The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Starting my first "Starter" a few questions

tonkster99's picture
tonkster99

Starting my first "Starter" a few questions

During thiese difficuilt times I plan on making some sourdough bread.  But I have a few questions regarding creating my first starter.

- Most of the starter recipes I find on the internet begin with Whole Wheat flour.  I gather this is because it is easier to start.  Unfortunately due to flour out of stock in all supermarkets around me. I have about 5kgs of flour in different varieties all of which are just white flour i.e. AP, Pizza 00, Durum Semolina, Pasta 00 (no wholewheat).  Can I start with white flour?

- I have seen a recipe on the internet where it starts with yeast.  I have some yeast but does this mean that I am really just creating a yeast based starter (for normal bread - not sourdough).

- If I start my starter with AP can I make my loaf of bread with one of my other flours?  I have seen some posts about changing the starter to Whole wheat and having to transition the starter.... would I need to transition from one of my white flours to the other?

- Given my flour options am I not going to get a good result and should just create a regular yeast based baked bread?

Thanks for any advice some one can give me...

Mini Oven's picture
Mini Oven

My suggestion would be to start with a whole flour but if not possible, use an unbleached wheat flour.  You want a flour that will contain as many microbes from the field as possible.  These yeasts and bacteria you want to encourage to grow are found naturally in a wheat field.  Bleached flour will have the least number of these natural microbes. 

Another area to explore might be yeast water or YW talked about here at TFL.  I would go this route first.  Basically get some fruit fermenting and when it has a good yeasty culture going, convert part of it by feeding it flour.  You can keep the yeast water fermenting slowly in the fridge while you play with the yeasty flour beasty.  Sometimes this can successfully be fed and converted to a starter especially if used and fed often.  You also have the yeast water to add more yeast to the recipe and soften the crumb as many have discovered.  It takes very little effort to keep yeast water fermenting and can be faster than starting a starter.  

also look up raw sauerkraut juice bread

tonkster99's picture
tonkster99

Thank you.. will definitely research this yeast water option :)

 

DanAyo's picture
DanAyo

Tonk, see this link for help with a Yeast Water starter.
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/60872/community-bake-hamelmans-swiss-farmhouse-part-1-yeast-water

For a thorough investigation of all things Yeast Water (YW) on our forum see  THIS LINK.