January 27, 2010 - 7:34am
Question about % of starter to flour?
Is there a rule of thumb for the % of starter to use in a formula compared to the total flour (bakers %)
how long is it safe to let an enriched dough (just a TBS of butter) ferment at room temp?
Do low hydration doughs have problems when using sour dough starters? I am finding that while my starter is very active it is not rising a stiff dough. My first try was very wet and rose very well.
Thank for any advice Will
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I do many breads with the starter at 25%. I have done good breads all the way from 9% to 95% starter. What kind of hydration are you talking about for a dry bread? You might also try letting the dough ferment longer if it is a dry dough.
Thanks for your help lead dog, The formula is about 57% hydration give or take after compensating for the 100g of 100% hydration starter. the bread I made yesterday fermented for 12hours then proofed for 1hr. I had no rise to speak of but I could see and feel air bubbles when i did my stretch and fold. Once in the oven I got a good oven spring but the bread was heavy like a brick. The bread below I backed today after it fermented / proofed for 14hours. I still could see no rise but I was getting antey. I was prepared for another brick but it really puffed in the oven If it had not cracked i would say it was a good try. The crusts are very nice the bread is still very dense. Can I let it ferment for 24 or even 48 hours? I know I could add a pitch of yeast but the exercise here is to make a naturally leavened bread. Check out this link my first sourdough try
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/15859/need-advice-first-sour-dough-bread-try-slow-moe-bread
Formula:
100G 100% hyd. ripe starter
550 G white bread flour
295 g water (Bottled)
15 g sugar
10 g salt
15 g butter
TBS Milk
This is the yeasted version of the same formula
Yes you can ferment the dough for 24 hours under the right conditions. Here are a couple of links that might be an interesting read for you.
http://sourdough.com/blog/leaddog/exploring-bread
http://sourdough.com/recipes/old-country-bread
Things to consider. What is the temperature of the dough after you mix it? Is it cold? That will make the dough take longer to rise. What is temperature of the area you are fermenting the dough in? Is that area cold also? That again will take the dough longer to rise. You could increase the amount of your preferment if you want it to rise faster. I'm deliberately mixing my dough with cold water and fermenting at colder temperatures to get a longer fermentation of the dough. Is there a reason that you want the hydration of the dough to be that low?
I don't think butter is anything to worry about in a longer fermentation. You could use olive oil instead if you like.
My apartment is always in the low to mid 70's. The reason for the low hydration is that I am trying to stay true to the original yeasted formula. My commercial yeasted results are very much to my liking for a toast /sandwich bread. The crumb is not open but soft and fluffy. I will look at your links thank you. Also I am going to try a build approach. Where I add the flour and water in stages, keeping in near 100% hydration at first then at the end add the rest of flour.
Patting myself on the back. Well I changed three things First I raised the hydration to 66%, second I used a gradual build of the dough, Last I doubled the amount of mother. I still need to work on building more strength in the dough. But I am very pleased with this result. I would have liked for it to rise more up instead out.