December 1, 2007 - 10:27am
What kind of flour for starter
I have never used a starter and recently received some dried sourdough starter.
Does it matter what kind of flour I use to start and feed it?
Normally I mill my own flour using Prarie Gold wheat. Would it better to use refined bread flour from the store?
Thanks - Joel
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When you are restarting a dried starter, or reviving a weakened one, you want to improve the chances that the starter you restart or revive is the one you want.
The number of microorganisms on white flour is far lower than on whole wheat flour. There is a greater chance that some stray organism on whole wheat flour could take over while the starter is in a weakened state. It isn't terribly likely, but it is possible.
This is the only situation in which I would consider using bleached flour as the bleaching kills critters.
Good luck,
Mike