All About Sour Dough .

[fundj&e]

I am wanting to know  uni if you successful,in combining  the starters.

Gert

only DST 1 and DST 2.  DST3 Is doing very well on her own 

now i know why you  need to remove some starter b4  a feed

[achookwoman]

DD,  should be fine kept in fridge.  Feed it as soon as you get home.   Enjoy the Wedding.

[achookwoman]

When I started the instructions for the Sour Dough Starter,  I made one at the same time.   However mine had to go in the fridge for a week as we were going away.  When we got hame on Thursday. Night,  I took it out of the fridge and fed it,  then left it on the bench over night,  On Friday morning I fed it again,  and Friday night placed it in TMX  ( 270g) and added 300 g of flour and 100g water.  And kneaded for 4 mins.
Left it in the TMX bowl over night,  and it had doubled but was flat looking.  Added 1 cup more flour and 1/2 cup of water to form a stiffer, more bread like dough.  Placed in castiron pot, sprayed with water and left in very warm room, 23 o, and went shopping.  It had risen nicely,  but not doubled.  Left it to double,  this was 5 hours.  Put lid on ,  after spraying with water and adding sesame seeds.
Baked 220o for 30 mins with lid on,  and 15 mins lid off.  Will try and post photos. 

[achookwoman]

Here it is .

[achookwoman]

Out of pot.

[fundj&e]

looks good ACW

[achookwoman]

VHJ,  I have been thinking about your bad starter.  If you have another go,  could you consider using boiling water to make your jar sterile..  The wild yeast is very sensitive to any chemicals.  I think this may be your problem.  I put my jar,  with about 1 cm. of water in the bottom, into the microwave for 2 mins.  Let it cool,  tip out water and you are ready to go. 

AB,  don't give up.  I think your problem is the cold environment.  Wait until things warm up a bit.  Have another go. 

[judydawn]

Nice loaf Chookie, did you slash that?

[achookwoman]

Nice loaf Chookie, did you slash that?

Yes Judy, when I put it in the pot,  but it out grew it,  then popped up in the pot.  The steam in the pot does this.

[judydawn]

Do you have to slash it Chookie or would it really blow it's top if you don't?

[Aussie Brenda]

Yes Chookie i will start another when it is a little warmer we are only having 11 degs at the moment and it is really cold outside, Your loaf looks fantastic i really want to make one.

[Cuilidh]

I am quietly excited at the moment (and hope I am not tempting fate by posting this too soon).  I made my first loaf last night but wasn't holding out much hope for success, to be honest.  The starter was pretty 'flat' with few, if any, bubbles, but I decided I had little to lose so went ahead.

Our house is very, very cold at the moment and when I went to bed lat night, I just left the loaf on the kitchen bench, not expecting anything to happen.  When I checked it this morning, surprise, surprise, it had actually risen noticeably - not huge, but definitely acceptably (to my eyes, anyway!).  So into the oven with it.  It's half way through the baking now, has risen some more and is looking great!  I wasn't expecting that to happen either.  Another 20 minutes to go and we'll see the results.  It will be interesting to slice it to see what it is like inside and what it tastes like.

I'm not sure if I should say this at this stage, but the moral of the story seems to be that even if the starter isn't looking too perky it may be worth giving a loaf a go and keep your fingers crossed - like mine are at the moment (which makes it very, very hard to type)!

[gertbysea]

Are we there yet?

Gert

[achookwoman]

Marina,  great to hear.  It is the cold that is the problem.  The result will be solid.  If you could give the loaf an hour in the oven at 50/70 o it would help it rise.  Even placed in a sink of hot water.   You have made great strides as you now know what the Problem is.  Our house is 20/25 o during the day,  and about 15 o overnight.  It can still take 6 hours to double.  Let us know how you go.

[Cuilidh]

IT'S FABULOUS!!  I have just taken a slice off it and it is perfect inside, looks good and tastes great (I even got the sesame seeds to stick on without the aid of super glue).  I was expecting it to maybe taste a bit sour, but I didn't pick that up at all, just a great taste.  I am so pleased.  Thanks you Chookie, Judy and Uni and everyone else on here who have posted and (probably inadvertently) encouraged and helped me.

I would happily devour more of it for lunch, but it's my neighbour's youngest birthday party lunch today, so the bread will have to wait for dinner.