Hi there,
Making my first sourdough starter and need some help!
I'm on day six and have seen no doubling in size, only some bubbles and a strong acidic aroma.
I've been using a mixture of wholegrain and bread flour, discarding appprox. half of the starter and feeding everyday but seeing no progress so far.
I'm using a glass jar but leaving the lid a little loose so it's not completely airtight and keeping in a warm environment.
Would really really appreciate any advice on how to see more progress and much more rise with the starter, thank you!
If you keep discarding when there is little sign of life, you only reduce the concentration of the microorganisms that you want to grow. That slows down the whole process. It's better to stir the mixture several times per day and refresh it less often.
If the mixture is really quite acidic, as it smells, that shows that some bacterial action has been occurring, since that is what lowers the pH (increases the acidity). Normally, some yeast should wake up and start to grow once the pH gets low enough. In that case, your starter should be just about ready to spring into action, maybe in another day.
I suppose it's possible that the acidity somehow got too low for the yeast to do well, but this isn't what usually happens. It's also possible that something about your water is letting the acid-producing bacteria develop well but not the yeast. Or perhaps the mix isn't all that acidic despite the smell. It's hard to tell, especially over the internet.
I would say to give it another day or two, stirring it a time or two each day. If nothing changes, you could consider starting again, or have patience and go for another few days. If you decide to start again, use a can of pineapple juice for the liquid instead of water. That makes the mixture start out acidic and bypasses the first several days of waiting. It also reduces the chance that the starter gets taken over by undesirable organisms and never progresses. With pineapple juice, it's very possible to get a working starter after just two days.
Also, what water have you been using? City tap water is treated with chlorine or chlorine compounds intended to prevent bacterial growth. If it's chlorine in the water, letting the water sit in a pitcher overnight will let it dissipate, but the water contains other chlorine compounds they may not be deactivated this way. If you have well water, it might contain a lot of undesirable minerals or salts. It so, you could try using bottled drinking water. You don't want to use distilled or other highly purified water since the yeast would like to get some minerals. Drinking water that contains a small amount of minerals would be best.
TomP
Hi Tom,
Thank you so much for your reply, really appreciate it!
It's all a bit confusing as I've been watching videos and am not sure if my starter is not getting enough food or (as you suggested) I am diluting the concentration of the microorganisms too much. So, are you recommending to keep stirring for a few days without feeding or to keep feeding?
I'm using filtered water. Would the pineapple juice change the flavour for a new starter?
Thanks again!
It's a little hard to tell whether or not to feed at this point. In the early period, it's much better not to feed, only to stir. Later, after many generations of bacterial have come and gone but without much visible activity, it's hard to be sure since the LAB might have metabolized much of the available nutrients (although they and the yeast don't have the same nutritional needs, there will be some overlap).
So I'm just guessing here what the state of your starter is. One reason to discard and feed is that it will raise the pH for a while. If the mixture has truly become too acidic for the yeast, that would help. But we can't know for sure.
If it were my own starter, I would stir it for a few days, then if there was little obvious activity, discard and feed with a feed ratio of probably 2:1 or 3:1, and (with stirring) try that for a few more days. If I still hadn't gotten a starter, I'd start all over again with pineapple juice. And don't forget to consider the water. I personally haven't had a problem that seems to be related to the water quality but some people have.
When a starter is ready, it usually pops into activity very quickly, like within a day. One more day of discard and feeding and one can usually use it at this point. You won't need to wonder if a few little bubbles mean anything or not.
Once I tried making a starter using white rice flour and water. First day, nothing. I stirred it. Second day, nothing. Stirred it again. Third day, I refreshed it and later thought I saw a few bubbles. Fourth day, Bam! It was a real starter.
And that leads me to an important point. All these instructions for making a starter in books and on line - there is no need to follow any of them exactly or fuss about getting the details "right". The details hardly ever matter. It's the general pattern that counts. Suitable water, decent flour (even just white flour), leave it alone except for stirring and occasional feeding after several days - that's the pattern and the process simply isn't critical. People have even made a new starter by making a dough and burying it in a pile of flour. A week or so later, there will be viable starter inside a dry crust of dough. So don't agonize about any of the details.
Even if you use pineapple juice, the starter will settle down and develop its own character and flavors after a short time. Also, after the first several days you can just use water for feedings. You only need the pineapple juice at the start.
Thanks so much for your advice, I'm going to give it a couple of days and if not restart using your pineapple juice suggestion.
Really appreciate the help, thank you!
So many decisions - 1 real goal. And any will work - if you let them.
So the important thing is take the time it needs - a regular reaction over time is essential. Enjoy!
Here's the original thread about pineapple juice and how to go about making the starter, if you're interested.
Thank you all for your comments, much appreciated!