How to make sourdough bread...

[Michael Brinton]

My starter is finally ready. I didn't have much time, plus I needed something for lunch for the week, so I made sourdough sandwich bread. I used the Stella culinary recipe and switched in 100 grams of my starter. It came out good. My scoring needs more work, I think I am trying to use it more like a light saber than a knife; all slash and no cut. I would have liked maybe an inch or two more rise, but I think I may just need to use a 8 1/2 by 4 1/2 pan instead of 9x5.
Far and away the best sandwich bread I've ever had. I'm planning to work on my boule. And find more recipes to incorporate my starter into. (See you on the pizza dough thread :-) )

[RonB]

Michael Brinton - here are a few sourdough recipes to try:

http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/sourdough

[Breadhead]

Michael Brinton ...

Nice first loaf Mike. You built a starter, mixed some dough and baked a loaf of bread.👍 You're on your way to bread heaven. It's a craft you learn in baby steps, rarely in great leaps.

Scoring took me a long time to really master. I really don't know why because like everything... Once you figure it out it's like so easy.

The rise or lack of one using a loaf pan for sourdough bread usually has to do 2 things.

1) Final shaping before putting it in the loaf pan for final proofing. When you final shape your dough the trick is to use the Tension Pulls to tighten your dough as much as possible without tearing the outer skin. Then seal the seam at the bottom of the loaf tightly so it doesn't spring open during the oven spring process.

2) Final Proofing in your loaf pan. Once you place your tight final shaped dough in your loaf pan, seam side down you want to cover it with plastic wrap and allow it to double in size. At that point you want to do the "Poke Test".

The Poke Test is your final check to determine if your dough is ready to bake. Dip your index finger in flour, then poke your finger down in your dough about 5/8th of an inch and remove your finger quickly. If your dough springs back quickly and leaves no dent, it's not ready to bake yet. That's called under proofed. If the dent springs back half way your dough is ready to bake. If your dough does not spring back at all, it's over proofed.

Tight proper final shaping and properly proofed dough will give you maximum oven spring, a great rise.👍

Good luck on your boule.

[Thunder77]

My starter, Effie, is floating 24 hours after feeding!! 😀

[Breadhead]

My starter, Effie, is floating 24 hours after feeding!! 😀

That's unusual... Was she in the fridge part of the time?

There you go.👍 It's time to bake a loaf of sourdough bread!
It's quiet remarkable to me how simple it is to create a sourdough starter.

The really amazing thing is selling starter kits for sourdough cultures is actually a multi million dollar segment of the baking industry. Talk about playing on people's perception of it being very difficult.😡 Their scoundrel's those guys.

[Thunder77]

I know it's unusual. But I just wanted to try it. Yes, she was in the fridge for a while. I had originally intended to let her go dormant, but travel plans changed.

[Thunder77]

What really irks me is that King Arthur, who I genuinely respect, is into using that gimmick of selling starter "kits" Grrrrrr! 😡

[Thunder77]

P.S, my wife thinks that I'm nuts. "You never named a starter before!" I explained that I was wrong before.

[Breadhead]

What really irks me is that King Arthur, who I genuinely respect, is into using that gimmick of selling starter "kits" Grrrrrr! 😡

And they know more about sourdough starters than I do. They also know that beyond a shadow of a doubt that the starter kit they send in the mail, as soon as you pour water in it your local yeast is going to attack the foreign yeast in that kit. The local yeast will ALWAYS win that battle. It's nothing but a money hustle.😡

[RonB]

Hey you guys - take it easy on the purveyors of starter kits. Yes - it is easy to make your own starter, but there are tons of people out there who don't think it's easy, and they want "easy", so they see the kit as "easy". Same goes for lots of things - things like frozen hamburger patties and pizza dough. I wouldn't call patting out a hamburger either physically hard or mentally challenging. What about frozen prepared foods?I see multiple isles of that junk in every grocery store I go in...
Regardless of the reason people think it's hard, they do think it's hard, so they want an easy solution. Just sayin'

[Thunder77]

True, RonB. But I think there should really be a little more truth in advertising there. 😁

[Breadhead]

I agree with you both...

Ron... The only reason 7-11 exists and able to get high margins is convenience.

jgjeske1... A warning that we're ripping you off would be spot on.😆

[Gooner-que]

I started "Abel" on the 31st of July and this morning he was double in size! Amazing what a bit of water, flour, and time will get you.

