The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Second attempt at sourdough

Martyn's picture
Martyn

Second attempt at sourdough

 

Yesterday evening I stopped discarding the excess from my starter that has been fed and nurtured for almost a month. "Sourpuss" is at 60% hydration and weighed in at 50g. I started by raising her to 150g. Three hours later she was quite active, so I weighed out 1 kilo of flour (the amount I wanted to use for this batch of dough) and from this added another 200g along with enough water to keep the percentage to the starter then went to bed.

This morning I had a very bubbly, overgrown starter. I added half the remaining flour at 9am along with water to maintain the balance and transfered the dough into a large mixing bowl. The kitchen was very warm because one of my daughters is at home from university to do her washing, the washer and tumble drier have been on all day. At 1pm the mixture had doubled and was very active, so I added the remaining flour and water along with 1 tablespoon of salt. By 9pm this evening I was in danger of loosing the dough over the edge of the mixing bowl. In my opinion it had more than doubled its size.

I tipped the dough out onto the oiled worktop and stretched and folded until I felt resistance, then I cut the mixture in half, shaped into two balls and left to relax again. After another 20 mins they had relaxed to the point that one of them was running off the worktop. I stretched and folded again and then made them into balls again and tried to keep tension in the top of the dough whilst folding the sides under. It seemed obvious that I was not going to get either of them to retain anything like a ball shape, both balls wanted to be a focaccia bread by the speed they spread out on the baking sheets. I decided to put my cast iron pot into the oven to pre heat, then dropped the first batch of dough in after quickly trying to reshape it. I did try to score the top with a very sharp knife, but it was like trying to cut water. Into the oven at 200c for 30 mns, then another 15-20 mins with the pot lid off. I repeated this process with the second loaf.

I am pleased with the results, but no doubt the purists among you will be horrified at my methods. This sourdough business is a steep learning curve. Handling wet dough is a real challenge and shows me just how accomplished some of you bakers must be.

All criticism and help accepted. I really struggle with reading the recipes that many folks post, I need to find a logical way to build up my dough that makes sense to me. Anyway, the proof will be in the eating :-)

Martyn's picture
Martyn

Well, we cut into one of the loaves at lunchtime, fantastic. It tastes better than my first attempt. I just wish I had a better camera than the one on my phone.

Peggy Bjarno's picture
Peggy Bjarno

Congratulations on these two beautiful loaves. . . and the flavor, other than being "fantastic," is it sour?

Peggy

Martyn's picture
Martyn

Yes there is a hint of sourness, but not too strong. The first time I tasted sourdough I thought there was something wrong with the bread, so I'm still in the process of educating my taste buds. I expect the sour taste will continue to develop as Sourpuss matures.

clazar123's picture
clazar123

Your loaves turned out beautiful!