April 10, 2020 - 5:20pm
The 'fridge starter' ??
I live in Darwin Australia. Temp 33 C (91 F) year-round. I have attempted to make a starter in the kitchen but have encountered trouble developing a viable starter. I am wondering is it possible to make a starter in the fridge. I would be grateful for any suggestions /advice. Thanks in advance.
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We had a member a while back that had a super starter plan. It worked quickly and was made at 92°F I believe. He had the opposite problem of cool weather so he floated his starter in a warm bath. So I don't see why not.
The problems, if you call it that, would be constant warm temp, which sets you off to a good start and quickly. The starter may ferment so fast that the starter pH drops too quickly and you miss the opportunity to slow bacteria and support yeast growth. So making use of cool water, cooling towels, low fire unglazed ceramic pots soaked in water, can all become useful. Also what is the refrigerator temp? Maybe a warm spot in there?
Forget the weekly method and concentrate on recognizing various steps like bacteria changes, color changes aroma etc. things happen quickly so three days would be about it in the room, then move to the fridge during the day when the ambient temps are most warm. Do you have a weight/gram scale? You need a scale for measuring small amounts of salt.
My suggestion would be to start up a starter using a small % of salt. Let's see what we can find under salt sourdough starters. :)
Thanks for your advice - shall give the refrigerator a go - its 6 C. . Probably fridge during the day and countertop at night.
Plan B would be to just use the benchtop and try adding a little salt. I need to do a little more reading around the 'salt story' my question being does the salt retard bacteria and growth activity equally or does it tend to be just one or the other.
My original starter that died ( and that I only ever had x2 bakes out of - as I could never determine how active it was) produced a very flat/sad looking product. It had quite a strong acetic acid flavour. As such I expect the bacterial activity dominated. As such, I need to either start the bacterial activity and or promote more yeast.
Many thanks for the detailed reply. Im very keen to make SD. I started the journey mid last year. I persisted for about 2-3 months attempting to make a viable starter. I never had any confidence with it. I attempted to bake x2 loaves at different dates. They were flat, quite dense and had a strong acetic acid tang.
I read lots about making starters but nothing seems to help. I was very encouraged using Pineapple juice when I started one of the starters. The link in TheFreshoaf forum gave a very compelling rational as to its efficacy.
Once I feel I have produced a starter that looks like it has a chance of working I then have many hurdles ahead of me. be a little small
I am going to invest in a dutch oven - this is the one I am looking at - I am a little concerned it may be a little small volume wise https://lodgecookware.com.au/cast-iron-5-quart-double-dutch-oven/?fbclid=IwAR2MLeaxdLShhSypJlAZfCJXPfR5Zy-Ptzj5reJbPRGZtAT4qeNDgYipS4o. I like its format as it permits one to place the dough on the 'lid section' and cover it with the base - the rational - one wont get burnt removing the loaf.
Im very keen to make SD - it is a combination of both art and science / it has a great history / and being able to name something that one can give away and share with others all resonate with me.
I am very much a novice - lots of bumps on the road ahead I suspect. I just have to get this starter thing sorted STAT.
Thanks again for your feedback.
Use bottled unsweetened pineapplejuice if you want to and were successful with it before. That should make this easier. The aromas will be familiar to you. If you have any questions or problems, just ask. I'm in Austria.
Mini
I should add this hasn't been documented well and more or less uncharted territory. I haven't done this exactly but giving my suggestions and learning with you. Start up your blog as you document the starter so you can find it easily and others as well. Feel free to copy and transfer the above recipe suggestions and if you have ideas to add, don't hesitate, please do. I'm hoping others with more experience will also tip in. I suggest 2% salt to start with but it may not be high enough, I think jumping up to 3% might also be worth the effort. Then you can race them and compare them. Peter Reinhart was putting salt into WW soakers to control enzymes. Need to search and a link. We had a discussion here about it as well and I think the max was 4% salt on flour weight. Not sure. I'm getting older and more forgetful but folks here have better memories than me and faster with the tech stuff.
Thanks again for your comments. I have been doing some more internet searches this afternoon. I came across a 'stiff starter' ( known as a Desem starter https://www.sourdoughbaker.com.au/blog/2018/1/17/using-a-desem-starter). Im wondering if this has any merit re hot climate SD. I get the impression that one needs to first produce a viable starter by traditional hydration means and then essentially turn it into a 'dough starter'. My interpretation of the stiff starter is that it is more 'stable' starter than the higher hydration starters (also doent require feeding as often apparently) however nothing to substantiate these claims. The taste profile of the stiff starter apparently is also a little different.
I like the recipe you suggested - I appreciate that it is uncharted territory however utilising the salt to 'retard' the growth a little seems a logical approach.
which doesn't make searches easy for me or anyone. Peter Reinhart. With a "t."
I have a good excuse, my spelling checker is constantly changing my words around and I don't know how to deactivate it yet. The upgade is even worse! And my a family member spells with a "d."
I suppose one could use a timer and expose the starter for an hour then chill for an hour alternating places. I also remember a refrigerator thermostat that broke and a Christmas light 24 hr timer was used to turn the fridge on and off to keep it from freezing everything until the new part arrived. Perhaps a small electric cooler with a timer plug might work. Or a small insulating box in the fridge. Look into low impact clay pot refrigerator. I posted a link once upon a time. Stiff starters do better in warm climates. They take longer to ferment. Think of water in the starter as transportation routes, reduce the size (lower the hydration) of the road, you get traffic jams. Maybe an alternative to finding more flavour...
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/21030/lacking-great-flavor#comment-147343
That process of reducing moisture in the normal starter into a low hydration ball sounds like the way I make back up starters or traveling starters. I have a few several years old in the fridge and they do pop back to life after trimming off the dark outside. Smells something like vegemite. Yes one needs a good starter to do that. Has anyone tried to feed vegemite? Maybe cross it with an upstart starter or perhaps feed an upstart with a pea size portion of it. Yeast like to east dead yeast. Natures recycling of vitamin B.
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/58035/vegemite-flavorant
what about yeast water?
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/comment/414381#comment-414381