Making starter? ? ?
Ray
success. But recently I decided to make my own, just as an experiment. After
a week or so of carefully following the usual instructions I managed to
"catch" a wild yeast. I made my first loaf today.
The loaf rose all right, albeit slowly, but I was astonished at the bland
taste -- almost no taste at all. Wonder Bread is better.
Is this the usual experience of home-made starters? Or is it just a
hit-or-miss proposition -- and the next time perhaps might produce a very
tasty one?
Kenneth
Hi Ray,
There are (at least) two issues...
First, yes, it is, to a degree, "hit or miss." Were you to
repeat the process, you might come up with a starter you
would prefer.
But beyond that, remember that your starter is still in
"infancy." If you feed it regularly, and keep it at an
appropriate temperature, it is very likely to improve over
time. Think in terms of months, rather than days.
All the best,
--
Kenneth
If you email... Please remove the "SPAMLESS."
Ray
I should have waited for your reply. Last night I threw away the starter
after one loaf of bread. But I will start over and hope for a better result.
-- Ray
"Kenneth" <use...@soleSPAMLESSassociates.com> wrote in message
news:92i7c49hm3i9fg00j...@4ax.com...
Kenneth
Hi again Ray,
If you do make another, give it some significant time
feeding it on a regular schedule, and at a uniform
temperature.
I suspect that if you experiment with it, you will find
flavor improvements for quite a while.
Ray
Sourdoughs International.
I've often wondered, if you keep separate culture near one another in the
refrigerator, will they contaminate one another and eventually become one
blended culture?
-- Ray
"Kenneth" <use...@soleSPAMLESSassociates.com> wrote in message
news:8n58c456nh0qps1vi...@4ax.com...
Kenneth
<rayj...@DELTHISverizon.net> wrote:
>I took the easy way out and ordered a couple of more cultures from
>Sourdoughs International.
>
>I've often wondered, if you keep separate culture near one another in the
>refrigerator, will they contaminate one another and eventually become one
>blended culture?
>
>-- Ray
Hi Ray,
(I would appreciate it if you would stop "Top Posting." Most
of us read from top to bottom, and so it makes it very
difficult to follow the thread.)
If you use reasonable techniques (not using one spoon to mix
many cultures without washing it, etc.) your cultures should
remain distinct. I have two stored side-by-side in my
refrigerator for about 10 years with no problem.
Sam
> [lots of redunant re-quotes]
> Hi Ray,
>
> (I would appreciate it if you would stop "Top Posting." Most
> of us read from top to bottom, and so it makes it very
> difficult to follow the thread.)
>
have to manually scroll down with a track ball to reach the actual
new information in your post.
(Been there with this topic before - no need to rehash it.)
Sam
Dick Adams
"Ray" <rayj...@DELTHISverizon.net> wrote in message news:ryYwk.764$sq3.672@trnddc07...
> I took the easy way out and ordered a couple of more cultures from
> Sourdoughs International.
>
> I've often wondered, if you keep separate culture near one another in the
> refrigerator, will they contaminate one another and eventually become one
> blended culture?
SDI's Mrs. Wood wrote here years ago that symbiosis keeps sourdough
cultures pure, apparently without much help from sterile technique. I am
moderately sure they keep their cultures together in the same fridge. So,
if you get two or more cultures from them which are mutually distinct, it
would constitute some evidence towards the answer to your question.
Your experience would be of interest here.
BTW, there are some FAQs:
http://www.nyx.net/~dgreenw/sourdoughfaqs.html
Kenneth
<sdnews-inbox...@samartha.net> wrote:
>FYI - my preference is top-posting, with your unnecessary re-quotes, I
>have to manually scroll down with a track ball to reach the actual
>new information in your post.
>
>(Been there with this topic before - no need to rehash it.)
Hi Sam,
It would appear that at least one of us does have some need
to "rehash" it...<g>
As I may have mentioned, on occasion, folks post their
comments within the text of the person to whom they respond.
I have yet to see anyone insert their additions above the
portions of the original comment to which they are
reacting...
But on a bread topic, I would be interested in your
observations about this:
Clearly, it is possible to make dough with very a very small
proportion of starter, all the way up to a very large
proportion.
Assuming that you have experimented with this variable,
could you describe the different results one is likely to
see as the proportion of total flour from the starter
increases?
Many thanks,
Sam
> Hi Sam,
>
> It would appear that at least one of us does have some need
> to "rehash" it...<g>
>
down.
