Title: Sourdough Starter and Tips
Categories: Bread Info
Yield: 1 Servings

In about 4 or 5 days, the pot will be bubbling slowly and an aroma which you have never experienced on this earth will fill your kitchen.

You can help it along by using warm water than you've just boiled potatoes in; or you can sprinkle a package of active dry yeast over the flour before you mix in the plain warm water. That way you'll have a "starter" going in only a few hours.

Yeast is a modern innovation. The original sourdough did not use it ~ in fact, made it. Nowadays we use it to speed things a bit, and the same goes for baking soda or baking powder.

If you want real old-time sourdough, do not use yeast. The less yeast used, the richer and headier the sourdough, but the longer it takes and the trickier the recipes are. For example, REAL sourdough bread does not have any yeast in either the starter or the dough mix.

Some secrets of good sourdough cooking are:

~ Avoid mixing the batter too much. Over-mixing knocks the gases out of the dough, which are needed for the raising process.

~ Sourdough cooking requires slightly more heat or a longer cooking time than ordinary baking.

~ Never put back in the starter pot anything but flour or water, ESPECIALLY no sugar, salt, eggs, soda, or cooking oil. If the starter turns orange, throw it away!

~ Use lukewarm water, never hot or cold water.

~ Baking soda turns sourdough yellow, so you may wish to use baking powder instead.

~ Wheat flour in starter doesn't raise as high but works faster than white.

~ The batter should always be at room temperature when you use it. When making starter, first warm the pot with hot water.

~ Buttermilk usually requires a bit more leavening when used in most recipes.

~ Sourdough is amazingly versatile, and can be adapted to many recipes.

~ Remember, sourdough bread and pastries can be kept indefinitely in your freezer; they even improve with age!

Although a starter is simply flour and water, there are a number of ways folks make it - and, in fact, most sourdough cooks develop their own idiosyncrasies about it. Here are some variations ...

1) The formula we use is simply 2 cups of flour with a package of dry yeast stirred in, and enough lukewarm water to make a thick batter. I stir it only enough to break up the lumps, then let stand in a warm place for at least 24 hours or until the house is filled with a delectable yeasty odor.

2) Mix 2 cups of flour with enough lukewarm water to form a thick batter, and let stand uncovered for 4 or 5 days, or until it begins working. This basic recipe requires a carefully scalded container.

3) Same as above but use warm milk instead of water.

4) Boil some potatoes for supper, save the potato water, and use it lukewarm with flour to make a thick batter without the yeast. Let stand a day or so, or until it smells right.

5) Mix 4 cups flour, 2 Tbsp salt, 2 Tbsp sugar, 4 cups lukewarm potato water in a crock or jar and let stand in a warm place uncovered for several days. This one is my last choice, but for some strange reason it, or variations of it, can be found in practically every corner of the land.

6) Let a cup or so of milk stand for a day or so in an uncovered container at room temperature. Then add 1 cup of flour, mix, and let stand for another couple of days or until it starts working, after which it is ready to use.

From the collection of Jim Vorheis

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