[Gooner-que]

Does the starter need to be kept in an air tight container or just loosely covered? Also, in order to get more starter for larger baking projects can we just add more food to make a larger starter?

[Breadhead]

Nathan Schmidt ... Yes, I would keep your starter covered. It does NOT need to breath air. The seal locks out harmful bacteria.

Yes... After a dump and feed you just add whatever quantity of flour and water you're going to need for your next batch of dough, be it 100 grams or 400 grams.

[Breadhead]

Nathan... Starting and maintaining a sourdough starter is/was almost a lost craft. It was the ONLY way to bake bread for 1000's of years. Then someone created dried yeast that was much easier to levin dough with and people quit maintaining a starter. Now... Hobbiest baker's are reviving the craft👌

[chudzikb]

Damn Breadhead, they are flocking to learn! And that is a very good thing, because once you guys get this down, you will be very popular.

[MBMorgan]

New starter update: After a double dump and feed (from 200 to 300g) last Tuesday, Winnie (the Poolish) spent 7 cold and lonely days in the fridge while I was out of town. Got home last night to a rather lifeless looking starter ... so in preparation for his first feeding (and possible CPR) today, I set him on the kitchen counter overnight to warm up a bit. Apparently Winnie didn't read the memo about being cold, "dormant", and "lifeless" ... because this A.M., he was bubbly and floating like an Olympic swimmer! Just for luck, I'll dump and feed a couple of more times before actually baking something this weekend.

[Willy]

I am finding that my starter too can take a longer time between feedings than advertised and bounce right back, ready to bake a loaf. My starter is Vinnie (after vinegar--acetic acid).

[Breadhead]

New starter update: After a double dump and feed (from 200 to 300g) last Tuesday, Winnie (the Poolish) spent 7 cold and lonely days in the fridge while I was out of town. Got home last night to a rather lifeless looking starter ... so in preparation for his first feeding (and possible CPR) today, I set him on the kitchen counter overnight to warm up a bit. Apparently Winnie didn't read the memo about being cold, "dormant", and "lifeless" ... because this A.M., he was bubbly and floating like an Olympic swimmer! Just for luck, I'll dump and feed a couple of more times before actually baking something this weekend.

Your starter is tough as nails. They can take a lot of abuse without giving up the ghost. They don't like it, and it's disrespectful what some people do to a living organism but they will smile again after a few healthy meals. Think of it as them living in their excrement. You will learn to love Winnie for everything she does for you.👍 You are a team.

[Breadhead]

Damn Breadhead, they are flocking to learn! And that is a very good thing, because once you guys get this down, you will be very popular.

I wrote in this thread early on that my goal, other than helping Steve with his desire to learn how to make sourdough bread, was to see how much interest I could gin up from others. It seems to be working.😆 That's why I invited Chef Jacob into the Pit. So he could see what his content has accomplished. It's him, not me.👍

[Pequod]

Breadhead - you're more than a messenger. I dub thee the Prophet of Gluten. 🤓

[Breadhead]

"The Prophet of Gluten"... I like that.👍

You have progressed quickly in your bread journey. It really is an interesting study in my opinion, that NEVER ends, and fits nicely with our BBQ addiction because both require lots of waiting for something to happen.😆

I'm an EXPERT at waiting.👍

[chudzikb]

My family genuinely gets excited when I break out the stuff to make bread! And once you get it down, it is pretty easy.

[Breadhead]

Yes... It's pretty easy once you figure it out. People made bread this way for 1000's of years before they figured out how to dry yeast and sell it in little packets. If the cavemen could do it without an electric stove we can do it pretty easy.👍

[Michael Brinton]

So I figured it's the weekend I'll make a sour dough boule. I was through the slap and fold stage. Half way through stretch and folds when I realized I forgot the salt! I sprinkled it in, regressed into some slap and folds; then started the stretch and folds again. I'm still so new at this that it will be hard to say if this mistake will be the cause of any flaws in the loaf. Doh!

[chudzikb]

Stuff happens! You will be fine. The more you do, the more you know and the easier it gets. You will develop a "sense" use your new found powers wisely!

[Breadhead]

+1^ on what chudzikb said. You made the right decision to add the salt. The steps you took were smart. I think your boule will come out fine.👍

[Willy]

I have taken to putting the salt on top of the "shaggy mass" as soon as the dough is mixed and before the autolyze step. That way I have two chances to remember to do it.