Sourdough starter/how to use it
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I've been using this method for years now.
This is my recipe for a sourdough starter
1 pkg active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1 c all purpose flour
1 c sugar
1 c warm milk
In a bowl soften yeast in warm water for about 10 minutes. Stir well. in a 2 qt glass, plastic or ceramic container, combine flour and sugar (DO NOT USE A METAL BOWL OR SPOON) Mix thoroughly or flour will lump. Slowly stir in the warm milk and softened yeast. Cover loosely and let stand at room temp until bubbly. Loosely cover. Refrigerate. Consider this day 1 of a 10 day cycle. It is normal for batter to rise, bubble and ferment
Days 2-4, Stir
Day 5, Feed with starter food, of the flour, sugar, and milk mixture once again.
Stir to mix and put back in the refrigerator.
Days 6-9, stir and return to the fridge.
Day 10 You can divide up your starter into 1 cup bags. These can be placed the the freezer for later use. you need to save 1 c to feed the next batch.
This is my recipe for a sourdough starter
1 pkg active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1 c all purpose flour
1 c sugar
1 c warm milk
In a bowl soften yeast in warm water for about 10 minutes. Stir well. in a 2 qt glass, plastic or ceramic container, combine flour and sugar (DO NOT USE A METAL BOWL OR SPOON) Mix thoroughly or flour will lump. Slowly stir in the warm milk and softened yeast. Cover loosely and let stand at room temp until bubbly. Loosely cover. Refrigerate. Consider this day 1 of a 10 day cycle. It is normal for batter to rise, bubble and ferment
Days 2-4, Stir
Day 5, Feed with starter food, of the flour, sugar, and milk mixture once again.
Stir to mix and put back in the refrigerator.
Days 6-9, stir and return to the fridge.
Day 10 You can divide up your starter into 1 cup bags. These can be placed the the freezer for later use. you need to save 1 c to feed the next batch.
Never tried that one.
But I do make it.
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Go on, share your method and measurements, Mo.
I have not made it. @Amish Heart have you made sourdough bread? Another thing on the list.
Some do better dietary wise with sourdough than regular white or wheat bread.
A few years ago I purchased live sourdough starter from King Arthur flour. It was active right away. I followed the directions and it worked really well. I am still using the same starter, but I have changed a few things. I do not keep a large starter and I do not discard. I keep a small amount of starter and add a half cup of flour and a quarter cup of water the night before I bake. By the next morning it is to the top of a quart jar. I only make one loaf using 3 cups of flour and 1/2 cup of starter. I do add yeast, but my starter is active enough that I probably don't need to. I just add the yeast so that I know exactly how long till I have bread. I make the dough in my bread machine and bake in the oven. I don't have recipes, I just make it by feel adding what I want in my bread at that time.
I avoided making sourdough bread for a long time because it seemed so involved and confusing. I could not justify wasting all of that flour by discarding the excess starter so I just started playing around with it and found what works for me. I tried recipes for the excess starter and mostly they just didn't work for me. DH doesn't eat wheat and I don't like pancakes very much. It was just more work and did not give me something I liked to eat. The sourdough pizza crust really didn't work out at all. So, I did it my way and it works for me even if it is not "the right way."
This is the starter I bought and it is very good.
https://shop.kingarthurbaking.com/items/classic-fresh-sourdough-starter
I avoided making sourdough bread for a long time because it seemed so involved and confusing. I could not justify wasting all of that flour by discarding the excess starter so I just started playing around with it and found what works for me. I tried recipes for the excess starter and mostly they just didn't work for me. DH doesn't eat wheat and I don't like pancakes very much. It was just more work and did not give me something I liked to eat. The sourdough pizza crust really didn't work out at all. So, I did it my way and it works for me even if it is not "the right way."
This is the starter I bought and it is very good.
https://shop.kingarthurbaking.com/items/classic-fresh-sourdough-starter
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Nope, never have tried sourdough starter.
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You should try it out. It makes the best breads and all you have to do is "feed" to keep it "alive". I read a book years ago of a family that got lost in the woods and stumbled across a cabin. The mom of the family found a sourdough starter in a can on a shelf and then ended up adding creek water back to it to revive. I sure wish I remembered the title of that book and how they were able to make a shelf stable sourdough starter.
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I would love to see yours. I got another one that uses potatoe flakes.
