Sourdough starter

I have kept a sourdough starter alive and kicking for more than a year.  I am proud of myself!

I was sort of intimidated at the prospect of a starter in the beginning, but it's really not that hard to keep up if you remember to feed and care for it.

So what is a sourdough starter, exactly?

Basically, it's a mixture of yeast, flour and water used to rise bread. Sometimes it's used in the place of regular yeast, and sometimes in addition to it.

Why would someone use this instead of regular yeast, which is readily available?

Well,  the starter develops a special "sour" flavor over time that can't be replicated with regular old yeast! Plus, it's just kinda cool.

When you use a portion for bread, you add more flour and water to it ("feeding it"), so it will take on the old flavor. Apparently some bakers have starters that are hundreds of years old! Pretty cool.

I started mine in early December 2010, and the flavor and smell definitely have developed nicely.

Here's what it looks like now. (Sorry about the awful instagram picture- my husband took the camera to his woodshop!)

There are a few ways to "start" a stater.

One is to use bacteria and yeast that is just floating around in the air and mix up some flour and water. It totally seems like it wouldn't work, but apparently it does. I haven't tried this method. You can read all about that here.

The second way is to just use a packet of yeast from the store, which is what I did. I got the recipe from this book, Back to Basics:

When Travis and I started dating, we had so much fun looking through this book! I highly recommend if you're interested in handmaking stuff and other "traditional American skills."  

So here's the recipe:

3.5 cups flour

1 tbsp sugar

1 package active dry yeast

2 cups warm water (105-110F)

Combine dry ingredients and gradually add water, beating until smooth. Cover and let stand in a warm place for three days. It will be bubbly.

Store loosely covered in refrigerator and replenish at least once every two weeks (I have gone longer though and it's been fine).

When you remove an amount for a recipe, replenish with 1.5 cups flour and 1 cup warm water. Let stand in a warm place until mixture bubbles well, at least 8 hours.

Tons of sourdough bread  recipes are available on the web. My favorite is King Arthur Flour's Extra Tangy Sourdough bread.  It is a BIG commitment to make, but totally worth it. I'll be making it this weekend!

-Jenny