The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

hooch

pennypengo's picture
pennypengo

Hi there,

Does anyone have any input on this:  I just started two cultures, one Bahrain and one San Francisco.  They launched just beautifully at first but after checking on them in the fridge for a few days I see that the hooch is on the bottom of the mass not on top!  Also they small a bit "stinky" as opposed to the crisp sour bite that I've experienced in the past when proofing these cultures.

Any feedback would be appreciated!

thanks, Penny

gaaarp's picture

Did I Kill My Starter?

October 10, 2010 - 9:25pm -- gaaarp

The most common question I hear about sourdough starters is how to create one. There are a lot of good threads on that here, and many people have reported success with one or another of the methods described in these pages.

The question I hear next most often is, "Did I kill my starter?" This usually happens because the starter has turned a funky color, and maybe started to smell funny, after being either underfed or neglected.

dennisinponca's picture

Pour off the hooch.

April 17, 2010 - 7:15pm -- dennisinponca

As  a new member, I want to off my 2 cents worth on hooch and get some opinions.

I suggest you always pour off the hooch to prevent making the sourdough bitter.  Here is my line of thought.

Yeast produces alcohol and in sourdough, it is the clear or off color liquid we all know as "hooch".  Part of this hooch is dead yeast cells that have died for various reasons, including being exposed to too much alcohol, lack of food and just old age..

rileybri's picture

Help, lots of hooch on top?

January 30, 2010 - 11:12am -- rileybri

 

So first I should state that I am new to sour dough and starters. I had followed refrigerating instructions given to me by the friend who provided the mother to begin with. Upon removing the starter from the fridge I fed it whisked it and left if with a loose lid on the counter to rise and come to room temp. Is this normal? What do I do with the hooch? any advise or help would be great. I have attached a photo of the hooch production in a little over 10 hours. 

tigressbakes's picture

HELP: what do I do with the 'hooch'!

April 9, 2007 - 10:16am -- tigressbakes
Forums: 

Hi all,

Well, I finally arrived back in my kitchen and I am ready to go (unfortuantely I have a bunch of work I have to get done before I can even think about baking). But of course I was very excited to see the condition of my starter - and I want to refresh it so that hopefully I can work with it tomorrow.

It smells fresh, but it looks like potato soup with about 1/4 or so of clear liquid on top - I think it is called the 'hooch'?

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