You can still get "Carl Griffith's 1847 Oregon Trail Sourdough Starter"
https://www.carlsfriends.net//
Nice tutorials and such there also. I have tried it, and others, mostly they all end up pretty much the same. I've even used wine yeast, Lalvin EC-1118
https://www.carlsfriends.net//
Nice tutorials and such there also. I have tried it, and others, mostly they all end up pretty much the same. I've even used wine yeast, Lalvin EC-1118
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This is how I made mine:
dark rye flour, water
That's it to start
Make a runny dough out of this and put it in a container that's not metal
Let it sit out until it's bubbly, feed and water once a day for 7 days
should be done by then , unless it's really cold in your house
Then you can put it in the fridge, and feed it once a week or so
After the initial rye flour, you can use regular white flour to feed it, and non chlorinated water. Use bottled if you have city water
I use it all the time to bake German sourdough bread I sell at the farmers market. It's my fastest seller since nobody else there makes anything like it
But the bread takes 2 days to make
One time it got moldy, I think last year , after it was perfectly fine for several years. I don't know why. I just dumped it and started over
Dani: I didn't know you could use yeast in it, that's very different from mine!
dark rye flour, water
That's it to start
Make a runny dough out of this and put it in a container that's not metal
Let it sit out until it's bubbly, feed and water once a day for 7 days
should be done by then , unless it's really cold in your house
Then you can put it in the fridge, and feed it once a week or so
After the initial rye flour, you can use regular white flour to feed it, and non chlorinated water. Use bottled if you have city water
I use it all the time to bake German sourdough bread I sell at the farmers market. It's my fastest seller since nobody else there makes anything like it
But the bread takes 2 days to make
One time it got moldy, I think last year , after it was perfectly fine for several years. I don't know why. I just dumped it and started over
Dani: I didn't know you could use yeast in it, that's very different from mine!
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Do you have measurements? Assuming left out to capture the wild yeast in the air? So I did a quick search and ran across this article. Nice to know!
https://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/edible-innovations/sourdough2.htm
If you want to get a jump start on your starter, I can dry some of mine and send it to you. I've gotten into the habit of every few months feeding my started to make more than I need, then spreading it out on wax paper, covering with another sheet of wax paper, rolling it thin and letting it dry out for several days. Then I crumble it up and put it in food saver bags. I've brought my starter back to life a couple of times this way, especially in the summer, when I forget about the poor thing and it gets pushed to the back of the fridge for weeks at a time. The only downside of doing this, is I usually give almost all of the packets away and hang onto a couple for myself.
If you, or anyone else for that matter, wants some dried starter to begin theirs with, let me know (shoot me your contact information in a direct message) and I will mail you some!
If you, or anyone else for that matter, wants some dried starter to begin theirs with, let me know (shoot me your contact information in a direct message) and I will mail you some!
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That is a wonderful idea to do! Assuming you bring it back to life with regular feedings?
Pretty much so. On day one, I rehydrate the starter in warm water, with just a pinch of sugar in it. Once the starter is "wet" again, I feed it 2/3 cup of flour and enough warm water to make it slightly thicker than pancake batter. I leave it on the counter overnight. The next day I feed it another 2/3 cup of flour and warm water again, back to that thick pancake batter stage. On days 3 through 7, I divide the starter and then add 2/3s flour and water. By day four the starter is usually strong enough to use the discard for making sourdough pancakes. By day 7 it's strong enough for bread.
What I like to do is take the discard from day 5 or 6 and then keep feeding it to make a back up batch that I dry. I haven't done it everytime, but when I have a little extra time, I'll do it. Like I said in my previous post, most of the dried starter gets distributed out to those that want a jumpstart for their starter.
I have been working on creating a starter. I don't have much confidence in it yet, but today I am making something with it for the first time. Biscuits. They were left to sit overnight (which for me is all day today) and tonight I will finish them out and bake them.
Will keep you posted as to how they turn out - or don't. From what I have so far, it's difficult to imagine that they will not be edible even if not great.
Will keep you posted as to how they turn out - or don't. From what I have so far, it's difficult to imagine that they will not be edible even if not great.
PS: this is what I "followed" well, me being me, I've been at it a week and a half now but it is winter.
My starter is waiting for the move to the new house, somehow all my bread stuff migrated north before I knew it 
We don't make bread.My starter is waiting for the move to the new house, somehow all my bread stuff migrated north before I knew it
I don't know why, but every time I see this thread title, I think of our member here, and this:
I may not ever again, there is a sourdough bread baker closeWe don't make bread.
I don't know why, but every time I see this thread title, I think of our member here, and this:
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I don't know what this means.We don't make bread.
I don't know why, but every time I see this thread title, I think of our member here, and this:
Someone gave me sourdough starter and I forgot I had it.
I will make my own then.
There is a lady in Wilmington that bakes sourdough, Have to preorder and drive 11 miles for pickup. I CANT WAIT to move.
You gotta farcebook to see. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61555266891949
Starter and crock are there, but I'm not, yet
You gotta farcebook to see. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61555266891949
Starter and crock are there, but I'm not, yet
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Made my first loaf today. Good flavor. It was a little heavy but for a first loaf am overall pleased. The biscuits I tried from the discard weren’t very good (not bad, just blah). Am hoping as the starter matures it will become more flavorful. Oh yeah don’t forget to spray or brush the loaf with water before putting it in the oven. The crust got a little dark- I forgot 
Several times I have tried to grow starter.. Being the Webster definition of ..black thumb.. my starters always died..
