Super sour bread
Mouth puckering REALLY sour bread.
I recently started up a couple of new pet starters. This one gets fed every three or four days and when I want to bake I use about 25g of starter with 25g of water and AP (KA) flour 1:1:1. I leave it to rise overnight @ around 64F (about 7 hrs) at which point it has tripled, but not fallen. I then take 50g of the starter and add a 50:50:50 which doubles @ 80F in about 3 hrs. I then use 100g with 125g sprouted rye and 275g first clear flour @ 66% hydration for a 4-hour bulk @ 80F (a little more than double). shape proof for 2 hrs and bake @ 450.
The bread is almost too sour to eat. It is a familiar dairy (lactic) sour and not the all-too-familiar vinegar sour that I am familiar with from all my fermenting veggies. More like my yogurt.
I have a few ideas on how to decrease the sour, like lowering the ferment to 72F and skipping the second ferment and just going straight to a 1:3:3 primary before starting the bulk but I've got a few days before I start again.
...about 9 years ago, the first loaf I made with it was so sour it would have made SF Sourdough taste mild. But with further feedings, and getting used to the process, the flavour soon balanced out producing something far more tasty.
Were perfect. I think the issue is the change in feeding and temperature. I've been doing a lot of research and experimentation. I have discovered (what many already know, I'm sure) that timing, temperature and grain type play a huge role in the microbiome of a sourdough.
For example, for the first two loaves, I fermented the (stiff) starter at 50% hydration in an airlocked container till tripled, then used that for my bread, all at room temperature (around 68F). I made a couple of 100% hydration starters and fermented them at proofing box temperatures (around 85F) and had much harsher results.
I'll be tasting my super sour loaf again tomorrow as I am sure it will mellow out and the flavor will evolve over time, Maybe add more rye next time ;0)
From what I've read, the microbiome of a sourdough starter is controlled by the environment created by the "Pet Owner" so I'm giving mine different environments so I can figure out what kind of sourdough I like best.
I'm considering keeping a room-temperature stiff starter (50% hydration) with a 1:2:2 feeding and refreshing it every two to three days. at 25 grams in a pint airlocked jar that won't be too much discard.
to help mellow out the tang would be durum.
Wonder what environment I made for my starter when I first made it. Don't know why it was so sour. Treated it very well. Think it was just unbalanced which subsequent feedings helped.