Eat well, well to do? (was)SC - To the Ladies of the List-OT-OOP

[Shari Burnham]

> But I have a question...I love making sour dough bread.....but to me it is
> never sour enough....can it be made sourer ? is that the proper way to say
> it even?
> Stacie
> 
> 
The best sourdoughs are produced by a symbiotic reaction between Candida
milleri, a strain of Saccharomyces exiguus, and Lactobacillus sanfrancisco.
The reaction does not occur with S. cerevisiae (regular bread yeast).

C. milleri strengthens the gluten and L. sanfrancisco improves the
fermentation of the maltose and provides the characteristic sourness.
Unfortunately, most of us are not in San Franciso where this combination is
readily available. 

To make a sourdough starter, in a bowl, mix 2 cups of flour with one cup of
water.  Place the bowl on the counter and wait.  It does not matter whether
the bowl is covered or uncovered.  The water and the flour will activate a
natural amylase reaction to convert starch into sugar.  The yeasts present
in the flour will use the sugar to ferment the dough and create a sourdough.


Exposing the starter to the air increases the probability of gathering wild
yeasts and lactobacilli in the starter.  None of this insures a good starter
or decent sourdough.  That is the luck of the draw.  If you have problems
with bugs, tape a couple layers of cheese cloth over the starter bowl.  If
it is sealed to the sides of the bowl, it will keep most bugs out, but let
the yeasty beasties in.

In my opinion, most recipes for sourdough starter are too complex and depend
on S. cerevisiae to boost them, which defeats the idea of wild yeast and
lactobacillus.  I am considering trying a little sour cream or buttermilk to
initially boost the lactobacilli in the starter, but this introduces other
organic compounds which may be susceptible to molds and other infections.

If you have a starter.  Try leaving it on the counter and feeding it twice a
day with 1/4 cup of water and 1/2 cup of flour.  Use a big bowl, and be
ready to bake two or three times a week.  Keeping the starter on the counter
makes it more active than keeping it in the refrigerator and it needs to be
fed regularly to keep it from dying.

If the bread still isn't sour enough, try baking bread made with starter,
water, flour and salt.  Leave out the shortenings, the sweeteners, and the
yeast.  Your first rise will likely take 8 to 12 hours.  Your second rise
will take 1 to 2 hours. 

Bear  
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