February 10, 2009 - 11:17am
Good Sourdough Book?
I have been recently introduced to baking with starters.
I would like to know if you could recommend one great book on sourdough baking, what book would it be?
Thanks,
Darren
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I have been recently introduced to baking with starters.
I would like to know if you could recommend one great book on sourdough baking, what book would it be?
Thanks,
Darren
If you're not intimidated by a lot of detailed information and want a book that is more than just a collection of recipes, then get Bread by Jeffrey Hamelman. It's not all about sourdough though: there are lots of recipes for straight and enriched doughs too.
Hi, Darren.
Which book would be best for you depends on how much experience you already have with bread baking and what kinds of sourdough baking you want to be doing.
I don't personally know of a "great book" devoted exclusively to sourdough. If you want recipes for a variety of European (French, Italian, German, Polish, Czech) breads, Daniel Leader's "Local Breads" would be a good choice. If you want a variety of mixed grain and rye breads, you can't go wrong with Jeffrey Hamelman's "Bread."
Take a look at the book reviews on TFL. There are many good books available that include recipes for sourdough breads.
Another thought: If you are just getting into sourdough baking, searching TFL on "sourdough" or "sourdough bread" or "sourdough rye" or "sour rye" will get you enough wonderful material to keep you busy for months (years?). You will also find recipes for sourdough pastries, quick breads, pancakes and waffles.
I better stop there. I'm making myself hungry!
David
Sounds like a niche waiting to be filled!
It depends a bit on what you're looking for. If you want recipes, many of the more "advanced" bread books contain some great ones. Hamelman's "Bread" and Whitley's "Bread Matters" are both great.
A better introduction to baking, feeding and working with sourdough, can be found in "The Bread Builders". No recipes here, however.
I have a book dedicated to Sourdoughs. It's called Classic Sourdoughs A Home Baker's Handbook by Ed Wood. It got me started on sourdoughs and is quite good with much theory about starters. Although I liked the theory, I didn't really make satisfactory soudoughs until I got Bread by Jeff Hamelman refered to by crunchy above. Classis sourdoughs does add to the knowledge base though and supports the theory of starters being unique to the area they are created.
Happy baking,
Gavin.
Thanks for all the good recommendations but I believe I can clarify a little what I was trying to ask in the "Purchased Cultures From This Site" thread.
I had heard both good and not so good things about Ed Wood's book on sourdough. I am basically looking for a book that in addition to recipes, would also address types of cultures i.e. characteristics, origins, properties, etc..
i am maybe asking too much to think that there might be a single publication that addresses most or all of these topics.
I was just curious.
Thanks again,
Darren
I understand where you are coming from with this. I recommend you look up all things written by Debra Wink on this site. The most informative evidence based work I've read.
GC
If you want to get really serious, "Handbook of dough fermentations" is where it's at.
There are some standard recipes sprinkled throughout the various chapters too, for various French, German and Finnish sourdough breads.
Yes. I'd love to have it on my bookself. I'll have to save up as it's very expensive - but you get what you pay for...
I checked out the book that you made reference to. I did the math and it prices out to around $2.12 per page.
At first glance, it looks like it would be more for a super large scale commercial operation.
I would like to run across it in a bookstore and check it out though.
I had the privilege of borrowing a copy of the book from my local library, and it is, in my opinion, aimed mostly at the experts who want to understand what's happening on the microbiological level. I'm assuming it's printed in limited copies, and being such a specialized text (probably one of the better ones in English), it justifies its price tag. Sort of. At least for those who find it useful!
It's divided in two: The first half is mainly devoted to the biology and chemistry of sourdoughs. This part is way over my head and level of understanding. If you've got a good grasp on the science bit of SD, you can probably extract lots of useful information regarding optimization of feeding processes and sourdough builds. It's a fairly new book as well, so there are plenty of references to modern research.
I found the second part to be more interesting. In this part, the different sourdough processes used in the US, France, Germany, Spain, Finland and the Baltic states are discussed. A few regional recipes are sprinkled throughout these chapters as well. This part doesn't require the same level of background knowledge/expertize as the first, and I found them for the most part pretty interesting. One thing that I read that I was quite surprised by, is that only about 3% of the total breads produced in France are made with sourdough. The figures are from around 2003 if I'm not mistaken. I was quite surprised, as I would've thought that SD would have a stronger standing in a country with such strong traditions. Especially so with the recent interest in artisanship, slow foods, non-GMOs etc. The chapter on German sourdoughs was also really interesting, as the various Detmolder builds are discussed, as are the Berliner Kurzsauer and Monheim Salzsauer.
The sad fact is that there are precious few (if any) books bridging the gap between "the usual suspects" (e.g. "Bread", "Local Breads", "Bread Matters" etc.) and the hardcore science community. Which can be slightly frustrating for us homebakers, if it weren't for Debra's amazing essay on SD here at TFL. Other online SD resources I can recommend, is the SD FAQ, and a Finnish thesis on optimizing wheat SDs.
If anybody is looking for Handbook of Dough Fermentations, abebooks.com has it in hardcover for $154.66. FYI