[Sca-cooks] Sourdough Bread--for the bakers here

[Terry Decker]

Remember the name "sourdough" refers to letting the dough ferment
spontaneously, not the sour taste.  The taste of sourdough can vary widely,
which is why commercial bakeries use citric acid to produce the sour tang.

The sourness of sourdough bread depends on the lactobacilli.  Lactobacilli
produce the lactic acid once the environment goes anaerobic after the yeast
uses up the oxygen.  The more oxygen or the less active the yeast, the less
sour taste.  The sour taste can vary between batches.

The fast rise after you start baking is oven spring.  It sound like you are
getting extensive but fine aeration of the dough, which expands dramatically
when heated.  Slashing the loaves may help the expansion occur more evenly.
If you do slash the loaves, make the cuts with a really sharp blade about
1/2 inch deep.

If the bread was good, I'd say you're doing things right.

Bear


>Well, based on the Platina recipe in the Miscellany "On Bread", I've made 2
>batches of sourdough bread.
>
>Here are the results:
>Batch #1. Used whole wheat flour, as called for in the Miscelleny. Starter
>had been fed early in the morning, and about 12 hours later I started the
>bread. Let it proof in the oven w/ the light on (we don't have central
heat)
>over night, for a total of 16-ish hours. Followed directions, and let rise
>again for an hour. Baked.
>Results: VERY sourdough. Crusty. I liked it, but my hubby didn't. Too much
>of a bite.
>
>Batch #2. (I don't like wheat bread) Substituted unbleached AP flour for
the
>wheat (well, used that for the whole thing). Fed starter at about 4ish, and
>at midnight it was still bubbling like crazy. Made bread following the
>directions with the exception of the substitution. Left to proof in oven
for
>13 hours. Again, followed directions, etc. Rise for an hour. Bake.
>Results: Still very yummy. Crusty. But if there is a sourdough *tang* to
it,
>I *barely* find it. My daughter says it tasted yummy, and there was a
little
>sourness to it. As a bread it was successful. As sourdough, I'm not so
sure,
>but then, I only have experience *eating* sourdough, not baking it.
>
>Questions: Where did I mess up? On both. The starter was the same.....plain
>flour and water. I can bake bread ok, it gets rave reviews w/ friends and
>family (as long as I remember the SALT). But I wanted to try the sourdough
>for a couple of reasons....I love sourdough, and yeast is expensive, no
>matter how you slice it.
>Why the heck to my loaves rise like crazy when they go in the oven to BAKE?
>I haven't slashed the top, would that help prevent the lopsided loaf look?
>We are talking about 3 inches here.
>
>Thanks,
>Amanda