled down a bit. If it doesn't have a mass of bubbles, or you don't have enough for whatever you're going to use it for, then keep feeding it twice a day until you do. When it rises up like it's going to take over the world, then settle's back down for a rest, it's ready to use!! I keep a muslin cloth over Mary Jane and frequently she touches the top. She's feisty like that.

Always save about a quart if you have a large family; at the minimum, a cup, of sourdough to start your next batch. Depending on what you are baking: LOAVES of bread or a simple batch of pancakes. You will get adept at judging how much to save back to begin your next sourdough starter.

Happy sourdoughing!     I will have recipes in a different blog post.
 
PS For more detailed sourdough information and the scoop about other cultured foods, see my new book FAVORITE FLU FIGHTERS coming out late summer 2023.     :) 
 
Mary Jane in my grandmothers crockery bowl.








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