The Fresh Loaf

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Mold growing on my first starter?

keveleven's picture
keveleven

Mold growing on my first starter?

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Theses images were taken 3 days after being placed in my living room and covered with a paper towels with holes in them.

The recipe used was

-4 cups of boiled potato water

-2 teaspoons of salt

-2 table spoons of honey 

-4 cups of flour

I found this recipe on youtube, this was my first time ever trying to bake any type of bread from scratch and I had no clue if this recipe seemed right or not but i tried it anyways.

My question is, was the recipe the cause of the mold, or is there mold in my apartment that is causing mold to grow in the starter, or is there something that I'm missing that is probably causing it?

Ford's picture
Ford

Your pictures did not show on my screen.  I am not sure of your recipe, but I find that Debra Wink's pineapple solution is almost foolproof.  Search for it in the search box, upper right of this page.

Ford

Lechem's picture
Lechem (not verified)

Unclean jar, unclean utensils, mould spores getting in, something has gotten into the honey. I cant see the photos either so it's a stab in the dark.

 

All you need is flour and water (for the pineapple juice method use pineapple juice for the first few days then switch to water).

Here is a good visual.

The only things i'll add are...

1. Don't get too bogged down by the different flours. Bread flour with some wholegrain (wheat or rye) will do.

2. Keep warm! 78°F is perfect.

3. If you experience a slowing down after the initial bubbling up then slow down your feedings till you see further activity. Until then just stir.

4. Use pineapple juice until it gets strong then switch to water.

5. Make sure your jar and utensils are clean.

 

How to make a sourdough starter










Miwa's picture
Miwa

I recommend tossing it and starting over. Mold spores are everywhere, so I don't think your apartment is the issue. I'm highly suspect of the potato water and honey. The suggestion of adding anything but flour, water, pineapple juice, and sometimes grapes/raisins is curious as it is probably introducing a type of starch that is causing the mold to thrive in it. There are plenty of the little critters you want to cultivate just on the flour itself. So just use flour and water. Let it hang out in a temperate place that isn't under direct sunlight. I had success by not poking the paper towel with holes, as you don't need foreign particles falling into it.
I also recommend grabbing a copy of The Bread Baker's Apprentice. Loads of explanation on how to get you started, shaping, sour dough recipes, pictures, and even commercial-yeast bread recipes.


Best of luck!

IceDemeter's picture
IceDemeter

a good sized loaf of 100% hydration bread, and not for a starter!  That it includes salt is really strange, in my opinion, and the massive volume is just plain wasteful.  Really, the previous posters are absolutely correct that it needs to be thrown out (compost bin would be appropriate) since there is no rescuing any part of it now that it has mold.

The procedure outlined in the video that Lechem linked is pretty much the right idea, and I'd suggest using 2 Tbsp of flour and 1 Tbsp of water to start with (that's it - nothing else), and just keep  going with that ratio (which is just about 1:1 by weight).  There is no need for "paper towel with holes in it" as a cover - use a clear jar and just leave the lid loosely on top, or even use plastic wrap, just so long as there is a fair bit of air in the container.  The wild yeast and bacteria that you are trying to encourage exist on the flour, so any input from the environment is not needed and can be detrimental (like the mold).  Basically, you just need enough "air space" in the container for the yeast and bacteria to expel gases, and leaving the lid loose gives enough room for that air movement.

Once you get it past the "dead spot" (usually happens around days 3-4-5) and get it really going, then I'd suggest that you start using a scale for proportions and maintain it using dabrownman's NMNF procedure: http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/40918/no-muss-no-fuss-starter

If you are new to baking bread, then you might want to keep creating the starter as a side project, and start out with using commercial yeast (either instant or active dry) and try out some of the recipes here.  There are lots of good choices on the Home Page, under "Most Bookmarked" and "Favourite Recipes" and you can build up some valuable experience with those while your starter is getting up to speed.

Good luck with your next try!