Am I a sourdough lightweight? I made this starter from the LATimes this week, and tried the pancakes

J

joe

Well-known member
in the same article this morning, and OUCH, they were SO sour I had to overdo the butter and syrup (so much for healthy whole grain eating), and I had a bitter taste in my mouth all morning.

This starter begins with whole wheat flour and pinapple juice, and takes a few days to bubble. I'm still in the building stage where I'm discarding most of it and adding flour and water twice a day.

Does anyone know if that will tone it down or will it just get stronger?

I was planning on baking my first bread with it tomorrow but now I'm wondering if it will be worth my while

http://www.latimes.com/features/printedition/food/la-fo-sourdoughrec30ajan30,0,1467503.story

 
I rarely like sourdough. Even at Fisherman's Pier, the bread was so crusty that it hurt my

gums to chew. And the dough was so sour that my eyes watered.

Maybe I just had a bad batch, but it's never risen on my list of things to learn.

(edited) I just noticed the rather bad pun. It was totally unintentional.

 
I remember an article on the propensity of sour dough to be too sour for most...

...people, especially when tried at home by the home baker.

Maybe it was Cook's Illustrated. I'll check their website to see, 'cause I remember the article giving tips and/or recipes that mitigate the sourness effectively.

Michael

 
Thanks, you guys. I tasted my starter this morning after two more feedings,

and it was much milder. I guess I'm taming the wild yeast. I'll go ahead and try the bread recipe, but I'm making regualar yeasted French bread at the same time for insurance.

When I've made starters in the past I've used commercial yeast and they got more sour over time. I was worried that would be the case here, but I guess it's the other way around.

I'll check out some of these suggestions for next time.

 
The science is complex (at least for me) but the solution for a natural starter that's too sour

is to make a wetter starter -- up to 50% more water at the buildup refreshments. (This is for a natural levain, but surely the same principles work for a sourdough.) Too much sourness might be the result of too much acetic acid -- evidenced by a gluey dough and a bread that is dense and doesn't have much ovenspring. Too much sourness can also be the result of too-rapid rising (heat and humidity).

My starter is too high in acetic acid, and my doughs were sticky and the bread dense and sour (but delicious). A professional baker told me to use a wetter starter. It sounds so counter-intuitive (I want a *drier* dough) that I confess I haven't tried it.

Also at play with acidity/sourness are the amount of time between feedings, the amount of starter in the final dough, and the protein content of the flour. But all of that is beyond me -- I just cross my fingers.

 
That does sound counter-intuitive but I will try it if my starter contunues to be so sour. Thanks!

 
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