Trivia.. I ran into a small cafe, bakery in Missoula Montana run by a guy who cooked on the1970s Alaska pipeline project.. He brought his sourdough starter down from the Yukon Canada.. It was a ..make your eyes water, stand on its own legs and fight product.. I have never run across anything like that or with near the flavor it had since.. The French style sourdough that seems so popular seems a waste of time.. My 5 cents of opinion..
Trivia.. I ran into a small cafe, bakery in Missoula Montana run by a guy who cooked on the1970s Alaska pipeline project.. He brought his sourdough starter down from the Yukon Canada.. It was a ..make your eyes water, stand on its own legs and fight product.. I have never run across anything like that or with near the flavor it had since.. The French style sourdough that seems so popular seems a waste of time.. My 5 cents of opinion..
Mine is not that good yet. I will keep at it and see how it goes. I just put it in the fridge for the first time.
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A friend gave me some of her starter and was supposed to send me a qr code link, she forgot, I forgot. I guess it is no good by now.
My MIL used to have a sourdough starter. I've been looking at laurel's kitchen bread book and oh my gosh, she's so wordy. But some of the sourdough loaf recipes she has in the book say they are light. And some of them use rye, like @sonya123 indicates.
I've gotten quite sick using straight up whole wheat and not mixing it with unbleached.
My MIL used to have a sourdough starter. I've been looking at laurel's kitchen bread book and oh my gosh, she's so wordy. But some of the sourdough loaf recipes she has in the book say they are light. And some of them use rye, like @sonya123 indicates.
I've gotten quite sick using straight up whole wheat and not mixing it with unbleached.
It will.Made my first loaf today. Good flavor. It was a little heavy but for a first loaf am overall pleased. The biscuits I tried from the discard weren’t very good (not bad, just blah). Am hoping as the starter matures it will become more flavorful. Oh yeah don’t forget to spray or brush the loaf with water before putting it in the oven. The crust got a little dark- I forgot
My starter recipe:
1 package of Active dry yeast( or 2.5 teaspoons of Active dry yeast)
2 cups of all purpose flour.(this is what I personally prefer.)
2.5 cups of warm water(105* to 115*)
1 table spoon of honey or sugar.
Dissolve yeast into 1/2 cup of warm water( let it bloom)
Stir in the remaining ingredients, warm water, flour and sugar.
Use wooden spoon(metal spoon will kill the yeast).beat until smooth.
I use an half gallon glass jar to store my starter.
Cover with 100% cotton cheesecloth. Let stand at room temperature(75* to 85*F) for 5 to 10 days. or until mixture isn't vigorously bubbling, stir 2 or 3 times a day.I sometimes invert a coffee filter over my jar then place ring around that if I don't have cheesecloth available.
I store mine in half gallon container.Mine sits on kitchen counter.Unless I am going to be gone for several days then it goes in refrig.I also feed mine more often than most people.
To use starter, pour off starter discard, not all of it but about 1/2 cup and stir.
Measure amount of starter called for in the recipe.
Replenish starter after each use, by stirring in 1/4 cup of all purpose flour, 3/4 cup of water, 1 teaspoon of sugar or honey, stir for each 1 cup removed. Cover with cheesecloth, let stand at room temperature 1 day or until bubbly.
Things I make with Sourdough starter discard are the following:
pancakes, waffles,cakes, pie dough, crackers.
1 package of Active dry yeast( or 2.5 teaspoons of Active dry yeast)
2 cups of all purpose flour.(this is what I personally prefer.)
2.5 cups of warm water(105* to 115*)
1 table spoon of honey or sugar.
Dissolve yeast into 1/2 cup of warm water( let it bloom)
Stir in the remaining ingredients, warm water, flour and sugar.
Use wooden spoon(metal spoon will kill the yeast).beat until smooth.
I use an half gallon glass jar to store my starter.
Cover with 100% cotton cheesecloth. Let stand at room temperature(75* to 85*F) for 5 to 10 days. or until mixture isn't vigorously bubbling, stir 2 or 3 times a day.I sometimes invert a coffee filter over my jar then place ring around that if I don't have cheesecloth available.
I store mine in half gallon container.Mine sits on kitchen counter.Unless I am going to be gone for several days then it goes in refrig.I also feed mine more often than most people.
To use starter, pour off starter discard, not all of it but about 1/2 cup and stir.
Measure amount of starter called for in the recipe.
Replenish starter after each use, by stirring in 1/4 cup of all purpose flour, 3/4 cup of water, 1 teaspoon of sugar or honey, stir for each 1 cup removed. Cover with cheesecloth, let stand at room temperature 1 day or until bubbly.
Things I make with Sourdough starter discard are the following:
pancakes, waffles,cakes, pie dough, crackers.
