When I got started making sourdough this summer, I was expecting lots of sourdough bread like the kind you'd buy in a store. I was surprised to find just how versatile sourdough really is. It's not just the type of bread I had in my mind, but a method of growing your own yeast and being dependent on one less store bought perishable.
A starter is begun with just 1 cup each flour and water. During the first week half is discarded each day and it is fed back up with 1/2 cup each flour and water. This gives your growing yeast colony plenty to eat. Once you get going you may want to start with recipes like pancakes and biscuits that will perform well even without a good rise. Your little yeast friends take some time to grow up. I started baking bread right away with mine and they were good tasting but not big fluffy breads until the starter had matured for 2 months or so.
Once the first week is over, you don't need to keep discarding. But if you do you can save and use that discard in recipes. I cook once a week so I just feed every day and let my starter grow. That way by the end of the week I have plenty for all the recipes I'm making. If you don't bake that much you could also put the starter in the fridge. It doesn't need to be fed in there and you can take it out a day before you do want to bake.
Sourdough can greet you at breakfast with delicious muffins or rich pancakes. Neither of which are sour in the least. It can bake up fluffy Italian breads and very filling biscuits. I've really enjoyed learning to make novel things like bagels and hamburger buns. Well veggieburger buns in my case :)
The sky is really the limit with what you can do with your sourdough once you've got it going. If you want someplace to start, I've been working off of these recipes. I've done most of them already and they are excellent.
13 comments:
I would love to make sourdough for my family , but my husband hates the smell of yeast horridly , and he is the only person who would eat real bread in our family. :(
It looks so very beautiful.
How warm does the kitchen have to be when you start your dough? I have wanted to start some but am terrified. I am afraid my house at 57 degrees is to cold for it. So I was thinking I might have to wait till summer to do starter. Is there a reason you have to discard your starter in the first couple of weeks? Is there a reason I can't use the daily discard in something like pancakes?
I think (if you posted something similar on your blog) that I read an earlier post of yours on your blog about sour dough.
Wow Momma, that's chilly! I've heard 65+ for your starter to grow. But you can probably push that as my now thrives with 65 during day and 59 at night and while I'm at work. You may be able to if you keep it on top of the fridge or in the oven where it'll be cozier?
My house can get down to 50 by wintertime mornings, and I have no problem with my sourdough starters. I store mine in the fridge inbetween baking, getting some out to "proof" overnight, putting some back in and using the rest. Sourdough, being alive, is supposed to have a name. I got "Pete" from an elderly neighbor about 25 years ago - no telling how long she'd kept him going.
Lynn, I've been doing sourdough but with refrigerated starter. I like your method better but have lots of questions. What kind of container do you keep your starter in? Sounds like you would need a big crock after feeding all week. Do you bake a variety of breads on your baking day? Do they stay fresh enough all week or do you freeze? Curious bakers want to know :-)
We are used to it now. Everyone is a little cold the until about Christmas. Mostly because the temps outside flux up and down so greatly. I had thought I heard SDS needed a warm temp (at least when its first going) once it gets to the fridge stage I figured I would be ok. So I will wait till summer to start mine when the temps are a bit higher.
I am also curious to know what you store yours in. Basically you are saying you feed yours daily and don't refridge, but if you are going to fridge it you don't feed it daily, just the night before you want to use it?
I have so much to learn.
We do turn the heat up to 62 some days (when we have company or just can't shake the cold). Everyone is really pretty much used to it. People bring slippers and sweaters and no one complains.
My youngest can breathe easily (she has lung issues and the colder temps are better for her than the hot humid ones), and we are all generally healthy because we don't create an environment for bacteria to thrive, hence my fear that my starter won't get a good start. I might hit up my local bakery (we have been buying their sourdough bread and love it) for some starter. Since I know they use local organic wheat. I found a source of local organic wheat - I am so excited about that.
That's it exactly Momma. I keep mine in a mason jar with some cheese cloth over it. You can just lay it over the top or use the ring to hold it down if you have a breeze or curious kitties :)
Good luck at the bakery! That'd be nice.
Gaia's I just keep it in mason jars. I usually do 2 or 3 recipes on Saturday. My freezer does not work well so I don't put anything in there, it's just what I can eat during the week. But I do know someone who bakes lots of extras and freezes them all.
I usually do pancakes for breakfasts or muffins, which keep in the fridge and reheat well. Next I get a bread started and that lasts all week and is served with most meals. I don't notice a problem with it by the end of the week...but I tend not to notice little differences. Then if I have energy I do something fun. Lately I've been leaving the extra in there and doing biscuits during the week, which are fast enough to whip up in the evenings.
Thank you so much for this inspiring post. I've considered sourdough in the past, but your post has giving me the final bit of enthusiasm I needed to move foreward. Sadge, I love the idea that the starter is alive and needs a name. I never thought about the possibility of a yeast colony living 25 years! Amazing!
I can't wait to do a little more research and get started with starter. You had me at "being dependent on one less store bought perishable"!
I have a starter recipe that uses instant potato flakes, makes a lovely soft dough that we use for danishes and so much more.
But, like some of the others here, I still don't understand why it's so important to throw away half during the first week? That just seems wasteful to me and agin' the pioneer spirit. Can you please explain why a person couldn't just keep it?
Thanks so much - I just discovered this blog a week or so ago and am really enjoying it. I'm a librarian and it's now on my list of recommended sites for people wanting to know more about homesteading.
Thanks
LynneW
Hi Lynne, Instructions for sourdough actually say to discard every time you feed it...so only discarding one week of it's life IS the least wasteful way! If it bothers you that much you could try making biscuits and pancakes with it...but with no rising power it's not very useful yet.
Oh, your sourdough pancakes look delicious. I made up my own recipe and they were tasty yet kind of flat!
I love the idea of sourdough muffins too. YUM.
I typically only use mine for pizza, bread, pancakes and cinnamon rolls. I see that I need to branch out.
I would love to do this too. Thank you for sharing this very informative article.
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