5 days ago I decided I was finally going to make a sourdough starter, so I followed the pineapple juice solution, and now the wild yeast have finally awoken.A few questions have come with that awakening, First I want to eventually convert this into a fridge starter but I want to let it mature first, how often and when should I feed it to obtain a healthy starter? Second when is the earliest I can bake bread with it? all of this would be very helpful information as well as any advice you have for me.Thanks a lot I can't wait to bake some sourdough!
-Niccolo
Well done! There are a lot of ways to do this, and it's a big waste of flour and time to maintain a non-fridge starter, so unless you bake a few times a week, keeping it in the fridge is a must.
My practice has evolved to not feeding at all in the fridge. The day before I want to bake, I wake it up with a couple small feedings. I feed at 1-2-2 with .5 oz starter, 1 oz flour, 1 oz water, then leave it on the counter for 12 hours, then repeat, discarding as when building the culture. This ensures that a very active starter is used in your levain. There are other probably better ways to do it, but for me it has removed any uncertainty as to the viability of the culture, and the results are solid. Sometimes, especially if it has been neglected in the fridge for a week or two, it is sluggish after the first feeding, but never after the second.
Thanks! The point you are at sounds like the way I will want to go but shouldn't I let my culture mature before putting i in the fridge? or will it mature in the fridge?
-Niccolo
The usual test is can it double (or even triple), every 3-4 hours, with at least 1-2-2 feedings. If so, your culture is healthy and concentrated. People who want their starter to be pretty viable right out of the fridge are instructed to do another 1-2-2 feeding, leave on the counter for an hour, and put in the fridge. I used to do that and don't bother, since I found it can still be sluggish. Since I seem to need to refresh it anyway, I don't see the value of feeding before returning to the fridge. Others may differ. One thing to keep in mind for your culture and bread fermentation generally is that the yeast and bacteria are very sensitive to temperature change. It really helps to be able to have a way to control temperature. I first used a heating pad inside a cooler, then finally got the Brod & Taylor proofing box, which works great.
You'll find that although things can go wrong with baking, it's amazing how you can vary methods to fit your lifestyle. Some people cold bulk ferment their dough because it takes less time. Many cold ferment the final rise overnight. A great book loved by many here is Jeffrey Hamelman's Bread. Lots of good recipes of medium difficulty, and essentially every aspect of baking is explained.
Thanks for the helpful info, I guess my starter is not quite ready, but soon.Thanks a lot!
-Niccolo
and unless you're strictly following someone elses methods then your way will be unique!
What would I do in your situation... Well, with the benefit of hindsight, and having kicked off several starters... I'd suggest that if it looks & smells good today, then give it a go. Take 50g add in 100g flour + 100g water and leave covered in a warm place for 4-6 hours - if it starts to get bubbly (I never trust "doubling in volume, etc. just look for bubbles) then it's good to go - add that to 500g of flour and water + salt and follow your favourite bread making recipe - here is mine: http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/44111/easy-sourdough-part-1
Note that that method uses starter right from the fridge - it works just as well (slightly better) with warm, bubbly starter though.
Is it ready to go in the fridge? Probably. Give it a feed and when it's bubbly stick it in the fridge. My starters live there for the most part, so today at round about 3-4pm I'll take them out of the fridge, make a "production levian" with them, top-up the starter jars and leave them with the bowls of slowly ripening new starter - then at about 8pm tonight when the production starter is ready (the stuff in the jars will be bubbly too), the jars go back in the fridge and I use the production stuff. This works well for me, but I'm using them 5-days a week. That worked for me when I was just making 2-3 a week too. (originally I used to put them directly in the fridge after topping up the jars but I changed to give them a chance to ripen a bit when I started baking daily)
This hindsight thing though - when I did my very first one, all sorts of stuff happened, but I baked with it on day 6 - it wasn't the best loaf I'd tasted but it wasn't the worst either. Lots of practice and learning has happened since then though. The worst that happens is that you toss the loaf in the bin and start again. I've only done that once (even my chickens wouldn't eat it - I was trying some old barley flour mix - it didn't go to plan)
Happy baking!
-Gordon
Thanks, I have been itching to make some bread now that my sourdough has activated, I think I will either try your method or a 1-2-3 sourdough.I will also transfer it to the fridge.Thank you all for all your help, be looking for my first attempt soon!
-Niccolo