February 25, 2016 - 4:03pm
Starter storage in fridge question
Do I want an air tight jar when I get to this point? I know when you are making the starter, you want some air to get in there. What about when it's in the fridge?
Will this work? Or am I better off getting some with a lever and rubber seal?
Share
But without some sort of covering the starter will dry out in the fridge. I just use a little container with a snap-on lid. Sometimes the lid pops off, but that just means the starter is happy.
The problem with using glass jars for storing a starter occurs when enough fermentation gas has been generated, the bottle explodes, and then becomes a fragmentation device. BobS has got the right idea. Any plastic food safe container , such as a Tuppperware or Rubbermaid product, that can be easily cleaned and is convenient for gathering the quantity of starter needed is fine.
also. For my very long term fairly stiff starter, I keep a sheet of plastic film pressed over the surface to help avoid any chance of it drying out. For my day-to-day ready-to-go "starter"/levain, not quite as stiff, no plastic wrap, but also in a covered plastic food container.
I'll add one point though. I never wash out or clean the containers, no matter how old the starters are. Something about just maybe there is value to keeping the ancient "good bugs" in contact with and constantly remixed into the refreshed starter. My starters have never gone bad since first built two years ago. And as of today, it hasn't killed me yet.
what works best for me is the straight sided Weck brand jars. They come with a gasket and clamps to hold the glass lid on. I put the gasket and clamps aside and just set the glass lid on top. Allows air to escape. I find the straight sides work well for feedings and cleaning my jars. I use two, using a clean fresh jar every few feedings, putting a bit of the old into the new jar. It keeps my sourdough from getting to sour, more of a levain.
Which ones?
https://websecure.cnchost.com/weckjars.com/productsDetail.php?category=7
the straight sided ones they call "mold jars." The bigger ones of course.
That's glass kilners with the rubber seals on them and the cam/clip top mechanism - not the screwtops. The only fear I have is dropping them, however I keep them in a plastic tub to make it easy to carry.
Kilners are designed to hold a vacuum (ie. created by cooling down the liquid/jam/preservatives you might normally use them for) and excess internal pressure will just move the rubber seal. That's my experience of them, anyway. Especially with my Rye which has bubbled over in the fridge a few times. Another reason for putting them in a tub!
I clean the outside of the jars every now and then and change the seals once a year.
-Gordon
(Note they may not be genuine Kilners but the generics are pretty all much the same)
Except a smaller size unless you want to keep a large amount of starter. Just don't screw the lid on tight only just barely snug then back off a bit. I've used the same lid for over two years without having to replace.
I use a small Ball canning jar (don't know the size of the one shown in the picture above) with the two part Ball lid. You just don't screw the lid on air tight. Place the gasket on the jar and screw the band on lightly (this will keep the gasket from inadvertently getting dislodged) and you are good to go. You are not in any danger of having an explosion in your fridge. If you want to go plastic, Ziploc makes very nice food grade containers: https://ziploc.com/en/products/containers/round/containers-twist-loc-medium and I use these for starter preparation. Again, only screw the cap on lightly.
Gotcha.
I guess that answers my question on whether it should be air tight. I have the ball jars in the picture. I think they are like 1/2 gallon or 1 gallon. They are big.
I just have no idea how big the starter will be when it's ready for fridge storage. I was thinking of something not as tall as what I have, they are big, so that I can actually access the stuff with ease, not reach down 10" inside a jar to try to get it out.
I think I will not be using the ball jars I have.
so a tiny food safe plastic container works best. You won't do glass mason jars once you drop one on the floor getting it in and out of the fridge. Here nisn a picture of the container I use - a re-purposed cake frosting container
No Muss No Fuss StarterI use a pint size wide mouth mason jar for the 150 grams of starter I keep. For a lid I use one of the white plastic lids that are made for the mason jars, and only tighten it just til it stays on, it's still very loose.
These are the lids I have, you can get them at Walmart and other places too.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0051D3GQ6/ref=psdcmw_2237240011_t2_B0000BYC4B
Are 1 litre kilners. I keep between 350g (rye) and 550g (wheat, spelt) starter in them. My usage case is slightly different from most here in that I'm baking many loaves a day, but when I'm baking just one or 2 (or 4 small) loaves I'll use the starter directly from the jar. For more, I'll bulk it up - e.g. today I needed 2450g of levian so I took 490g out of the wheat jar, added 980g water and 980g flour mixed it well and left it covered. I'll be using it in about 2 hours time by which time it will have had about 5 hours to get going. Its already bubbly though.
I don't keep as much Rye as it overflows when I replenish it with any more in the jar.
-Gordon
You can buy lids for canning jars that have release valves. They're made for fermenting. You put water in in the valve so it lets gas escape without letting anything in.
http://www.amazon.com/BEGINNERS-MOLD-PROOF-FERMENTATION-Grommets-Stoppers/dp/B00KZNA516
One more vote. I don't like food in plastic and only use glass. Never come close to exploding (either does my kombucha which is much more likely). The thing you may find is that over time you realized you don't really need much starter you can take out a small amount and given a little time create better bread with it.
Because of that I find something like the weck jars (small ones) the best bet. Over time I have settled on these and think they meet a sourdoughs needs: french jar I used to use things like the ball jars you show but the problem there is getting in and really stirring things up and and the amount of starter you probably need to have around will fill 1/4 of that.
I second the Weck jars. As Estherc mentioned, I eliminate the rubber seal and clamps and just set the glass lid on top. No problems at all. My preference is glass. These are the 28.7oz. jars.