Hi, I've been baking sourdough bread for around two years and been quite happy with the results except for the fact I would like it to be more sour. There are a lot of suggestions in the forum as to how to acheive this but I'm not sure which way to go. I thought if I detail my recipe and procedure someone may be able to suggest the best way for me go about this. By the ay I only ever make no-knead bread.
500gm Flour
327gm Water
194gm Starter
I take my starter (100% hydration ) out of the fridge and place it in a temperature controlled fridge set to 20 deg C and leave it for 3 hours. I then feed it 100gm flour and 100gm water and let it go a further 4 - 5 hours. I then mix my dough and put it in the temp controlled fridge at 20 deg C and leave it to prove for 15 hours. I also put my starter minus the 194gm for my bread back into the normal fridge. I then take the risen dough out of the bowl and onto the kitchen bench and let it rest for 15 min after which I put it into the banneton for an hour in the temp controlled fridge and light the oven. When the oven reaches 230 deg C the dough has proved enough and is cooked for 45 min in a cast iron Dutch oven. There is always plenty of oven spring, nice crust and plenty of holes. It's just missing that extra bit of sourness. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. The attached pic is a sourdough Rye.
Replies
The next time you bake, hold back 100g of dough before adding salt and store it in the fridge for up to 7 days before using it in your next bake. The old dough should add a nice tang to your loaf.
I also just came across this link
http://brodandtaylor.com/make-sourdough-more-sour/
Thanks Shasta, certainly some useful information and I will try the country sourdough recipe as per the link.
I found that If I feed my sourdough starter once a day (and maybe even skip a day), it becomes more sour. Here's my process:
Take starter out of fridge
Feed
Leave for 12 hours
Stir Starter
Leave for 12 hours
Stir starter
Feed
Leave for 12 hours
Start making dough
"Starving" the bread helps the bacteria produce lactic acid, which is what gives the bread its sour flavor. I stir it because there's still some flour that the bacteria and yeast can't get to, and by stirring the starter, it gives them access to the flour that they can't reach. I hope this helps!