Sourdough Starter Lost Mojo
So I'm using Peter Reinhart's sourdough starter recipe which involves making a "seed culture" over four or five days and then converting that into a starter that gets refreshed.
The first couple 24 hour periods for the seed culture went great. The thing bubbled and rose like crazy. But then something strange started to happen...it just...got less and less virile. While it's supposed to rise more and more, it is doing so less and less. While it rose probably 50% the 2nd night, it rose MAYBE a SLIVER last night.
Should I just go ahead and make the starter anyway and see what happens? And what could have happened to it? Soap residue on a mixing bowl or something? I'm worried this is going to be a futile process for me and slightly peeved that things seemed to going so well early on just to completely stall like this.
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10 Comments:
Not familiar with Reinhart's recipe. Usually though a starter is seeded with some kind of natural yeast. I have used grapes based on Nancy Silverton's recipe, Michael Ruhlman has recently written about organic cabbage as the seed, some of the bakers on hear just use flour and water. Once it starts bubbling it is aged for several days to develop flavor. During that aging, it can run through it's food supply and slow down. Sometimes a watery substance will separate out. Stirring a starter helps.
Follow the guidelines of the recipe. After the prescribed amount of time, start on the feedings. If after the first feeding things don't pick up then I would be concerned. Maybe after the second if there are no signs of life, you should probably toss and start over. Sourdoughs don't really rise like you described. They do become active and bubble. Doughs rise after flour, water, and the starter are mixed together.
I have had great success with tap water but maybe you could use filtered or distilled water. Also soap would definitely cause issues. You need a clean glass or plastic vessel to get started. What are the temps you are storing at?
climbhighak at 11:37PM on 08/29/09
Hrm...yeah, his recipe calls for a wild yeast...umm...culture? Basically just flour and water and let it sit for 24 hours. Then add flour and water and let it sit for 24 hours. Then discard half, add flour and water and let it sit for 24 hours.
And it was going great until it wasn't :P
And yeah...I'm using filtered water...I had thought about that. But since it worked well early on, I feel like it's probably not a water issue. Thanks though....flummoxing :)
lawofmurphy at 12:43AM on 08/30/09
Oh...and I have a big glass jar...well cleaned...storing at room temp...70-72...
lawofmurphy at 1:05AM on 08/30/09
It hasn't responded at all after feeding or stirring?
I am of the opinion that yeast needs to be seeded. Many will differ on that opinion but that is why I have used Silverton's grape recipe out of "The Breads of LaBrea Bakery". It was on an old episode of Julia Child, so it has to be good.
The technique of letting water and flour sit together to get a sourdough starter in my opinion depends on enough natural yeast flying by and landing on your starter. So leave uncovered. If you are banking on yeast being in your flour then I would make sure it is unbleached organic. Even then I am skeptical. Foolish poolish and others will say different but I live in Alaska so banking on stuff floating in the air is a bet with different odds than a baker from down south.
So the pooliish was active for a bit and then stopped? Or are you saying the dough rose a bit but didn't rise to the expected volume?
climbhighak at 2:29AM on 08/30/09
I'd try feeding it a little and see if it responds. Starters will go flat if not fed on the right schedule. Yours might have gotten exhausted before it was supposed to, but should wake up if fed again.
You can also get a pretty good starter from King Arthur Flour, which I use since it's grown in Vt and so am I. When theirs arrives it's flat and has to be reawakened.
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/items/classic-fresh-sourdough-starter-1-oz
Here are their sourdough tips:
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/tips/sourdough-tips.html
lemonfair at 7:05AM on 08/30/09
@climbhighak
It was very active early on...like...way more active than anticipated. But all the activity seems to have stopped.
The process I used is similar to this one... http://www.wildyeastblog.com/2007/07/13/raising-a-starter/
Except instead of rapidly gaining momentum, I started strong and fizzled out.
lawofmurphy at 10:30AM on 08/30/09
If it started that strong, it may just have run out of available food at the moment. Stirring the starter (like kneading dough) redistributes the yeast and the food so that it can eat again once they've chowed down on what's close by. And for a yeast, "close" is really close. Adding more flour (or flour and water, if keeping the right hydration is important) will also perk them up again. I've never used anything but flour and water for my starters, and I've never had a problem with them. And some of the ones in my fridge now are over 10 years old.
dbcurrie at 1:26PM on 08/30/09
I've had really good luck with this guy's method http://www.sourdoughhome.com/startermyway.html - so long as I stick with the whole wheat flour. It definitely goes through periods of less happy, but I just kept feeding it morning and night.
Now it goes through a process like: feed, quiet for about 2 hours, active for about 2 hours, settles back down until next feeding.
ansate at 1:44PM on 08/30/09
I used only flour and water when I started my latest starter, and it's doing just fine. It waxes and wanes every now and then, based on exactly the reasons @dbcurrie listed, I believe. If I want to use it, I just perk it up with a feed and wait a bit until it starts bubbling away again, just like always. I would be willing to bet yours is okay.
mollykate678 at 5:59PM on 08/30/09
Thanks guys...I went ahead and made the starter with the culture. It's bubbling...can't say it's going crazy...but there are bubbles...so that's good I guess :)
I might even chance a bread with it soon...
lawofmurphy at 6:10PM on 08/30/09