March 9, 2021 - 6:02pm
starter on counter
Hi there
i would like to leave my starter on the counter so I can make bread 3x per week or so. How might I feed it as to produce the least amount of discard and to require the minimum frequency of feedings?
As an aside, I’ve been staring at the proof button on my oven for a year and never clued in to use it, duh ?
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How much levain (starter) do you need for each bake?
50 g per loaf. And i think i would like to bake 2-3x per week (1-2 loaves each bake) i was feeding it 1:1:1 then started 1:2:2 feedings hoping that'll keep it happy for longer but it still feels like I have to feed it so frequently. Also i feed it WW flour now bc i read it will ferment slower than white but then i read the opposite too! I have discard starter coming out my ears and I hate to waste but i can only make so much starter goods. I also use fridge cold water to feed, and my kitchen is pretty cold , about 18c at night and maybe 20 in the day time. Thank you. I'm starting to feel like a slave to my counter top starter.
This is what I would try...
Make a small starter 5:10:10. Let it go until it is near its peak, and then put it in the refrigerator. For your bakes, do a two part build. Build 1 - 2g (from refrigerator):4g:4g and let that peak. Use all of it in Build 2 - 10g:20g:20g. That gives you 50g of starter with no discard. With 25g of starter in the refrigerator, you can make ~10 loaves. When you get down to 5g in the refrigerator, refresh it with a 1:2:2 feeding. Let it get close to peak on the counter and then back in the refrigerator. No discard and you can bake any time during the week. Just need to plan for the 2 part build.
thanks HH! That sounds like a good plan! I usually do 1:1:1 builds for my bakes, but as long as i let the 1:2:2 build double it should be strong enough to use? one time i did a 1:2:2 build , let it double but my dough took so much longer to ferment. (temperature being similar and all, i'm pretty sure) Thanks again for working out the numbers for me :)
Sorry i have another question. If you have a strong starter, is it harder to over ferment your dough? Like you have a bigger window to work with before it starts to collapse? normally at 21c my dough takes about 8-9 hrs to ferment . Sometimes i sleep in and it goes for 10 hrs.
Would mean it ferments quicker! So I imagine vice versa.
If you think you might not catch it in time then use less starter and wait longer.
You want to feed twice a day. Unless your temperature is fairly cool you will need to increase the starter to flour ratio much higher. Maybe 1 to 5. Also reducing the hydration may help. Most starters mature in 8-9 hr or less. You do not want to allow your starter to over ferment.
What is your expected room temp?
What flour(s) are you feeding?
I kept my stater on the counter for a couple of years, but it does take a commitment.
Here’s an idea that I now use. The starter is stored in the fridge. It is feed every Monday morning. This way it remains very active. The starter can be used anytime during the week without refreshing to reactivate. A portion of the starter is used to make a levain straight out of the fridge. Some of the levain is placed back into the fridge to perpetuate the starter. The remaining week old (original starter) can be tossed or kept for a week as a backup.
If you bake bread 3 times a week, the refrigerated started will always be ready to go straight from the fridge to the levain. Best practice would be to keep a bit of the new levain and save it as your refrigerated starter.
By the way, it is good practice to dry some of your active starter as a backup in case something happens to your current one.
Danny
Starter Tips
Thanks for the tip Danny! I do feed my "mother" starter that's in the fridge once a week. I do a 1:1:1 feeding once a week. Should i do a higher ratio feed? when i baked less frequently before, i would take what i needed from that mother and do 2 builds for the levain. I've been using the term starter for everything. the mother and the one i'm using to bake with. but i guess the one you bake with is really called levain. My sourdough knowledge is just very very basic. I wasn't really understanding the more advanced recipes, where the levain was more complicated. ie, it was taking the levain's contents into consideration when doing the bakers percentages and yielded a large levain., Now i realize that's just the build. I did dry some of my starter and froze it. Hopefully I'll never need to use it.
With the 122 daily feed, start with 5g, throw in 100g food, stir a couple times a day. Lather, rinse, repeat. Should cover 2 loaves every 3 days, simple. Enjoy!
wow thank you. so many good suggestions!
Night before baking feed that 10g with 20g water + 20g flour. Allow to mature for 8-10 hours overnight. Use in the dough and after the bulk ferment is finished retain 10g and keep in the fridge. Repeat.
I can come up with so many ways. That is one example.
Pro... It's easy.
Con... You might forget to retain 10g and bake it all.
But doesn't the BF dough have salt in it?
And it has salt in it. So what would be the issue with having salt in the starter? It'll still work and indeed there are some starter maintenance techniques which have salt in them.
If you wish... thoroughly disperse the starter in the dough water, add flour, form the dough and do a fermentalyse. Before adding the salt remove 10g and keep at room temperature in a small container. When the bulk ferment is up then put your starter in the fridge.
But as I say that's one of so many ways. There is no one correct way. The correct way for you is to find a method that suits your needs.
thanks for your suggestion! i guess salt won't kill it, just has a small effect. i think my concern was carried over from when i was trying to make a starter
Just out of curiosity I made starter from scratch, adding in salt from the start, and it turned into a starter no problem. Of course too much salt can be detrimental but sticking within the boundaries is fine.
Another way to maintain a starter can be to build enough at the beginning of the week then refrigerate. Take a little out each time to build a levain. When your starter runs low take it out and feed it.
Sunday: 7g starter + 15g water + 15g flour. Allow it to double and refrigerate.
You wish to bake 3 times a week using 50g starter. So each time take off 10g and feed it 20g water + 20g flour. Use when mature.
A the end of the week you'll be down to 7g. Repeat!
I can think of so many ways. You've gotta find one that suits you.
Fwiw, a decent portion of my starter feeds are old dough, which includes salt, olive oil, whatever else I happen to throw in a dough. Different grains, yeast, nuts, whatever, no issues. Ya want try something unique, add a little caramelized onion to it. Enjoy!