Sourdough Mama

When we moved to Alaska my mother was given a jar of sourdough starter purported to be from a batch brought across the Yukon in the Gold Rush. She played with it, she fed it, and we were the happy recipients of many batches of sourdough biscuits, pancakes and more . . . .

When we moved to San Francisco we frequented the Boudin Bakery frequently (we even had our wedding rehearsal dinner at Bistro Boudin on the Wharf) and enjoyed bite after bite of crispy-crusted, chewy, flavorful sourdough bread. We enjoyed it with soups, for sandwiches, for toast with our eggs at Mama’s which was just around the corner and up a block from our cozy third-floor walk-up in North Beach . . . it was heaven.

And now that I’ve been learning and reading more about healthy eating, and soaking grains, and the artisanal use of wild fermentation processes, I realized what I wanted to try next; making my own sourdough starter for our home (though I admit I first I called my mom to see if she still had that old original sourdough mother dough left, but alas, it was long gone).

I reviewed the starter recipe in “Nourishing Traditions” but decided against it for several reasons. A) Notes from other blogs who used it mentioned that it was difficult to start and made a stiffer starter, B) It begins the starter by using rye flour. I don’t particularly like rye bread all that much and didn’t want to make an extra flour purchase when I had four (yes, four) varieties of flour already in my pantry and freezer, none of which are rye, and C) I don’t have a grain mill to grind my own flours so didn’t want to start with one that required freshly ground varieties with each feeding. I wanted a starter that I, and anyone else reading this post, could easily make with the items in their pantries and with, maybe, only a short, easy trip to your average grocery store.

So I went back to the Internet for guidance and came across this helpful post (with handy-dandy video tutorial!) on Breadtopia about making a whole wheat sourdough starter from scratch. Using pineapple juice in the initial feedings, the juice helps feed the yeast spores already in the flour, and keeps the bad bacteria at bay. I decided to follow this recipe and make two starters, one with organic, whole wheat flour that I’ve had in my freezer for probably six or eight months, and one with your average All Purpose, unbleached white flour.

Please note that this takes a few days to begin, but very little actual processing time. All you will need is a clean jar or container with a lid, the flour of your choice and a can or jar of unsweetened pineapple juice (and please keep in mind that you will need very little pineapple juice . . . I bought the average juice jug sized and still have it in my fridge! If you can find the little individual lunch-box sized cans, buy one of those instead!) I was very pleased with the results of this process; successfully creating both starters with the first try (though it did take a day or two longer to see any action with the white flour variety – I thought it was a dud until about day four and a half)!

• Day One: Mix 3 ½ Tablespoons flour with ¼ cup unsweetened pineapple juice. Cover and set aside for 48 hours at room temperature, stirring vigorously two to three times per day (I reminded myself to do it at breakfast, lunch and dinner – if that helps!)
• Day Three – 48 hours later add to your starter, 2 Tablespoons flour and 2 Tablespoons pineapple juice. Cover and set aside at room temperature for a day or two, stirring vigorously two to three times per day. You should begin to see some activity (bubbles on the side of the jar) by the end of this time.
  Day Five – 48 hours later, add to your starter 5-1/4 Tablespoons flour and 3 Tablespoons purified water. Cover and set aside at room temperature for 24 hours. Do not stir.
• Day Six – 24 hours later, add 1/2 cup flour and 1/4 – 1/3 cup purified water. Stirring vigorously to combine. If you do not have a healthy starter by now, toss the batch and try again! Store starter, loosely covered, in the fridge, feeding regularly (see Eric’s post here about maintaining your starter; depending on how often you use it and how much you bake will affect how often and in what quantities you should feed it.)

Wondering about the first picture, above? And perhaps the title of this post? I realized when packing for our Father’s Day camping trip that I had miscounted the process and we’d be leaving on Day Four. Worried that my Baby Sourdough Yeasties would die during our weekend away unattended, and realizing that I was scheduled to stir (and feed them) during that time, like any good Mama, I brought them along with us (along with pre-measured flour in little sandwich bags). Crazy? Probably. But they seemed to enjoy the warm afternoon shade under the pine trees.

The pictures below are taken the morning of Day Seven.

To the left, the outside of the jar of my whole wheat starter. Note the bubbles on the outside.

And here’s a shot from the top. You can see how the top looks kind of bubbly and thick. And it smells fantastic (surprisingly, the whole wheat smells a little like beer to me).

To the left, the outside of my white starter on day seven. The bubbles on the outside are a bit finer than the whole wheat starter.

Please note that both jars have the same quantity of starter, the whole wheat jar is just a bit bigger (a recycled pasta sauce jar) than the white (recycled salsa . . . if you couldn’t tell!!)

And here’s a shot from the top of the white starter. Again, the starter looks a lot finer and is a little bit thinner than the whole wheat version, but smells and looks great nonetheless!

Now that I’ve got Mason jars of whey and two forms of sourdough starter hanging about in my fridge, it is time for me to do some cooking! I’ll keep you posted on my next experiments!

For some more reading about sourdough and some yummy looking recipes, here are some helpful links:

About the Science of Sourdough

Health Benefits of Eating Sourdough versus Conventional/Commercial Baking

The Fresh Loaf; A great baking forum from experienced bakers, full of advice and recipes.

And of course, please visit Breadtopia, where I found this helpful information (and great recipes AND useful bread making items) in the first place!