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Is my sourdough dead ?

Liaz's picture
Liaz

Is my sourdough dead ?

 hi, I created a sourdough starter for the first time on 1 October 2020.

I have been feeding it 30g water and 30g flour. I started using farina00 flour as I did not have rye or bread flour at the time. I have been feeding it everyday and on day 3 I fed it twice. It smelt a bit like cheese during days 2-3 however after feeding twice a day the cheese smell has gone away. Everyday I see some bubbling however it has not risen. 

Today on the 5 the day I decided to change my flour when feeding as I thought it might be the reason my starter was not rising. I fed it 30g original starter 15g bread flour, 15g rye flour and 30g water. I have seen some bubbles form has it smells quite pleasant however still no rise.

Am I doing something wrong should my starter have begun rising by now have I killed it?

please help thank you

 

 

Anon2's picture
Anon2 (not verified)

This is a perfectly normal quiet stage. It's not only not dead this is the stage where the little critters are sorting themselves out to become a symbiotic culture. Stop feeding, keep warm and stir twice a day. It might take a day or two, or even three, before it begins to wake up again. When it begins to show more signs of life start the feeds again. It should gain in strength after that.

Liaz's picture
Liaz

Hi I just wanted to thank you for your help. I found my starter today had quadrupled in size so happy. 

Anon2's picture
Anon2 (not verified)

Give it a couple more feeds and should it continue to react this well then bake with it! Looking forward to your first sourdough. Be sure to post your results here. 

Liaz's picture
Liaz

Thank you again  for your help with my starter. Made my first sourdough loaf this weekend and was so excited when it came out. Can’t wait to make many more. 
phaz's picture
phaz

I made a rather lengthy post on this subject a while back when helping another poster. This won't be that long.

Do what Abe said. This is what I call the setting up shop phase. What bugs are in there are creating an environment for the next inhabitants. Feeding/discarding - not what you want to do. That'll just dilute what's already done and make the process slower. And I gotta go - and Hi Abe! Long time no see, good to have your level of experience back again. Enjoy!

Liaz's picture
Liaz

Hi Abe and Phaz thanks so much for your replies and advice, will do so for three days and let you know what happens.