Have been trying Ken Forkish recipes. Q about consistency of starter:
I've gotten into my own rhythm I guess you could say - starting last December I think - of refreshing and reviving my own sourdough starter. I have a loosey goosey method of adding about the same amount of flour as there is starter, or a bit more in most cases, and then a bit less water. I stir it up until it's a thick goup, but wetter then a dough, if that makes sense.
I may be misunderstanding/misreading Ken's book, but for some reason the whole wide world seems to suggest making/refreshing SS the way I do it (or close to) whereas he says to use a LOT more flour. It seems like such a waste because of course he wants you to go back down to about a 1/2 cup after tossing the rest - or 1/3 cup (forgetting that detail at the moment).
When making a levain recipe using no dry yeast, can I use my sourdough starter the way I like it/make it, and do every other little thing exactly as his recipes call for? Or do I really have to make a super thick starter that's more like a dough I'm guessing? Well I guess I'll find out tomorrow since I used my starter in tonight's recipe which is fermenting now. But I guess I'd also like to understand why it matters (in theory at least), regardless of outcome.
Thank you!