About Tartine Starter

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Kaleibakes on 8 Aug 2017 at 03:15

Hi guys,

I recently making the starter, I have fed it for 8-9 days already. It smells like vinegar and it also bubbling in certain time after I feed it. The texture is like a paste, not very sticky at this stage, I google online, I see the photos posted by other people their starters are more sticky. I don't know if my starter is going on the right track.

Today, I tried to make bread with the starter. After mixing the ingredients ( according to the book Tartine), the dough becomes paste, unlike the photos show, it cannot be formed any shape. now I put it in the fridge, do not what to do about it. 

Can anyone with experience give me some advice? should I begin to feed new starter? what should I do?

Thank you in advance

I'm based in Macau. I use 50/50 ( whole wheat flour and T55) for my starter. I feed the starter on 8-9 pm everynight, keep 20g, discard the rest, feed with 40g mixing flour and 40g water. The starter already put in the freeze after the last feed, I don't have the photo at the moment.

For the sourdough, here is the picture.

you can see it looks like paste. If I touch it with my fingers, the dough will easily stick on my fingers. In the book Tartine, Chad uses hand to mix the ingredients but I used mixer. At first, I mixed 2-3min low speed. Then I add the remaining water and salt, mix for another 2-3min in low speed. 

This is my first time to make my starter, please give me some advice. thank you

That looks like 100% hydration. Something isn't adding up here.

We can trouble shoot that issue later. For now slowly add extra flour until you get a nice consistency for a dough. Keep track of how much flour you are adding. Then add more salt according to how much extra flour you have added.

So if you end up adding an extra 100g flour and the salt should be 2% then sprinkle on an extra 2g salt.

Carry on kneading till the extra flour and salt have been fully combined and the gluten is formed properly.

Bulk ferment till the dough is billowy and aerated. There should be visible signs of bubbles beneath the surface. After which go onto shaping and final proofing. Important to note that your timings will now be off and you more so now need to watch the dough and not the clock. You will have also made extra dough. So divide as necessary when it comes to shaping.

 

Is this the Levain or the dough? 

I have a feeling this is the Levain build which is the Pre-Ferment from which you make the final dough. 

Forgive me if this is stupid thing to say, but the tartine process is a three step process, right? Starter, as, you describe. Then (a pretty sticky) ferment using a small amount of that starter and which matures overnight, and then the final dough using some of that ferment, which then bulk proves, shapes, proves and bakes, as usual. I only hear you refer to two of those steps, could you have missed out a stage somewhere? 

I let the dough sit for 40 min after the first mix ( starter, flour, water). After that, I add salt and little water, then mix again. The next bulk fermentation should happen in the next 3-4 hours. In the book, it mentioned in the the 2 hours of the bulk fermentation period, give the dough a turn every half hour but my dough is too "paste-liked", it is impossible to turn it properly. When you make ciabatta, the dough is sticky but you can still left it up but not in this case. Any advise? 

This may just be a use of language issue, but my concern was that you could be going from starter on to mixing the final dough, without making the intermediate ferment? Disregard if this is not the case. 

Thank you for the comment. I think I will start all over again, and pay more attention on its change. I put 100g flour at the beginning, and keep 20g each time. Should I put more flour so I can keep maybe 30g? 20g is a very small portion. 

How long has it been since this 20g of starter has been fed? If it's been a while then I'd feed it atleast once before moving onto the leaven build. Feed it 40g water + 40g flour (20g bread flour + 20g whole-wheat flour) in the morning. By evening it will have matured. Then take 20g of this starter and move onto the leaven build. You're going to be building atleast 200g but only using 100g in the loaf. The remainder you keep for the next time. Keep it in the fridge and a day or two before the next bake give it a couple of feeds before moving onto the leaven build etc. 

 

Leaven Build:

  • 20g starter
  • 100g water
  • 100g flour (50g bread flour + 50g whole-wheat flour)

Add the water to the starter and mix to disperse. Then add the flour and mix into a paste. Leave to mature for 12 hours. Should be areated and puffy. If you drop a bit into water the starter should float. When ready move onto the dough. 

Dough:

  • 100 grams leaven
  • 450 grams white-bread flour
  • 50 grams whole-wheat flour, plus more for dusting
  • 350g water (I) + 25g water (II)
  • 10 grams fine sea salt
  1. Make the dough: In a large bowl, combine 100 grams of leaven with 350 grams of warm water (I) and stir to disperse. (Reserve remaining leaven for future loaves)
  2. Add 450 grams of white-bread flour and 50 grams of whole-wheat flour to bowl and use your hands to mix until no traces of dry flour remain. The dough will be sticky and ragged. Cover bowl with a towel and let dough rest for 25 to 40 minutes at room temperature.
  3. Add 10 grams fine sea salt and 25 grams warm water (II). Use hands to integrate salt and water into dough thoroughly. The dough will begin to pull apart, but continue mixing; it will come back together.
  4. Cover dough with a towel and transfer to a warm environment, 75 to 80 degrees ideally (like near a window in a sunny room, or inside a turned-off oven). Let dough rise for 30 minutes. Fold dough by dipping hand in water, taking hold of the underside of the dough at one quadrant and stretching it up over the rest of the dough. Repeat this action 3 more times, rotating bowl a quarter turn for each fold. Do this every half-hour for 2 1/2 hours more (3 hours total). The dough should be billowy and increase in volume 20 to 30 percent. If not, continue to let rise and fold for up to an hour more.
  5. Transfer dough to a work surface, pre-shape and let rest 30 minutes.
  6. Mix 50 grams whole-wheat flour and 50 grams rice flours. Line the bread-proofing basket or mixing bowl with towels. Use some of the flour mixture to generously flour the towel (reserve remaining mixture).
  7. Dust the dough with whole-wheat flour. Use a dough scraper to flip it over onto a work surface so floured side is facing down. Starting at the side closest to you, pull the bottom 2 corners of the dough down toward you, then fold them up into the middle third of the dough. Repeat this action on the right and left sides, pulling the edges out and folding them in over the center. Finally, lift the top corners up and fold down over previous folds. (Imagine folding a piece of paper in on itself from all 4 sides.) Roll dough over so the folded side becomes the bottom of the loaf. Shape into a smooth, taut ball.
  8. Transfer the boule seam-side up, to prepared basket. Cover with a towel and return dough to the 75- to 80-degree environment for 3 to 4 hours. (Or let dough rise for 10 to 12 hours in the refrigerator. Bring back to room temperature before baking.)
  9. About 30 minutes before baking, place a Dutch oven or lidded cast-iron pot in the oven and heat it to 500 degrees. Dust the top of the dough, still in the basket, with whole-wheat/rice-flour mixture. Very carefully remove heated pot from oven and gently turn the loaf into pan seam-side down. Use a lame (a baker’s blade) or razor blade to score the top of the bread a few times to allow for expansion, cover and transfer to oven. Reduce temperature to 450 degrees and cook for 20 minutes. Carefully remove lid (steam may release) and cook for 20 more minutes or until crust is a rich, golden brown color.
  10. Transfer bread to a wire rack to cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing. The bottom of the loaf should sound hollow when tapped.