Feeding starter...or, "if it ain't broke..."
I am proud to say that I created my own sourdough starter, from scratch, on the first try! It is a few months old and I couldn't be more thrilled. It's active, delicious, and (well, you guys will understand) my pride and joy. That being said, I have a question about feeding it.
The back story: Since maturity I have been feeding it on a 1:1:1 ratio (starter, flour, water) instead of the recommended (1:2:2) ratio. I haven't had a problem, not once. Like I said, it's a vigorous darling, yielding delicious pancakes, tortillas, pizza dough, muffins, bread or whatever I fancy. And, although I am new at making my own starter, I do have experience with starters I bought previously from commercial sources. So, I know that the taste, consistency, and efficacy of my homemade starter is great.
The Question: All this being said, I was wondering today, as I was loving feeding my little darling, if there is any reason to change my feeding ratios. I mean, if it's isn't broken...right? Can any of you think of a reason to change my feeding ratio to the standard 1:2:2?
Your thoughts are greatly appreciated!
~Jeannette
If your starter should happen to change and show signs of underfeeding, then it might be time to change the feeding or look for a slightly cooler place to rest the starter. One has to be flexible adapting to seasonal changes that naturally affect the eating habits of the starter.
Right now it is balanced with your schedule. If your scheduling should change, then so should the schedule/amount of feeding so that feeding it doesn't become stressful or a chore. When the feeding becomes stressful, then the starter tends to be ignored and underfeeding is the result. Then the starter culture starts to change because of its stressed situation and responds with the unexpected (like slowing down, going dormant and/or forming hooch) not at all signs of death but of survival. Then it takes a little special handling until it's awaken and back up to working again.
I do have a tip. While is it in perfect condition, it might be wise to dry some and store in an airtight container in a dark place... "just in case" as a backup if something should ever happen to the active starter. Just take some of the ripe starter and (depending on your humidity: very high > feed it first before drying, to very low > don't feed it first) spread it out on parchment to dry. Turn it over to finnish drying and then crumble and place into a small clean jar, label. Drying forces the yeast to go dormant and it can be awaken months later with a small soaking in water and a few days of care.
Mini
what Mini said about drying some backup starter. I inadvertenly threw all my starter out one day and was relieved, but skeptical, to find some very old dried starter in a zip lock bag in the fridge. Rehydration and a couple of feedngs later I was back in business.
Larry
Thank you both for your comments. I've already dried up some of my starter - some to send to a dear friend on the opposite coast, and some to store in the fridge for safekeeping. :-)
do you have a recipe for tortillas using your starter? if so, would you be willing to share it with us?
thanks, claudia
Hi Claudia,
The starter I use is 100% hydration so I took the recipe I found here (for 166% hydration starter), and modified. I am also currently playing with the A/P to WW flour ratio as I prefer to add as much whole grains to my diet. The current version of my recipe is as follows.
My version
4.5 oz sourdough Starter (100% hydration)
6.6 oz hot tap water
0.5 oz olive or veggie oil
0.2 oz table salt
10 oz A/P flour
4.0 oz of Whole Wheat flour plus a little more till the dough isn't sticky
The other change I made to the directions in the link above is that the author recommends sizing the dough into 4 oz pieces and I size them as 2 oz pieces. I prefer to roll my tortillas super thin and a 4 oz piece yielded a tortilla too big to fit on my square griddle.
Also, since I live alone and prefer my tortillas freshly cooked I mix the dough, let it relax, divide into 2 oz piece, roll these into balls and then I store them in the fridge. Make sure the balls aren't touching each other and, if you are to make more than one layer of balls (that is, if you are to pile one ball over the other, separate layers with plastic wrap or alumn foil. If the dough touches, it tends to stick.
When I feel like making tortillas I take 1 or 2 out, flatten into a disk right out of the fridge. Let rest about 5 minutes while the griddle heats up to med-high heat, then roll out to right thickness, letting the dough rest a bit if it resists. What I have found is that I prefer the results when the tortilla dough I place on the hot griddle is slightly cold rather than at room temperature.
I hope you try this recipe. If you do, I'd welcome feedback on it! :-)
Cheers!
Jeannette
EDIT: The dough only keeps in the fridge for 5-6 days before it starts turning sour, which I don't enjoy. If I made too many tortillas, I freeze the balls separately on a cookie tray, then put them in a freezer container. They keep there at least 2 months.
EDIT #2: I just made this week's batch and used 50% AP and 50% WW flours. Not surprisingly, the dough needs a bit more rest between rolling to create a tortilla as thin as I like but the added flavor and fiber make it worth it!