I'm always short of time. That's not good for a bread baker, is it? So I often find myself making the dreaded straight doughs. Hamelman is not afraid of straight doughs so I find myself there many times. I had a bit more time than usual last Sunday, so I looked through [i]Bread[/i] to see what I could find. The German Farmer's bread is a great choice, but I had no yogurt. Seemed like a good time to try the hand mixed white bread. I mixed until the windowpane was close, then did the stretch and folds over the course of the three hour bulk fermentation. It felt good to the hand. An hour proof in the bannetons and it seemed ready by the poke-your-finger-in-the-dough test. He forgot to give baking times for this one, maybe because there's so many ways to use this recipe, so had to wing that.
Not the most flavorful bread, but not bad. Three days later it still makes a good sandwich, though it's starting to stale. I'm not sure what the crumb is supposed to look like, but this seems OK.
upping your basic white flavour profile.
ready to up the flavor. Feeding and maintaining starters is out of the question for now. The breads I've made with bigas and sponges have been far superior. But even these straight doughs are better than what I can get from the store. Home baking is sort of a curse, you can never be satisfied with commercial bread again!
I have an established starter which I'd be more than happy to send to you in a plastic container. All you have to do is weigh out what you want, add equal amounts water and flour and shove it right back into the fridge for safe keeping. Just a thought.... so you don't have to start your own.
hester
Thanks for the offer, hester! I had a starter going once. My issue is having to leave it in the fridge for a week or more at a time without being able to feed it. Seems like it is best for me to just wait until retirement (soon) when things settle down a bit. I really want to try a rye sourdough.
Thanks again, for the offer, hester. It's people like you that make this such a great site.
Just so you know.... you can leave this one alone for weeks. Maybe up to 4 weeks. Offer stands if you change your mind. You know where to find me. Lol
hester
Really, four weeks. Does that apply to most starters?
But I have gone weeks without using mine. When I decided to bake I took out some and refreshed over a period of a few days b/f making the last build. For sure 2+ weeks is safe. Dabrownman i think says it can stay for months.. I'm not a starter guru. Lechem knows a ton about this starters.
mine lives in the fridge, gets fed monthly and it is fine. The longest I have left mine is 2 months. look up dabrownman’s NoMuss No Fuss method here, it works a treat.
happy baking
Leslie
Well this has been a most educational thread. I thought starters were like dogs, and I'd have to kennel it to go on vacation. Much appreciate ALL these replies.
went for years without feeding trying to see what conditions they generally prefer. I had one rye starter that was so abused, it's history read like a crime sheet, mine! Lol
Yes, I've killed a few starters in the name of science and I usually have back-ups somewhere. The biggest sourdough culture killer is too much heat and chemical influences. Refrigerators are your friend when it comes to slowing down culture metabolism.
The length of time between feeds will vary with the type of flour, hydration (amount of water) degree of fermentation when chilled, the food available to the critters and the temp inside the fridge. Keep starters covered to prevent drying out. (Or dry them out and keep them cool to preserve them.) If you still have that starter lurking in the back of the fridge, let me know, we may be able to revive it.
Yeast and bacteria have been surviving on our planet longer than we have, they can be pretty adaptable. Maybe I should feed my starters... it's been over a month. One einkorn and the other rye. The einkorn is a little fussier than the rye. :)
Mini
is the flavour enhancing. I can take out a spoon of refrigerated starter, feed it (1:5:5) and let it ferment. Use it when peaking or tuck it back into the fridge and use it in a sourdough alone or with instant yeast depending on how much time is available. There is enough food still in this peaked starter to keep it for a day or two. If adapting to a yeasted dough use flour and water from a recipe to feed the starter. Then add the ripe starter to the rest of the ingredients along with the instant yeast. I get more flavour and the speed of a yeasted dough still sticking pretty much to the recipe instructions.
Another flavour enhancer for a plain wheat loaf is to mix up half the dough (flour & water) without salt and maybe just a tiny pinch of the yeast ( with yeast it's a "poolish" without it's a "soaker") let it sit and ferment overnight in a cool room (or fridge) and combine with the rest of the ingredients & yeast the next day. If you aren't mixing the dough the next morning, keep the poolish or soaker chilled until you have time. I've stretched this up to a week refrigerated 4°C.
is a petty easy way to increase the flavour of a loaf. Try subbing up to only one third of the total amount of wheat flour with a low gluten flour, more with a gluten flour. Amazing what just 30g of Einkorn, Spelt, or Kamut can do to a 500g (3-4 cup) flour loaf.
You are flooding me with ideas! :-) I'm working on a sandwich loaf with some high extraction hard red spring flour in it. Clazar123 gave me a few tips, some which I have incorporated into the formula. It still needs more flavor, so I'll try that soaker/poolish trick. My goal is a simple but flavorful loaf for lunch sandwiches.
[quote] If you still have that starter lurking in the back of the fridge, let me know, we may be able to revive it.[/quote]
No starter, it went into making an incredible batch of sourdough pancakes. Now that I'm a bit more educated, I'll try the starter again and not fret too much over it.