January 4, 2021 - 6:09pm
Feeding ratios and impact on strength of starter
Hi all:
I understand that increasing the feed ratio can impact the rise / peak time of a starter, but does it affect the strength of the starter itself? I've been feeding mine 1:1:1 and she has been fine and strong, but wondering if I should increase the ratio to build even greater strength.
Thanks & Happy New Year!
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The starter is at its maximum strength when it is at its peak of ripeness. Adding more of seed culture will only shorten the time to maturity. If you want a stronger starter you should give it the occasional feed of whole-rye flour or whole-wheat flour to pep it up. Temperature also affects the time to maturity, eg. when I build my final levain I add 20% starter if the room temp is 21C/70F; it the temp is 24C/76F I halve the amount of starter to 10%. That way my levain is ready or use in 14 hours. Alternatively, If you need to slow down the rate of maturity, you can also add a pinch of salt to the levain.
Cheers,
Gavin
Super helpful! Thank you Gavin!!
Feeding directly influences strength. Do whatever ya like. Enjoy!