Hi, Thanks for a great forum....just stumbled upon this today! I have just made my first ever starter this morning and was hoping for some guidance.....I mixed 1 cup of white Spelt with 1 cup of yogurt/with some whey and 1 cup of RT filtered rain water, stirred and is now sitting with a cloth cover. One receipe I have says to feed it daily , the other receipe just says to leave this for several days and do nothing but wait. Having read a few of the suggestions on the forum I am wondering what is the best thing to do?
Thanks in advance, Indigo.
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Hi Indigo. You're on the right track. Just watch your starter for signs of life. You'll see little bubbles and the mass will increase at least some, probably a lot. After some time of this (just how much time depends on so many variables that it's impossible to nail it down very precisely) your starter will peak and then slow, settling back as it does.
At or after the peak is when you have to feed it. That's when it's hungry. Feeding it before it's ready will set it back, and feeding it more will set it back even more.
If you go more than a week without seeing activity then it's probably time to start over. If your starter gets moldy I would start over. Sometimes it takes a few tries, so don't be discouraged.
Rye makes a good starter even if you don't want rye bread. I think the ratio that worked for me was a half cup each of rye and wheat flour and one cup of water. Mix together and let 'em sit.
Good luck,
Muff
Thanks Muff,
Have just returned from the shops with some organic Rye. Your information makes a lot of sense to me, and I feel clearer on the process.
Fingers crossed!
Indigo.
Hi Indigo,
I have just started my starter this evening too. Scary stuff! Good luck with yours. Keep me posted and I will check in with you to update you on mine.
Cheers!
C
How is your starter coming along Corinne?
I decided to experiment and have divided my 3 day old starter in two - one bowl is being fed from today with rye and water, the other has been made into a very liquidy mixture with added water, organic molasses, organic rye, celtic sea salt and stirred . Both seem to be causing a few bubbles to rise already. I hope to maybe make something from the second bowl - not sure what - tomorrow evening. Depends what it looks like by then!
Indigo.
Hi everyone,
Have been feeding my starter for >2wks, bubbling and smelling like the sweetest sourdough could! Feeling excited about creating my loaves, firstly I followed the recipe for white sourdough, my starter was thick and bubbley 200g, white flour 500g, 10g salt, 320h2o. Hand mixed, prooved as per recipe, but did not see the expected doubling of dough size. Total proving time 21/2hrs, baked at 220celcius 25min. My loaves looked heavy and uncooked, please help me to bake a risen artisan sourdough loaf... Much gratitude and heart felt thanks, Crystalmama
I am also a relative newbie, but one item in your method seemed to stand out. The proving time seems very short at 2 1/2 hrs. I would think that you should be looking at more like 4 to 6 hours depending on how active your starter is. I am sure others with more experience will chime in and give you some more in depth advice.
Polo