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Questions tagged [sourdough]

Questions regarding baking and working with wild yeasts and starters (also known as levains or chefs).

Sourdough is generally used to refer to baked goods made using a culture of wild yeasts and symbiotic bacteria (usually Saccharomyces and Lactobacillus, respectively). This culture may be referred to as a starter, chef, levain, or mother. These cultures are usually maintained by adding a mixture of carbohydrates (such as flour, starchy vegetable matter, and/or sugar) and water to the existing culture and allowing it to rest in a warm environment while the microorganisms reproduce. A portion of this culture is then added when making a dough to leaven it.

For questions regarding other biological leavening agents see , and for questions regarding chemical leavening see or .

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Does there exist a conversion between a sourdough and preferments recipes?

I tried asking a similar question: From regular fresh yeast to sourdough and didn't exactly get real answers, so here I am asking something easier. Is there a formula to convert a sourdough recipe to a preferment recipe using either biga or poolish…
Lolman
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Sourdough starter in hot climate

I live in a hot climate. Days average 85-90 F and nights only get down to 75 F lately. I started a SD starter from scratch 6 days ago. Using the King Arthur recipe found online, and whole wheat grocery store flour. I’ve been keeping 1/2 cup starter,…
Lily
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Can you fold dough during autolyse?

Would it be helpful, harmful or neutral to fold dough during the autolyse? Let's say we're doing a long cold autolyse. At first I assumed it would be helpful to start the dough development early on, but then I had to wonder if starting the gluten…
user50726
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From regular fresh yeast to sourdough

I know that there are formulas for switching from and to sourdough and or preferments, but even though my library grows I haven't found such a formula. I have a general idea of the fact that a sourdough bread usually requires around 40% of sourdough…
Lolman
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Which sourdough starter should i keep?

I decided to make 2 sourdough starters, to see if one would come out better. I only want to keep one and I dont know which one to choose. One has formed a hooch, while the other has not but otherwise they are identical in size, consistency, and…
user84026
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why does my sourdough bread have lumps of flour

I've made sourdough bread numerous times, however, I sometimes find hard parts in the center of the loaf. Whenever I cut into a baked bread (after rest) - there appears to be hard parts towards the centre of the load (seems like lumps of flour). I'm…
Denis Tsoi
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Maintaining a sourdough starter

There seems to be (much like everything else) different recipes, though most call for equal parts starter, flour and water for maintenance. However, one particular (and popular) blogger calls for the following recipe: Scoop in 50 grams of the…
Dandan
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Sourdough bread crumb ripped in two

I've been trying my hand at sourdough bread for a few months now and it is getting better and better, but this keeps happening, and I have no idea what might be the cause: My impression is that during the rise, the crumb tears into two pieces in…
fbence
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Can I make a sourdough boule, freeze it then thaw it and bake it?

I think sourdough yeasts don’t do well with being frozen normally, but if I’ve let the dough go through all of its rises and shaped it into the final loaf can I freeze it before baking since the air bubbles that will provide the rise in the finished…
Dugan
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How long should I let my new sourdough starter ferment until I can use it?

I am making my first sourdough starter (and bread of course). I started it 2 days ago, and it looked quite good while in the fermentation process. I only made a small quantity with approx. 1/4 cup of all purpose flour (as I didn't have any Rye…
Michael Ben David
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Sourdough starter with milk vs just using regular starter and adding milk separately?

How much of a difference would it make to the final product and which one would be the better choice for any enriched sourdough breads/pastries/cakes etc? And by "regular starter" I mean the normal flour and water mixture. Thanks!
CrackerJacked
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Bubbles Are ONly on Top of My Sourdough Starter

My starter, (new) is bubbly on top and rising but does not have may bubbles in its body.Can it still be use to make a Levin or dough?
Denise Nankivell
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Different sourdough starter behavior based on starter composition?

In general, what are the different "behaviours" of sourdough starter, based on their composition, all other things being equal?For instance a 100% white flour starter vs. 100% wholewheat flour starter vs. a white/wholewheat combination starter, all…
user73192
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Wheat sourdough starter - "swamp" smell

Some time ago I have grown my own sourdough starter fed with 50/50 wholemeal rye & all-purpose wheat flour (with 100% hydration). It turned out great, it normally grows a bit over 2x in volume after feeding over night, and smells in a pleasantly…
Greem666
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Small black spot on sourdough starter

I haven't fed my sourdough in about a month so I was going to feed it and I saw a black spot on the dough. I scooped it out and fed the sourdough.I'm worried if this could possibly be black mold and if so is it still safe to eat because i did get…
Ayden
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