how to do sourdough, for beginners

[Berti]

as I am trying to help someone of this forum to help getting sourdough, we thought it might interest others too.
below are the instructions as I learned them from peter reinhart's book and this FINALLY made it work for me.
any questions, fire away.
will post more later.

First, you start with making a seed culture, all given quantities are by weight!

Day 1: 4,25 ounces dark rye or coarse whole rye (pumpernickel grind) flour (I used plain organic rye flour and worked also ok) mixed with 6 ounces water at room temp.
Mix well and make sure all flour is hydrated, put dough in transparent pot/ bowl, press down and mark the container where the top of the dough is.
Cover with plastic wrap and leave for 24 hours at room temp.

Day 2: The dough should not have risen much, if at all.
Add 4,5 ounces unbleached high gluten or bread flour and 4 ounces water to the dough of day 1, mix well and again, push down the dough and mark the top of the dough at the outside of the container.
Cover with plastic wrap and again let stand 24 hours.

Day 3: Check to see if there is any fermentation (bubbles or rising) , maybe there was a 50% rise? If not, no problem, discard half of the starter (or give it to a friend to cultivate) and mix the remaining half of starter with another 4,5 ounce unbleached high gluten or bread flour and 4 ounces water.
It will be a little wetter now, return to container and cover. It should press down to same height as day 2. Re-mark the container where the top of the dough is and again let stand 24 hours.

Day 4: The sponge should have at least doubled in size, more is even better. If it is still sluggisch and has not doubled in size, allow to sit out for another 12 to 24 hours.

Otherwise, repeat as for day 3, discarding half and mixing the other half with given quantities as day 3.
Keep going until it doubles in size at least, it is now fairly soft.
Then you are ready to make the barm, which is the mother starter.

Take 7 ounces seed culture, 16 ounces water and 16 ounces unbleached high gluten or bread flour, mix well and transfer to a container that is at least twice as big as the starter.

Cover with plastic wrap again and let stand 6 hours or until it is bubbly…..the fermenting will cause the plastic wrap/ lid to swell because it causes gas, which is ok but do NOT inhale those gases, it is carbonic gases with ethanol and very strong……if you *really* want a whiff, then go on :D……..let the gases escape and then re-cover and put it in the fridge overnight before using.

These are the first stages.
good luck everybody! it is really not that hard :)
berti

[ina]

The really easy way is - get somebody who has a culture to give you some. Anybody near here want some? I've got plenty, and in this weather it's constantly threatening to emigrate....

Also - in some countries (not seen it here yet, but standard in Germany) you get sourdough starters to buy in little sachets. Makes it a little easier, too.

[Berti]

yes that is a good idea from ina, for those who live close to her
so people, if you want to do it the lazy way ..........it's summer after all :)

as for the sachets of sourdough, I disapprove of those.
they are expensive and don't give you a real starter to cultivate but you would have to buy new each time.
living near the german border....so have seen those in our health food stores also.

it really isn't that hard.....
I am also willing to send dried starter if the method that I am testing, works out.
you only need that once, then you add that to a flour and water mix and it should become active again.
then you can cultivate it.

cheers
berti

[Odsox]

AS I understand the process (which could well be wrong), the yeast that's cultured in sourdough is that which grows from spores in the air. So any soughdough starter you bring into existence is probably unique to your area.
Mind you, I'm not sure that that's a "good thing" as you might have some evil yeast lurking in your kitchen just waiting ......

I'm going to give it a go anyway, just as soon as I get some rye flour at the weekend shopping expedition.

[Berti]

hi tony

according to my own ideas it is a major misconception that these are airborne yeasts........the current ideas are that the yeasts are in the flour.
so no need to put the mix outside to catch wild yeasts.......they are already in the flour.

as for kitchens, there is nothing to fear and if your sourdough DOES catch some evil stuff, it is easily fixed with some patience.
don't ask me how I know heehee......you sure can get some chemical lessons when working with sourdoughs...all kind of interesting stuff can appear, be it smells or molds or whatever pops up.

cheers
berti