Vacation Starter Prep
I am going to Fort Lauderdale for ten weeks and I’m bringing some of my starter with me to bake, but I’m also going to keep some starter in Toronto. This is what I did to prepare my starter for a long hibernation. I’m now down in Fort Lauderdale.
I fed my starter 1:1.5:3 starter to water to flour to reduce the hydration to near 50%. This reduced hydration will slow the organisms down. One time I was away from home for three weeks and I was surprised that my starter had mold growing on it. I greatly reduce the chances of that happening now by placing a good layer of dry flour on top of the starter in its Weck jar. The times I have done this it has worked very well and I have not seen mold since.
I then gave John Dough 1 hour on the counter before placing him in the fridge to rest until I return.
Comments
I usually do something similar but an always just take a couple of tablespoons home with me from Florida and that has worked out well. We are here (Naples) until April 20th, enjoy your stay, it has been cold this year.
I find my starter seems to be more active here than Ontario, I’m sure it must be the weather.
I have yet to decide if I’ll take some of this starter home with me. It makes sense as a backup plan. Our water in Toronto has chloramine in it while I do not believe the water here does, perhaps that is the difference. I was shocked at the performance of the stiff sweet levain, it rose 4 x and the dome wasn’t flattening. At home I usually see 3-3.5 x at most.
Enjoy your time in Naples, we are staying in a Airbnb for 7-8 days in Bonita Springs in with some family at the end of March. We haven’t been to Bonita Springs before but the family we are sharing the house with have and they love it. The cooler weather here really suits us, it is far more comfortable to be out for walks without the stifling heat we had last winter.
Benny
We use reverse osmosis well water at home, I have also tried spring water from the grocery store and I don’t really see any difference. I’m assuming it is the weather here that sets my starter on fire, it is really easy to make bread here in a shorter period of time.
Enjoy your time here, I’m sure the heat is just around the corner.
On a side note, I’m just trying to venture into some Thai cooking and I bet you have some excellent recipes and techniques based on some of your baking ingredients?
Maybe you’re right Glenn. I’m sure it’ll get warmer here, that being said, we like it when the highs are in the low to mid 20’s °C it doesn’t need to be warmer for us.
I haven’t done a lot of Thai cooking, mostly red or green curries so far. Let me know if you find some delicious easy to make recipes, I’m always on the lookout.
Benny
Don't forget you can dry your starter. It's easy to revive and keeps for a really long time. I've had success with reviving my dried starter several times. Glad you are enjoying your Florida vacation. The weather was quite chilly on the east side last week, but it seems to have finally hit a sweet spot.
Yes I do have dried starter, I keep it in the freezer. I haven’t tried to revive it yet though. Fortunately, no one questioned either the starter or the miso at security so all is good.
Benny