Shoud I use my raisin yeast water?
I prepared the yeast water last August 22 Saturday night 10:30 pm; I used 100 g California golden raisins with no oil and 350 ml cooled boiled water; the jar is 3/4 full with the lid closed tight. I shake and open the jar twice a day at 12 hour intervals, I also put the jar in a bowl of wat. There was a storm for the next two days and was pretty cold so I assumed that fermentation will start when it is already warm. Tuesday (August 25), it was warm, the noon was hot and humid and the sun shone bright for the rest of the day; the next days were also the same so I guess it will be ready on Saturday (August 29) or Tuesday (September 1). What really bothered me is after the strong sour odor I smelled when I opened the jar last Friday (August 28) night, the smell is like laundry water left for a few days (If you do your laundry by hand and you reuse the soap water in the soaking bucket, you'll understand). It only last for a few seconds when you first open the lid then a sweet aroma wafts in the air like sugary grapes (they're raisins after all :P) and remains so until I close the lid, also no molds grew on it.
It was already bubbling yesterday so I strained out the raisins, added more water new raisins (because all the raisins are reduced to skins) with the lid just screwed tightly and let it ferment for another day. This morning, small bubbles are rising to the surface unlike yesterday's large bubble that break to the surface, it is very active because i can hear the bubbles fizzing; today today, those are absent. I made a test levain this morning, it has holes everywhere which is a sign of activity but at 10 hours it just rose by half and did not double.
Questions:
1) Should I ditch this yeast water and just start a new one again? I am bothered by the strong smell every time I open it and being a paranoid about botulism (Is there a risk? Oxygen enters the jar twice a day) and food poisoning, I don't want to feed my family with potentially deadly/toxic food.
2) If not and it is fine to use for a bread, is it just a little weak and just need a little more fermentation time?
Thanks in advance
I started my mother starter using raisin yeast water, but I only covered the raisins with water overnight, removed the raisins, added flour, waited for it to bubble ( not sourdough yeast but brewer's yeast in first day or two) and then followed the feeding schedule for making a starter found in a hundred different posts elsewhere on this website.
I think if you do that you will have a lovely starter.
P.S. You don't need to waste a ton of flour, since you will be throwing half out at each feeding. Just scale the flour and water down (1 cup flour and water can be 1/4 cup flour and water).
Also, get yourself a decent food scale that has grams and can weigh up to 5 lbs. You can find them on sale for about US$30 at Bed Bath & Beyond. That way you can measure everything into your mixing bowl.
Lastly, do use a clean container. I see lots of posts bragging about how little they change the container and then complain about some creepy mold growing. As a former food service worker I am horrified that anyone would brag about their lack of concern for hygiene when cooking or baking.
Please then don't bleach your poor yeastie beastie dears either; just soap and water and then a well rinsed glass or bowl before continuing.
If you use clean utensils you can continue in the same (glass) jar or glass or container. Just use common sense as to when to switch over to a clean container.
The dears need some oxygen. So leave your jar covered loosely; loose enough to allow air in but not so air bugs invade your growing starter.
Have fun.
not a starter.
Did you use the YW Prime to start your YW found here?
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/35473/yw-primer
YW should not smell bad, it should smell fruity with a hint of alcohol after a few days after feeding, Somethng doesnl't sound right
Your post is the reason why I finally decided to start my yeast water. the only thing I could not follow is the honey, because I don't have some right now. I'm suspecting these are the cause of the strong odor.
1) The jar- It is not sealed, when I shake it, my hands will be wet because of the raisin yeast water that gushes through the jar's mouth even if the lid is "tightly" closed.
2) The water- I used the water from our deep well. It is our drinking water for many many years.
3) The ants- On the first 2 days, I noticed ants crawling on the jar and some are inside. I tried to remove most of them but i don't know if there are some left.
This is already my second attempt, molds grew on the first one. What do you think? Perhaps, I should follow your guide to to the smallest details but I have to wait for the honey. I am really looking forward to baking with wild yeast.
your Kitchen too. No telling what they are adding to the mix from a bacteria point of view. Honey has anti bacterial properties but doesn't slow down yeast reproduction. A bit of OJ in the mix from the beginning will also keep the bacteria count down some.. YW is harder top start than a SD culture. but I have never had one fail, go moldy, stink or attract ants. If it smells bad just toss it, get some honey a fresh orange for a bit of acid in the mix and start another one. Put the jar it in a sealed container to keep the ants out.
Hope this helps
I will follow all of them. Here's my plan, I will use fresh fruit next time, maybe apple and/or grapes plus a bit of fresh orange juice and honey, I will put the jar in a bowl with warm water to keep the ants (hey really love sweets) out and maybe provide a better environment for those yeasts.. I'll report back to you regarding my YW adventures! Thanks a lot!
This is different stuff from SD. I am not yet confident to bake with SD so I think yeast water is a great transition to wild yeast. Thanks for all the tips, I will surely apply it when I already have the courage to start my sourdough starter. Thanks!
Why are you even using honey except to attract ants? I'm really confused. You only need flour and water. You can add a 1/4 tsp of white vinegar to kick start it (same as pineapple juice, just lowering the ph). Vinegar instead of juice should keep the ants at bay.
You can stir with a fork. If you have a slurry you aren't using enough flour, so your poor little growing yeastie beasties are probably starving right off the bat. The consistency should be like pancake batter not cloudy water.
yeast water, not sourdough. It's a completely different form of leavener even though it also relies on wild yeasts.
Paul