October 19, 2019 - 2:01pm
Can I change hydration early in the starter process?
Hello, after several starter failures, I began the Paul Hollywood organic starter. Two days in and it’s very active. After some reading, I realize that I need to calculate hydration. I don’t think what I have now is a 100% hydration starter. The recipe for the starter calls for 500 grams of flour and 360 mils of water, plus a grated organic apple. I haven’t fed it yet as I’m supposed to leave it alone until the first feeding tomorrow which will be 250 grams flour and 170 mls of water—after I discard half the starter. Can I feed it 1:1 flour/water to bring it to a 100% hydration now or wait until the starter is fully ready?
Thanks so much for any advice you have to offer!
Shari Shaw
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I would wait until the next feeding time, but your starter should be stable enough to handle that change. Maybe change the ratio gradually though, not suddenly all at once.
Once you've reached 1:1 ratio, keep it that way until your starter is ready. After that you can change hydration again since some recipes require a different starter "viscosity" (stiff or liquid).
Thanks for the advice!
Shari
what temperature is the starter?
This little bit of information is much more important than the hydration of the starter. As long as the flour is wet, it doesn't really matter. It can range from stiff dough to milky water and still ferment. Temperature on the other hand has a bigger influence. Getting the starter warm enough or too warm can make or set it back. That you think you've had several bad start ups interests me more.
It would be nice to figure that out to avoid a repeat. So tell us the temperature and maybe roughly your location and some of the things that happened with the other attempts. One clue already is that you think the starter is active in only two days. This activity is more likely to be bacterial as the organisms start to sort themselves out. Rushing to add more flour at this activity tends to prolong this phase of development. Typical is that this phase takes time and shouldn't be rushed by giving more flour. Wait and be patient especially if temps are lower than 24°C or 75°F. Please let us know the ambient temps and if they change overnight or during the day.
The hydration of the starter is just fine and well within normal parameters. The starter however is rather large and in my mind, wastes a fair amount of flour. If you want to, with the next feed/discard, Divide all the amounts by 8 to reduce the amount of waste. Start out with 100g of growing culture and feed it 40g flour and 30g water. Cover loosely to prevent drying out. You will also have to adjust future instructions to keep the growing culture small within reason. You can change to 100% hydration anytime it is fed.
A thicker starter at roughly 80% does have the advantage of trapping gas more efficiently than a thinner starter at 100% hydration. It will rise better when the yeast populate and make gas. The hardest part of making a sourdough starter is just waiting for the bacteria to sort themselves out so the yeast can follow along when the conditions are right. Once yeast are populating and producing gas, feeds can increase.
Thanks so very much for taking so much time to write this reply. I really appreciate all of the variables you took into consideration. I have my starter on my kitchen counter and the house thermostat is set at 71 degrees but it's always a few degrees warmer in the kitchen. I live in southeast Michigan. My failures have been the pineapple solution starter and a simple flour/water starter. The current starter, while huge, rose beautifully until yesterday, and now it has fallen nicely above the original level. Math is very hard for me, so I appreciate your leading me in the right direction as I try to rein in this beast!
The starter is very bubbly, the best I've ever seen, and it smells very cheesy and sour. Per Paul Hollywood's starter instructions, I"m supposed to discard/feed this evening. I will take your advice and save on flour!
Again, deepest thanks,
Shari Shaw
then hang a few signs on it so it doesn't get accidentally thrown away. My starter's favourite place is next to the wall where the chimney runs up through the kitchen from the basement. It's a nice 26°C. Another spot is the cupboard above my refrigerator.
At 71°F it will take twice as long to get a starter going. Temps tend to drop at night so looking for a slightly warmer spot will help. There is another trick, boil a mug of water in the microwave oven. Set a cover on it and push it to the back. Then set the starter in the oven as well not too near the warm mug. Close the door. In a few hours check the mug and reheat as needed. I once used a small styrofoam lunch box in the same way using hot tap water in a pickle jar to keep the box warm. Careful not to get it too hot in there! The starter should be about baby bath temp. Getting the starter up to 75°F will knock a whole week off a two week waiting time for 72°F. Later when the starter is older, the cooler temps don't bother it so much. It is just this early starting up that needs the warmth.
I think the culture you have is a 72 % hydration culture, if you said it is 500g flour and 360ml water.
I normally feed on a ratio of 1;1;1 and it works well for me.