Fall Sourdough Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Why doesn't my sourdough starter rise and fall? ›

Most commonly, the issue here has to do with temperature (which is very important). If your sourdough starter is kept at a low temp, even 70°F (21°C), it will slow fermentation activity and appear to be sluggish, taking longer to rise and progress through the typical signs of fermentation. The solution: keep it warm.

How do I know if my sourdough starter is ready to use? When your starter is reliably rising to double or triple its size and falling in the jar anywhere between 4-8 hours after you feed it (dependent on your ambient conditions and the flour you feed with) it is ready to bake with.

Things that Will Kill A Sourdough Starter

High Temperatures - preheating your oven with your sourdough starter inside can lead to your starter's demise - but it would have to be completely baked for it to be completely unresponsive to some TLC.

It would be best if you discarded some portion of your starter each time you feed it unless you want to continue to let it grow. Eventually, you need to discard the used “food” (flour and water) that's been used to sustain your starter during the last fermentation period.

Whole wheat flour is an excellent choice for creating a sourdough starter due to its nutrient-rich composition and potential for fostering a robust microbial community. However, it's important to note that the quality of whole wheat flour can vary between brands.

Honey: Honey adds a sweetness to this dough and helps balance any sour flavor that comes through from the fermentation process. If you are looking for whole wheat bread without the honey, try this recipe. Salt: Salt enhances the flavor and helps tempers the fermentation.

The best flour blend for creating a new sourdough starter is 50% whole-meal flour (whole wheat or whole rye) and 50% bread flour or all-purpose flour. I recommend a 50/50 mix of whole wheat flour and bread flour.

If you are simply trying to maintain your population, you can let it rise and fall before refeeding. If you still want to feed twice a day, try reducing your feeding ratio to 1:1:1 and see if it peaks in 12 hours. Different feeding ratios should just be used control timing of the peak (and feeding).

If your sourdough starter is left too long it gets hungry and exhausted. You will know because it will have doubled and then the air pockets start to collapse and the mix deflates. This can happen at any temperature, but it will be slower to occur in cool environments and much faster in warmer.

Let your starter rise at room temperature, ideally 75+ F (the warmer it is, the faster it will rise), until bubbly, active and double in size (2-12 hrs). When your starter is at peak height, it's ready to use. Eventually it will fall back down, and become inactive again. Then, you'll need to repeat the feeding process.

Should I stir my sourdough starter? ›

It is important that you stir the sourdough starter every day in the morning and in the evening. Feed the starter. Add 60 g flour and 60 g lukewarm water, stir well to combine, and let sit out for 24 hours.

Example of How To Increase Your Sourdough Starter

If you have 50g of starter in your jar, but you would like to have 200g of starter because you want to bake a few different things then you would need to add 100g of each flour and water to that starter to make 200g (because 200g divided by 2 is 100g).

While some starters might develop a thin layer of hooch (a liquid that forms on the surface), especially if they have been neglected, mould growth is a definite problem. A mouldy sourdough starter will exhibit visible signs of mould growth, which can vary in appearance depending on the type of the mould.

If your sourdough starter is obviously moldy, then unfortunately the starter has gone bad and should no longer be used. Mold on sourdough starter will look raised and fuzzy, and can range in color from white, yellow, green, blue or pink spots.

The more starter you use, the faster your dough will ferment - resulting in a less sour loaf. Of course the amount of starter is actually a ratio in relation to the flour - so 50g of starter to 500g of flour will ferment at a much slower rate than 200g of starter to 500g of flour.