December 22, 2009 - 6:35pm
Starter Too Sour
I have a starter that is about 3 weeks old (refrigerated after 3 days), but the bread I made from it is too sour. Should I toss all but about a cup and start feeding it for a day or two, then make my bread or what? The original recipe was 2 cups flour, 2 cups water, 1 teas. sugar and 1 teasp. yeast. How much water and flour should I add? Any suggestions will be appreciated.
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First of all, there are a lot of folks on this forum who would give their life for a REALLY sour starter so perhaps you've got a marketable formula there. Be specific about the type of flour, sugar and yeast you used. You may help someone who has a problem directly opposite the one you describe.
Sorry, I have no idea how you'd "sweeten" a sour starter.
According to Reinhart, if you want very sour bread, you only double your cutlure before using it. If you want less sour, then triple or quadruple it.
Sorry I might be repeating TG a bit. I read on www.sourdoughhome.com that if you want more sourness use less starter and more fermentation/rise/proof time; whereas if you want less of a sour taste use more of the starter and less fermentation/rise/proofing. Doing so adding less and more starter might change up the timing of your recipe.
-Diver
When my starter was new (Sept.), it took almost 2 weeks to develop, the first loaves were way sour. I prefer a milder taste and my starter has mellowed. I am just baking 4 loaves of San Joaquin Sourdough that spent 2 nights in the fridge instead of 1. It will be interesting to see if they are more tangy.
Merry Christmas
Steve