April 13, 2023 - 10:12pm
When to tell if the sourdough is bad...
So, I have done sourdough starters several times before and am definitely an amateur at it. Because of my schedule, plus we tend to eat more rice than bread in my home, I don't make bread often so I tend to store my starter in the fridge often.
The starter creates liquid like it usually does in the fridge, but the last time I did this I left it in the fridge for several weeks. The liquid darkened to an almost black/brown color, and I was alarmed by this because I have not seen it get so dark.
Is this due to bad bacteria? Or is it because I left it in the fridge for too long unfed?
Can anyone give me pointers on how to tell when my starter has gone bad or how long I should keep it in the fridge for?
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It's normal, don't worry, just with time it gets dark. Try feeding it, it should come back to life :) good luck!
I'm with Ilya: your starter's probably fine.
Depending on how much bread-baking I'm doing, I keep my starter in the fridge for 3 - 5 weeks between feedings. Occasionally, it develops a bit of slick liquid -- sometimes clear and sometimes brown -- which I either stir in or spoon off before I feed it.
I have a backup starter that I recently restored after eight months untouched in the refrigerator. That one had a lot of liquid, which I poured off. I also scraped away whatever looked dry or unsavory and worked with what was underneath. After three feedings, it was good to go.
Rob
Clear liquid is separation. The starter can go a grey if neglected. It's fine. Just pour off the hooch, skim off the grey starter and feed the healthy starter underneath. Be careful with mould. A bit of white mould on top is salvageable as long as you're careful to skim the top to get to the healthy starter and thoroughly clean the container or transfer to a new one. Red mould is a "no-no". If there is reddish or pinkish mould i'd throw it away and start again.
Hey everyone,
Thank you for the feedback and the suggestions. These are all great things to know!