Hi All,
I’m using a starter recipe from Paul Hollywood - strong white/grapes/tepid water. The starter bubbled up perfectly. After I fed it though with more flour and water, it appears to have failed to continue successfully. Now a nasty looking film of liquid has formed. Any ideas?
Thanks
Nick
Heh - I always smirk when I hear his name... a few years back I went to a bread making class at our local flour mill (a picturesque traditional old water mill. Someone mentioned Holywood, and the baker/miller snorted: "hah - he was here last week, making a loaf for his TV show. Well, I say 'making a loaf': he spent the whole morning outside on his phone, while his food stylist made the loaf. He just showed his face now and then to put his hands in shot!"
The grapes don't do any harm but they're a bit pointless - yes, they have wild yeast on the skin but it's generally Kloeckera and Candida.. not the varieties you're looking for. All the yeast and LAB you DO need are, unsurprisingly, already present in the wheat. They live in the outer layers of the kernel - so a mix including some organic wholewheat flour is a better source than just white though.
The film of liquid is not a problem - it's called 'hooch' and it just means that the microbes have used up all the food. Stir it back in and add some flour and water (equal weights).
I think you would find the following two posts by our resident microbiologist Debra Wink both interesting and informative about what's going on with your starter, and what might happen next (hint: it may start smelling REALLY bad and then seem to 'die', but that's just a phase)
The Pineapple Juice Solution, Part 1
The Pineapple Juice Solution, Part 2
Martin, grapes if juiced are no more pointless than pineapple!
Any fruit source will provide acidity and most will include microbes unless heat treated.
In all cases of fruit additions you are adding sugar. Sugar plus microbes = acidity.
Also dead yeast are a growth stimulus for desirable LAB.
This normal and a very common observation.
Stick to the instructions and you should be fine. Takes about 10 days typically.