But today is a new day, and as in sourdough and in life, you can course correct and bring back the joy with just a little effort. So onto the Sourdough Update!
Day 4 Update
While my starter was very busy and active early on, it also acquired some uninvited guests. At first I had a darkish crust going on top, which is totally normal. But then when I peeked inside, I saw the guests had grown some dark hair! Fuzzies are generally not a great thing. |
| Oops. Some black fuzzies. |
But since I was ready to feed my starter, I just scraped off the top layer and threw it away. Underneath was a nice layer of bubbling starter. Sometimes I get minor infections like this. If you remove it and it's just on the top, you can easily recover. If the black has infiltrated the whole started throughout, you'll want to start over.
Remember, this is a science experiment. We are growing bacteria and yeasts! You want the good bacteria and yeasts to survive and the bad ones to dies off. The flour/water home you've created is ideal for the good ones to grow, so usually what happens is that they will win out.
Disclaimer, I am not a professional baker or scientist. So what do I really know? But I have been tending to my starter and baking sourdough for 9+ years and am here to tell the tale. There are lots of great books out there if you want more precision. :-)
Tartine's Bread 1 and Tartine Bread 3 is what got me started. The Bread Baker's Apprentice is also great. And the Cheeseboard has it's own take on sourdough.
Feeding the Beast
If your starter was bubbling and foaming on top like this, and you waited another day or two, then you are ready to start feeding your starter.
General Mindset
You are going to throw away a lot of this little creature in a minute. Say your goodbyes, but know it will live on and continue to grow. You might also feel a little guilt for wasting some flour. I had trouble with this at first. The initial starter does take a good amount of flour -- you need plenty of food for it to grow. Once you get it going, you don't have to feed it quite so much. Just think about it as an investment. In San Francisco, a really good loaf of bread can run you $9-10 or more. So what's a little flour? Keep your eye on the prize: Sourdough bread, sourdough pancakes or waffles, sourdough pita bread, etc...... |
| Making Pita bread tonight! |
Ingredients and Equipment
- Your starter
- Your starter food, or just a bag of all purpose flour
- A bowl
- A scale or measuring cups
- Spatula
Process
- If you have a crust on top or any fuzzies, scrape that out and throw it away. Wash your spatula if you a lot of fuzzies.
- Smell your starter. It should smell sour and a little bit like feet. You can taste it, too. It should taste a little sour, and well, like flour.
- Spoon out about a 1/4 cup or so into a bowl. This should be in the range of 50-75g of starter.
- Add about 100g of starter food (or flour). This is probably 3/4 cup of flour. More is fine.
- Now add enough warm water to make a thick pancake batter. Mix it up nicely.
- Clean out your container as it is likely crusty. Or use a new one.
- Pour in your new starter.
- Put the cover back on the jar and return it to it's spot on your counter. Ideally, it should be warmish. But if it's just not warm in your house because you live in San Francisco, don't worry. It may be a little slower to get going, but it will come around.
- Now we wait another 24 hours or so. During this time, you will see some bubbles start to form again.
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