Hello! I am brand new to sourdough baking and am working on establishing a starter. I feel like I have a general understanding of some of the basics, but I do have three questions that I would appreciate some help with. Thank you in advance! :)
1. I feel very silly asking this, but is there any harm in picking up, bumping, moving, etc. my starter? This can cause it to loose its rise/deflate some, but it won't hurt the starter health, right? It would make it harder for me to know when it is ready for a feed, but otherwise wouldn't affect anything? I keep picking it up to look at it.
2. Is it okay to stir a starter to get air air between feedings? I did this once, but now I am worried that I messed something up. I have pretty air-tight saran wrap on mine.
3. Am I correct in thinking that there isn't really a way to guess in the early stages which starter would be the best between two? Here are two pictures of day 5 1/2 (5.5) of my two starters. I am trying two slightly different methods to see which one I can get to work and then plan to discard the other. It was taken about 5 hours after a feeding. If any expert eyes see anything in the pictures I should adjust/know, that would help me.
Thank you again!
1.) Moving your starter is totally fine. Like you said, if you're rough with it it may de-gas it a bit, but it will be de-gassed when you work it into your dough anyway--gas in the starter is only a visual indicator of its activity, it isn't actually required for anything.
2.) As above, gas is not important except as a visual cue. Don't worry about trying to incorporate air in, it will make its own! That said, air-tight seals aren't ideal. If you have the lids for those jars, simply placing it on top without fastening it is a good way to go. Also yields less plastic waste!
3.) If both are rising well, doubling, smelling acidic and fermented but not pungent, then both are viable starters. Best way to determine the differences is to bake with both and decide which, if either, you prefer!
Thank you so much for your reply, and I will track down those lids. I really appreciate the tips.