>
> But on a bread topic, I would be interested in your
> observations about this:
>
> Clearly, it is possible to make dough with very a very small
> proportion of starter, all the way up to a very large
> proportion.
>
> Assuming that you have experimented with this variable,
> could you describe the different results one is likely to
> see as the proportion of total flour from the starter
> increases?
>
>
of 0.46 % of the Detmold 3-Stage process and whenever I do something
else - like doubling or tripling the flour content, the product is
inferior which, when it happens I often use to just make flat-bread with
only wheat flour (and rye starter) where it does not matter so much.
Not sure what you consider "very small" - 0.46 % may or may not fall
into your criteria. With "very large" - do you mean a higher ratio of
1st starter / final starter, like you take 100 g starter out of your
longer term storage and make 1000 g of final starter - that would be
something like 10 % or whatever other variations there are?
Sam
Kenneth
<sdnews-inbox...@samartha.net> wrote:
>>
>> Assuming that you have experimented with this variable,
>> could you describe the different results one is likely to
>> see as the proportion of total flour from the starter
>> increases?
>>
>>
>I may have - the result is that I resort to the initial inoculation rate
>of 0.46 % of the Detmold 3-Stage process and whenever I do something
>else - like doubling or tripling the flour content, the product is
>inferior which, when it happens I often use to just make flat-bread with
>only wheat flour (and rye starter) where it does not matter so much.
>
>Not sure what you consider "very small" - 0.46 % may or may not fall
>into your criteria. With "very large" - do you mean a higher ratio of
>1st starter / final starter, like you take 100 g starter out of your
>longer term storage and make 1000 g of final starter - that would be
>something like 10 % or whatever other variations there are?
>
>Sam
>
Thanks for the comments...,
Dick Adams
"Kenneth" <use...@soleSPAMLESSassociates.com> wrote in message news:t799c4lvdiugudrqi...@4ax.com...
> [ ... ]
> As I may have mentioned, on occasion, folks post their
> comments within the text of the person to whom they respond.
And some edit out all the crap to which their response does not
apply.
Mike Romain
Enh, why should I have to 're-read' all the crap in the thread to get to
the next comment. Seems like a royal pain to me.
(Yes Dicky, I didn't snip either, just to make the point about how
painful bottom posting can be.)
To also keep on topic, I have found the flavor of my bread has improved
with my starter's age. When it was younger the bread was pretty bland,
it's great now.
Mike
Some bread photos: http://www.mikeromain.shutterfly.com
Dick Adams
"Mike Romain" <rom...@sympatico.ca> wrote in message news:48c543a9$0$27095$9a6e...@unlimited.newshosting.com...
> Kenneth wrote:
> > (I would appreciate it if you would stop "Top Posting."
> Enh, why should I have to 're-read' all the crap in the thread to get to
> the next comment. Seems like a royal pain to me.
He is not here to learn. Kenneth is a Professional Communicator:
http://www.soleassociates.com/index.htm
> To also keep on topic, I have found the flavor of my bread has improved
> with my starter's age. When it was younger the bread was pretty bland,
> it's great now.
Assuming a decent starter culture, like Carl's or Mr. Baker, my experience
indicates that flavor and sour comes from a long rise. That would be the
age of the dough, not of the starter. How do you measure the age of something
that is constantly renewing itself?
www.carlsfriends.org
http://www.yankeegrocery.com/sourdough%5Fbread.html
--
Dicky
Mike Romain
> "Mike Romain" <rom...@sympatico.ca> wrote in message news:48c543a9$0$27095$9a6e...@unlimited.newshosting.com...
>
>> with my starter's age. When it was younger the bread was pretty bland,
>> it's great now.
>
> Assuming a decent starter culture, like Carl's or Mr. Baker, my experience
> indicates that flavor and sour comes from a long rise. That would be the
> age of the dough, not of the starter. How do you measure the age of something
> that is constantly renewing itself?
>
Well... Good point. Maybe along with the age of the starter comes a
little bit of experience too eh.
Still, I do think my starter matured or got better behaved or maybe more
predictable as it grew and refreshed itself, or experience again kicks in.
Brian Mailman
> Enh, why should I have to 're-read' all the crap in the thread to get to
> the next comment. Seems like a royal pain to me.
>
> (Yes Dicky, I didn't snip either, just to make the point about how
> painful bottom posting can be.)
The problem, then, isn't defined as "bottom posting." It would be
two-fold: 1) not snipping extraneous text; and 2) entering into a
pissing contest about who can be more passive-aggressive.
B/