Playing with sourdough Hearth Bread and Flatbread Discuss Playing with sourdough in the Brick Oven Cooking forums; Here's a cross section of the olive levain. The results of this indicate that the problem with my other loaves ...

[rlf5]

Here's a cross section of the olive levain. The results of this indicate that the problem with my other loaves are a result of the weak culture I had. This loaf made with the very active culture I purchased gave a crumb I thought I could have never achieved. If I didn't make it myself I would think the loaf was enriched. So of course my next task is to make another batch of regular sourdough with my orginal culture which happens to be very active now. Although I must say that I prefer the flavor of the culture I cultivated here...much more depth.

[ricflo]

all new at this, what is the sour dough starter receipe? Duh!!!

[rlf5]

I pretty much used the following recipe and schedule. Its more or less from Reinhart's Bread Baker's Apprentice. I began with water at first but had to start over b/c it grew mold. I began again using the juice for the first two or three feedings, and all went well.

Procedure for Making Sourdough Starter
Wild Yeast Sourdough Starter | The Fresh Loaf



Day 1: mix...
2 T. whole grain flour (rye and/or wheat)
2 T. unsweetened pineapple juice or orange juice
Cover and let sit at room temperature for 24 hours.

Day 2: add...
2 T. whole grain flour
2 T. juice
Stir well, cover and let sit at room temperature 24 hours. At day 2 you may (or may not) start to see some small bubbles.

Day 3: add...
2 T. whole grain flour
2 T. juice
Stir well, cover and let sit at room temperature 24 hours.

Day 4:
Stir down, measure out 1/4 cup and discard the rest.
To the 1/4 cup add...
1/4 cup flour*
1/4 cup filtered or spring water

*You can feed the starter whatever type of flour you want at this point (unbleached white, whole wheat, rye). If you are new to sourdough, a white starter is probably the best choice. All-purpose flour is fine--a high protein flour is not necessary.

Repeat Day 4:
Once daily until the mixture starts to expand and smell yeasty. It is not unusual for the mixture to get very bubbly around Day 3 or 4 and then go completely flat and appear dead. If the mixture does not start to grow again by Day 6, add 1/4 tsp. apple cider vinegar with the daily feeding. This will lower the pH level a bit more and it should wake up the yeast.

[rlf5]

My third run at the Vermont Sourdough. I'm pretty sure most of my problems before were from having a culture that wasn't quite mature or active enough. I made this batch with the original culture I cultivated, and its activity was such that it would double in volume after a feeding in about 6-8 hours. Everything came out pretty well...much better than all my previous attempts, but I think i'd like a bit softer crumb. My culture is so active now, that it will double in about 4 hours or less, and more than triple in volume in 12 hours. So we'll see how the next batch of loaves I make turn out. Now that I've more or less got this down, I can really start baking some bread. It was actually good that I had to keep making this loaf over and over again, because I learned a lot about it each time. I don't think that would have happened had I got it right the first or second time. Plus working with the dough strictly by hand allowed me to gauge, by feel, how the dough was progressing.

[CanuckJim]

RLF,

You are very, very close. Just need to get those very large holes a bit smaller, and you're away. This is not something you can do in a few tries; it takes quite a bit longer. Again, review your photographs from then until now: look at the spring, volume and crumb, first to last. You are on the fast track. Keep it up.

Jim

[rlf5]

Yea, I didn't mean to imply that I got it. Just that I got one leg over the hurdle. I have quite a long way to go, but at least now I know a little bit more to get me there. Thanks again!

[CanuckJim]

RLF,

In my experience with my bread course students, you've come a very long way very quickly, so congrats. Maybe, just maybe, one day I will bake the perfect sourdough hearth bread. I'm still running the hurdles, too.

Jim

[asudavew]

looks awesome to me!

[Dutchoven]

My hat is off to you! Those are really nice looking loaves of bread! Come a long way in a short time is spot on. Just curious, what do you mean by softer crumb?
Great job!
Dutch

[rlf5]

Thanks guys! The crumb was a bit more chewy than I'd like...but just barely. This was a result of it being a bit too dense, or maybe it didn't have enough water. My earlier loaves were so dense and chewy that my jaw muscles would be fatigued after eating a few pieces. The more the culture matured, the more manageable the crumb became. The funny thing is the second half of loaf I had last night was just fine. Hopefully one day I'll be able to get up to Ontario for one of Jim's courses.