Forum > Food
Sourdough starter: make or buy?
Lintu:
I love sourdough. Love love love. I tried making starter one time and it ended up smelling like rotten gym socks. We're talking way beyond the sour smell you're supposed to have. King Arthur Flour sells a starter. If you make sourdough, what do you use?
wherestheportojohn:
I am a king Arthur flour devotee. Squeal!
I have only made starter once, because it was a PITA.
We eat homemade rye bread, hearty bagels, but rarely sourdough.
Go ahead and try again, If you have the TIME...takes so long to get it bubbly and fermenting before you can even consider baking.
tip~~~> don't use tap/chlorinated water. Bottled works fine.
Another suggestion is to find someone who has initiated a starter and has some in the refrigerator which they can divide and share. :D have fun!
cindyleigh:
I've done both - made a starter and used King Arthur's. My homemade starter (I started with grapes, which are covered with wild yeasts) was much more robust than KAs ..it was also more SF style sourdough in tartness.
wherestheportojohn:
CindyLeigh,
OMG, my great gramma used to do sourdough starter way!
I'd forgotten all about it, since I'd not seen it done by anyone else for 40+ years.
She had lovely full grapevines growing in her small town Iowa backyard.
The chickens would try to steal the grapes, so our job was to keep the birds away while granny harvested.
I think I recall that she allowed us to bury the grapes in the flour, and then retrieve them again the next day.
That's all I remember about the starter.
She was an excellent baker, so I'm sure we enjoyed the bread.
Wow...memories came flooding back!
cindyleigh:
--- Quote from: wherestheportojohn on March 28, 2013, 06:57:44 PM ---CindyLeigh,
OMG, my great gramma used to do sourdough starter way!
I'd forgotten all about it, since I'd not seen it done by anyone else for 40+ years.
She had lovely full grapevines growing in her small town Iowa backyard.
The chickens would try to steal the grapes, so our job was to keep the birds away while granny harvested.
I think I recall that she allowed us to bury the grapes in the flour, and then retrieve them again the next day.
That's all I remember about the starter.
She was an excellent baker, so I'm sure we enjoyed the bread.
Wow...memories came flooding back!
--- End quote ---
That's great! I think grapes are best.
I am quite old school. I have a vinegar crock and make my own. My Italian side comes out in the kitchen. Sadly, it also comes out on the hips :)
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