Sourdough Bread Starter

So we have the wheat bread mastered in this house.  I finally figured out that my oven temp was off and got that fixed.  Then tried countless recipes to get a good one and figured out to use dough enhancers when using fresh wheat flour to get a good rise (sometimes too good).  And added Vital Wheat Gluten as well to get a good loaf of bread.

But a regular loaf of wheat bread day in and day out gets a little boring, right?  I really craved sourdough bread.  Love the slight tang and different texture of sourdough bread.   LOVE it in bread bowls with homemade soup.  But alas, the sourdough starters just never took off for me.

In the old days, grandma used to use a sourdough starter and keep it around to make her sourdough bread.  Where did she get it?  Probably from a neighbor or her mother... but those days are gone and even at Whole Foods, they do not sell sourdough starter.  I had to rely on the internet to help me create a sourdough starter from scratch.

So apparently the theory is if you mix water, flour, and some sweetener in a jar and leave it on the counter, it will "attract" little yeast organisms and "take off" on it's own.  Mine didn't.  I could not figure out what I did wrong.  I tried a sourdough starter recipe using water and another recipe using pineapple juice and attempted each one a couple of times.  No luck.  My sourdough starter did not rise and did not produce appetizing results (not that I should mislead you into thinking sourdough starter is appetizing.. it is not really).

So I cheated.  Yup.. desperate city girl in action.  I don't know why I didn't think of this before but if the goal is to trap wild yeast from the air and that didn't work, then how about just adding some of that store bought yeast to flour and water and creating the "sour" in it myself.  So that is just what I did and here is how I did it.

Use a big glass jar.  I used a 1/2 gallon Ball jar with the screw on lid because if you do this right, your sourdough will grow (it might just flow over the top).  For the cover, use a screw band of a canning jar and a piece of cheesecloth to allow it to breath.

To the jar add:

1 packet of yeast
1/2 cups of warm water
       Mix this up to dissolve the yeast.
Add:

1 1/2 cups flour (sprouted freshly ground whole wheat if you please)
1 1/2 more cups warm water
1 TBSP sugar or honey

Now mix that up really good in your jar and leave the jar covered with the cheesecloth on the kitchen counter for 5 - 10 days.  It likes to be warm so keep it away from drafts.  Mix it 2 - 3 times a day.  It will be icky looking and like batter consistency when you mix it but when it sits for a while it will separate and you will have a layer of watery stuff on top (that tells you you need to stir it good).

In a few days it will begin to smell funny...  like beer.  It is fermenting.  Fermented food is VERY GOOD FOR YOU.  It is full of helpful organisms and leads to good gut health... learn to like fermented stuff.

When it has fermented, just move it to the refrigerator but continue to stir it every day.  Keep it covered with the cheesecloth but do not seal it shut.


You are now ready to bake sourdough bread!  Most recipes call for 2/3 cup of sourdough starter per loaf.  Whenever you use from your jar, make sure and feed it with 1/2 cup warm water, 1/2 cup flour, and another teaspoon of sweetener.  Let the starter sit out for a day to ferment again after feeding and before returning it to the refrigerator.  You also need to bring it to room temp before using it in your sourdough bread.

If you want to make 2 loaves at one time and use 1 1/3 cup of starter, make sure and feed it double and allow plenty of time between uses for the process to replicate itself.  Your sourdough starter is living and if you take care of it and feed it, it will maintain for a long time!  If 10 days goes by and you have not used your sourdough starter, feed it another TBSP of sweetener so it will stay alive.

I made our first loaf of sourdough bread this week with my potato soup and it was a huge hit.  Sourdough bread is crustier and the recipe I used does not call of any oil.  It is chewy and wonderful bread!

Now that I wrote this, it reminds me to stir my starter in the refrigerator!!  I need a sign in the kitchen that says "feed your starter"....