Sourdough Starter questions...

[hennypenny9]

So I want to loosely cover it right from the beginning? And I hadn't heard the about the fruit baggy idea... What if I have no cheesecloth? Can I add it later, like tomorrow?

And if this works, I would love recipes so that I can use the extra starter! Waste not, and all that.

 

[jessejames]

ya just throw the fruit in whenever. doesnt have to be cheese cloth could be unbleached cotton etc.
you wont be able to use the waste for a cpl weeks needs to gain strength etc. anythiing you would make with it ooner would be unpredictable and sour tasting.
i have had my starter in the freeer for a cpl years now i think its time to dust it off and get bakin again.
after i built and baked ina wood fired oven i swore i would never bake any other way again. i think i will have to break that rule till i can get some help out here!!
i am thinkin of workshoping the process next summer to offset some of the expense. when i built the ones in TO i got lots of interest and have a pretty big mailing list of folks i could market it towards.
keep me posted on your sourdough. i can bake vicariously through you till i get my kitchen sorted at least!

 

[hennypenny9]

It seems to have a layer of water on the top now... I think it didn't work? It hasn't been quite 24 hours yet. But it did get a little cool in here last night, maybe 65.

 

[jessejames]

thats fine just let sit and do its thing for quite awhile itll be a cpl days at least till you start to see some action. giving it a stir wont hurt it just dont do it vigorously or often you dont want the glutton to develop at all!!
the art of sourdough is patience......

 

[big brown horse]

Henny, I know this isn't very ss, but I did leave mine in the oven turned off but with the light on. It took about 3-4 days before it started to smell yeasty or beer-ish. Hang in there.

 

[hennypenny9]

Well I gave in and gave it a bit of a stir. Ever so gently, with a knife. It seems... Puffy? I think this is good, right? And since I did that, I notice bubbles, and can't remember if they were there before I stirred or not. Anyway, thanks for the tip BBH, I think the oven light will be a good way to go overnight when it's colder.

 

[hennypenny9]

So there are more bubbles now... I dunno if this is good or bad. So I wait two weeks before taking out half of it? I'm posting a picture tomorrow, I can't stand it!

 

[jessejames]

id wait a week to 10 days at least before you start to feed it, remove half etc. i would stay away from putting in oven till it is up to strenght at least. and really it will be much happier to be cooler. you will have a better starter more balanced starter that way. you want to let it get pretty gross and sour smelling. this is not how you want it to smell it just needs to get nice and sour before it is strong enough. pics are good. ultimately it will have a sweetish smell when it is happy. yeast is a living organism. so can be well fed or starved etc.
i will try to get one going this week too, to give you something to compare with!

 

[animal nut]

Where do I find the recipe for the starter.? You have made me interested in starting my own.

 

[big brown horse]

animal nut,

This is about the easiest starter in the world. All you need is flour and water. The yeast is already in the air around you...it is different everywhere. Sanfrancisco sourdough is famous b/c of its unique yeast (am I right y'all?).

I printed a great "booklet" from a sourdough link that keljonma posted on another thread about sourdough. I'm not too savvy on the computer, so if anyone reading this (like keljonma ) would you please post a link to that?

It was called Sourdough Baking by S. John Ross