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some various starter questions

alisa c's picture
alisa c

some various starter questions

I bought my starter at a health food store. it's local. the first loaf i made with it after a month or so of feeding it was definitely a first attempt but ok. after that they started having this gummy core. after doing some reading I believe I've turned my starter proteolytic.  my theory is that even though i was feeding it daily I was under feeding it. for the first feeding I'd trim some off and feed 1/1/1 but for the second feeding I'd just add 50 grams water and flour. and sometimes let it go up to 18 hours afterwards. I think that might have been a very bad move. indeed now after 12 hours it's goupy. I've started trying to do it better. at every feeding 25 gms starter or so and 50 or 60 grams water and a little more flour than that. and trying to be more consistent at 12 hours (ish)  can this starter be saved though? about the time the gummy started I was getting this STRONG pickle smell from the starter too. even a hint there when I refreshed it. 

 

I also noticed that I'm getting the doubling if I use some whole wheat but if I use just unbleached ap I don't double.  why is this? is it normal or bad? I wanted an ap starter but I may just stick with a whole wheat or whole wheat blend. 

 

I reconstituted some of my early starter that I dried as a back up. it's still reviving. no pickle smell so i think i must have done it before it turned to pickles. lol. 

 

 

anyway I appreciate all thoughts. so tired of this weird gummy bread.  (and I'm not talking normal sour dough gummy but like this block of hard area where you can't even see any crumb it's so compacted. it's like india rubber. 

Mini Oven's picture
Mini Oven

dont forget to feed it.   Maybe it helps to think of the dried starter as a conditioner for a new start.  Combine the wet starter with equal weights of AP wheat flour and enough water to make a toothpaste like consistency.  Let it sit in a warmish spot 75° - 77° F  Or  23° - 26°C and wait for signs of life. (I'm assuming you started with roughly a tablespoon of dry starter that has been soaking briefly in a tablespoon or two of water.)

Do not discard but add a tablespoon of floor and enough water to make a paste.  This method goes along the lines of starting a new starter.  What you want to do is daily add a little fresh AP flour and water until the yeast show up.  After three days it could be that you are encouraging a new starter only, you have added the dried starter with the lower pH and bacteria which have given this new starter a push in the right direction. With the small feeds, it shouldn't be a large starter to play with.  As soon as the yeast population makes itself known, both in aroma and in activity, then it is time to stir down and take a spoon or two to another jar to feed.  Cover, label and chill the starter you have been feeding and store in the back of the refrigerator as a back up.  

Now feed the small sample with equal or twice the weight of water and enough flour to make a paste.  It is roughly (s,w,f) 1,2,3 ratio feeding and should rise to peak within 6 to 12 hours to 26°C.  Warmer sooner, cooler later. Be sure to level out in the straight sided jar or glass and mark the level and let it reach maximum height before reducing to  about 10 g and repeating the feeding.  After several days there should be a clear pattern of feeding and rising.  You can then manipulate the times using the amount of food and water with temp. to fit your schedule.  A normal pattern is feeding enough flour to get a peak in 8 hours, then a pause to feed at 10-12 hrs. Feed less if cool at night and slightly more during warmer day hours. 

When an acceptable pattern is established, you may wish to chill the starter.  Chill after a feeding but before the starter has peaked.  About a third risen toward peak if you plan to use weekly or even biweekly.  You want to see signs of life before chilling.  Feeds can range from 1:1:1 to 1:2:3 to 1:3:4. To 1:5:10 to 1:10:5. The higher the flour feeding the more it boosts yeast.  The wetter the starter the faster it ferments but the less it rises, the more flour to water the better it traps gas to rise higher.  The stiffer starters take longer to ferment but pack a whollop of yeast when they reach peak.  Most starters are added to a recipe just before peaking before the yeast realize the food supply is getting less as more byproducts from fermentation build up.  There are exceptions so stay flexible.