Calling sourdough starter experts!

[stclair]

As I can’t find yeast for love nor money, I’m on day 3 of a sourdough starter (from bbcgoodfood recipe). What I am confused about is the pouring off of half the starter when ready to bake. Is this to be used to add more flour and water to keep the starter going? Otherwise It seems wasteful! If it isn’t, why pour it away?

Does it have to float? Mine is three weeks old. I made one loaf which was a soggy brick and I’d like to try again. The starter is rising and bubbling and smells good. It doesn’t rise that much and it won’t float though so I might be doing something wrong.

@Livingoffcoffee yes I did.

I may have been a bit premature. Behold today's bake

Do we think it's over-proved?

@Grrrpredictivetex Mine took 10 days to come up to speed 😂 what exactly are you doing when you feed? Are you discarding? How much do you keep, then how much do you feed each of flour and water. What kind of flour are you using??? Are you measuring by weight or cups? Where are you keeping it? What is it covered with?

@blackbirdblue30 as far as I know yes it has to float to show it has enough has to carry a loaf. I tried a loaf before my starter was ready and it was terrible 😂 of you tell us the same information as I've just asked then maybe someone can help. It's largely a process of elimination

@jenawren did you use the same recipe as before www.hobbshousebakery.co.uk/blogs/recipes/140081991-sourdough-bread-recipe

What did you do differently??? Such a shame your first loaf was great

I did @Myshitisreal.

I think my starter is much more active than it was the first time and it's been warmer. It had about 15 hours proofing and I'm wondered if that's too much.

My second prove is 12 to 18 hours. Did you try poking it to see how it sprung back (before cooking?). Have a look for videos to see but I think from memory it should just slowly spring back . If you didn't change anything else though I guess the only thing to do is try again but stick to the recommend times. It's hard to tell. Love to know if anyone else has any ideas

www.hobbshousebakery.co.uk/blogs/recipes/140081991-sourdough-bread-recipe

Did you prove it in the fridge

I used wholegrain flour and that’s what I feed it. Take about half out and feed in the morning. Started with exact measurements but now I use the marks on my jar as guide. I keep it in the oven with just the oven light on (tip I read, keeps it warm and consistent temperature). It’s filled with large bubbles and active but it doesn’t rise more than half of its original size, and it doesn’t float. Doesn’t plummet in the water either though. Any ideas to help it?

Pulling up a pew...

So I made it and it rose and it looked the part and had a nice sour taste

But the crust was very hard and very chewy!

Vanessa Kimble had a great q&a on Bakery Bits (a great resource for bakers) regarding sourdough. Some of the problems experienced here are addressed in her answers here.

Do look at Dan Lepard - his book The Handmade Loaf is only 99p at the moment on Amazon as a Kindle book. He has a low knead approach and sets out timings for a white loaf. I followed it up to the last proof then put the dough in the fridge, shaped it in the morning and let it rise for about three hours, then baked in a Le Creuset casserole. I think the casserole makes a big difference!

@blackbirdblue30 this link is really good www.theclevercarrot.com/2018/03/troubleshooting-your-sourdough-starter/

Have you tried logging the temperature in your oven? It's possible after a while the temperature gets too high. That link suggests the same, the ideal temp is between 75-85f. I've read about the oven tip, but cracking the door so it doesn't get too hot. If it were me I would check the temperature of its environment over the day. I would also completely clean the container out, and go back to specific measurements by weight rather than volume.

Is it possible your starter has already peaked and is falling when you're doing the float test? I've read if there are large and small surface Bubbles, that shows its at peak. So after your feed it, it will start to go up, peak, then come back down so you're aiming to catch it at its highest point.

If none of the above help, you could try feeding twice a day. I've read of some adding a few grapes (or honey) etc to boost their starter or rye flour.

Mine changed in texture when it was ready. It doesn't double in size but it does increase, and pass the float test. I'm just in the process of reviving mine now after being in the fridge a few days so I'm learning how long mine takes to peak.

You could if course just try a loaf knowing it may or may not work 🤷‍♂️

Great thread! The only flour I've been able to find in the last month is a 20kg bag of strong white, so I made a starter from 50g flour and 50mls tap water and put it in the kitchen in a small plastic ice cream container with a lid. By day 3 it smelt very vinegary, which is a sign it was too cold. So I put it in the airing cupboard and 2 days later it smelled much more savoury than I'd expected.

Because otherwise I'd simply be making too much bread, I now keep my starter in the fridge, and the day before I bake, I add a tablespoon of it to 100g flour & 100mls water and use that as levain.

I'm happy with my results, however, I do find that despite lots of kneading, the risen dough is much stickier than the videos I've watched. Also I would like to bake bread with big holes but can't do that yet.

Size of holes is directly linked to %hydration of the dough. Higher hydration doughs will have larger holes baked in. However, your dough sound like it is already quite hydrated, so in order to increase the hydration you will have to change technique. In your position, I'd add an autolysis step in the beginning to allow the dough to do more work itself in developing gluten. I'd also change from active kneading to the stretch and fold technique.

I tried making sourdough last year. [I make ordinary bread a lot - when I have flour, that is!]
Sourdough was a total enigma. I just couldn't get it right. I fed the starter for ages and did everything as I thought I should - but each loaf was flat and awful.
I gave up.

Good luck to all of you! Some of those loaves look great. [I still have the basket thing to bake in and the special sharp cutter... sigh...]

Yes spotty I 2nd your recommendation of Dan Lepard , his Short and Sweet baking book is good. Esp. his ideas for breadmaking. The 2 hour rise really works!

Here's mine that I just took out of the oven, hope it tastes ok!

It looks lovely Tower .

@towerravenseven looks fab how did it taste???

@thinkfast when's the next loaf

Can recommend this recipe

www.ilovecooking.ie/features/sourdough-bread-masterclass-with-patrick-ryan/

Made my first loaf using the Pyrex method and it was delicious

So, have got this weeks attempt rising (have just stretched and folded once).

But enough of this ... am I right in thinking that for "dutch oven" (which has a suspiciously USAian ring to it) I could use pyrex casserole dish with lid ?

(Eagle eyed readers might spot the crafty use of a brew mat )

@dgrosetti you can indeed. First time i put loaf directly on baking tray and used the dish as a dome. The bottom was very very well done. The second time i plopped the dough into the lid and used the dish as a dome. I removed the dome 28 minutes in, and put it directly in the tray the last 10 minutes of cooking to crisp up the bottom a little. Using the lid was handy but it did slightly stop mine spreading out so there was a very slight ridge at the bottom of the loaf. Play about with, see what works

Thanks for that ... just going to do the second stretch'n'fold and then will leave to rise till tomorrow morning. If all goes well, that's lunch (soup & bread) sorted

The holy grail is to make a nice pizza base sourdough (DW raves about the ones she's had when we've been out ...)

I'm sure it will be fabulous. Yes that's on my Radar this weekend I think I've been looking at various recipes. It's possible to sub sourdough starter for yeast also (if that's what the recipe calls for) I've tried a loaf today in a loaf tin rather than a boule or loose shaping and I suspect it hasn't worked so well 🤔