Yep, winter is nearly here. You will find that starters kept at the lower temperatures will encourage the formation of acetic acid (sour), whereas the higher temperatures favour yeast growth and lactic acid. This is a handy trick if you wish to make your starter more sour.
Have never done any tests but from what I've read the ph of an active starter would be around 4.3 - 4.5.
Thanks Bill
Yep this cooler weather is not doing my starter any good it gets warm during the day and cools down during the nite last nite was really really cold.
Made a couple of nice loaves last Sat using some soaked burgul (cracked wheat) was nice and had a chewy texture which was what I wanted.
Re bagettes couches looked very good
Normbake
Went past one of those franschise bakeries the other day told bakerman I was interested in sourdough bread and asked for some of their sourdough culture, bakerman told me they use vinegar to make there range of sourdough bread. I walked away laughing....
[quote]
Went past one of those franschise bakeries the other day told bakerman I was interested in sourdough bread and asked for some of their sourdough culture, bakerman told me they use vinegar to make there range of sourdough bread. I walked away laughing....
[/quote]
Incredible isn't it. I had a Niece from Melbourne stay with us a short while back, she's a professional chef. She loved my bread and when she got back home she went and bought some. It must have been commercial junk like you described because, being one that calls a spade a spade, she said it tasted like shit compared to mine.
Don't feel bad about the crappy sourdough from the store. we have the same thing here in Ontario, Canada. I asked one of the bakers in the store if he would sell me a piece of his raw sourdough, I had to go back two days later to get it, but it was no more sour dough than my Aunt Fanny's cat.....:-))) qahtan
Cold here too, went down to 3c last night, suppose to be getting warmer later in the week.
This might be off place as this is home sourdough section?but the info would just as useful ?
When I was in Melbourne in the past we used hot water for refreshing the cold starter and it works normally.
The finished starter temperature is around 27-30 deg C.
During the dough mixing I used also hot water also so that the finished dough temperature is at least 27 degree C. If the dough has a? hot start? it seems to work well even if the ambient is in the vicinity of 15 degrees C.
I also extend the bulk fermentation time by at least an hour so that the dough had sufficient maturity before dividing.
Regarding the pH, the matured starter I remember when I did several months ago was measured at around 4.2-4.5. T
Keep in mind the pH values are not the same for all starters. ?
BTW, there are indeed baker in Australia that are ignorant what true sourdough is?In few occasions I had the opportunity to work with old time bakers who think that sourdough is any kind of dough that becomes sour due to overfermentation?
Others who have used vinegar to acidify their dough to prevent rope infection believes that the product they made by such is declared as sourdough?
Might be disgusting to a purist?but literally it can still be called sourdough as the bread has some ?tangy note? when tasted..
Replies
Yep, winter is nearly here. You will find that starters kept at the lower temperatures will encourage the formation of acetic acid (sour), whereas the higher temperatures favour yeast growth and lactic acid. This is a handy trick if you wish to make your starter more sour.
Have never done any tests but from what I've read the ph of an active starter would be around 4.3 - 4.5.
Thanks Bill
Yep this cooler weather is not doing my starter any good it gets warm during the day and cools down during the nite last nite was really really cold.
Made a couple of nice loaves last Sat using some soaked burgul (cracked wheat) was nice and had a chewy texture which was what I wanted.
Re bagettes couches looked very good
Normbake
Went past one of those franschise bakeries the other day told bakerman I was interested in sourdough bread and asked for some of their sourdough culture, bakerman told me they use vinegar to make there range of sourdough bread. I walked away laughing....
[quote]
Went past one of those franschise bakeries the other day told bakerman I was interested in sourdough bread and asked for some of their sourdough culture, bakerman told me they use vinegar to make there range of sourdough bread. I walked away laughing....
[/quote]
Incredible isn't it. I had a Niece from Melbourne stay with us a short while back, she's a professional chef. She loved my bread and when she got back home she went and bought some. It must have been commercial junk like you described because, being one that calls a spade a spade, she said it tasted like shit compared to mine.
Don't feel bad about the crappy sourdough from the store. we have the same thing here in Ontario, Canada. I asked one of the bakers in the store if he would sell me a piece of his raw sourdough, I had to go back two days later to get it, but it was no more sour dough than my Aunt Fanny's cat.....:-))) qahtan
Cold here too, went down to 3c last night, suppose to be getting warmer later in the week.
I must confess that I cheat in the cold weather, we have a 3HP reverse cycle aircon. 22C is great for starter and dough.
This might be off place as this is home sourdough section?but the info would just as useful ?
When I was in Melbourne in the past we used hot water for refreshing the cold starter and it works normally.
The finished starter temperature is around 27-30 deg C.
During the dough mixing I used also hot water also so that the finished dough temperature is at least 27 degree C. If the dough has a? hot start? it seems to work well even if the ambient is in the vicinity of 15 degrees C.
I also extend the bulk fermentation time by at least an hour so that the dough had sufficient maturity before dividing.
Regarding the pH, the matured starter I remember when I did several months ago was measured at around 4.2-4.5. T
Keep in mind the pH values are not the same for all starters. ?
BTW, there are indeed baker in Australia that are ignorant what true sourdough is?In few occasions I had the opportunity to work with old time bakers who think that sourdough is any kind of dough that becomes sour due to overfermentation?
Others who have used vinegar to acidify their dough to prevent rope infection believes that the product they made by such is declared as sourdough?
Might be disgusting to a purist?but literally it can still be called sourdough as the bread has some ?tangy note? when tasted..