Baking with sourdough can be challenging, and there's a good chance you'll make some
mistakes along the way.
Making sourdough is far from an exact science - and that makes it a little difficult to
work with.
Fortunately, knowing some common pitfalls will help you get that perfect loaf.
The key to sourdough is your starter, so you're going to want to make sure you're doing everything
right from the start.
That includes storing it in the right kind of container.
There are a few different options when it comes to choosing a container, so first, a
word of caution: you should never use an airtight container, and there are a few reasons for
this.
First, as your flour and water mixture starts to ferment, it's going to increase in size
and give off some gases, like carbon dioxide.
If there's no way for the gas to escape, it's possible for enough pressure to build up that
it will crack or even break your container.
Even if that doesn't happen, the gas is going to take up room inside the container - and
you want your starter to have space to expand in size.
Plastic containers can also be iffy.
They can be hard to work with, and you might find your starter outgrows a small plastic
container pretty quickly.
What should you use?
Preferably, you want to use a glass jar with a wide mouth, so it's easy to stir.
You'll also be able to tell just what's going on inside your starter with a glance, because
let's be honest... it's an easy thing to forget about if you don't actually see it around
the house every now and then.
At first, sourdough can seem intimidating, because no matter how you slice it, it's definitely
high maintenance.
Especially the starter process, which can scare off potential bakers for being such
an unfamiliar thing.
The idea of keeping a sourdough starter alive can come off as being too much of a commitment
- but once you get into a rhythm, it's easy to keep your starter fed and healthy.
"You really start to geek out on it because you spend so much time experimenting, keeping
log books; I have log books over there of like 'What time did I put it in, what was
the temperature..."
Most starters need to be fed once every 12 hours, if they're kept at room temperature.
It's easy: just remove one cup of the starter, then add one cup of flour, a half-cup of warm
water, and stir.
That's it!
You can use the starter you remove to bake with, or, you can just discard it.
"What I like to do is actually give it to a friend."
"Oh!"
"It's like 'Sourdough Club,' y'know?
You start spreading it around.”
If you're baking outside of your 12-hour feeding schedule, you can feed it right away, then
go back to the normal 12-hour schedule.
You're going to end up with a ton of starter — and that might be a good thing.
But if you're making it faster than you're baking with it, you're making a huge mistake.
In this case, don't keep it at room temperature, just pop it in the fridge.
Stored here, you'll only have to feed it once a week, and it'll be much easier to fit some
sourdough baking into a hectic schedule.
Storing your sourdough starter in the refrigerator essentially slows down the fermentation process,
and that means when you're getting ready to bake with a refrigerated starter, you shouldn't
just take it out of the fridge and use it immediately.
Instead, you should take it out of the fridge, feed it as you normally would, and let it
sit at room temperature for at least 12 hours.
You're essentially reactivating it, and should start to see it bubbling a bit at this point:
feed it again, let it sit for another 12 hours, and check.
It might take a few feedings to get it active enough that it has enough "oomph" to react
properly and cause the bread to rise, but you'll know it's ready to go when it at least
doubles in volume over the course of about six hours.
Before you bake, you're going to want to make sure you add enough to the starter that you're
going to have some left.
For example, if your recipe calls for a cup of starter, make sure you have at least a
cup left in your jar.
Take out what you're going to bake with, then feed it again.
And here's the thing - don't just put it back in the fridge.
Let it sit out for a few hours to get the process going, then pop it back into the fridge.
Making a loaf of sourdough bread can take a long time - longer than most people can
regularly fit into their busy schedule.
And throwing away some perfectly good starter every time you feed it can seem like a waste.
If that's keeping you from trying your hand at sourdough, don't let it!
There are a ton of things you can make with that discarded sourdough starter, and some
of them aren't just yummy, they're quick and easy.
One of the best might just be whipping up a batch of sourdough crackers, or even homemade
pizzas.
You can also use it in other recipes that aren't going to take quite the time commitment.
Make sourdough pancakes or waffles, add it to your blueberry muffins, and it's even a
brilliant addition to a crumb cake.
It's not just for bread!
One of the biggest complaints you might have about your sourdough loaf is that it's very,
very dense when it finally comes out of the oven, and that could be because you didn't
adjust your recipe when you mixed your dough.
Basic sourdough bread recipes can be almost deceptively simple.
Usually they just call for starter, flour, water, and salt, but just because there's
only a few ingredients, that doesn't mean it's straightforward.
The amount of water you actually need might not be what the recipe calls for.
Different flours absorb water differently, so depending on the makeup of your starter
and your flours, you might need to add more water, or, don't add as much as the recipe
calls for.
If there's too much or too little water, your bread is going to be dense.
Unfortunately, there's no tried-and-true method for figuring out just how much water you'll
have to add or cut out - it's something you're going to have to experiment with, and learn
to recognize.
That's not to say we can't give you any guidelines, though, so here's a tip.
When you're kneading the dough, pay close attention to how it feels.
If it feels dry, add a bit more water.
You're looking for a dough that's slightly sticky, but not so sticky that it's hard to
work with.
Practice makes perfect!
Two questions: what exactly is autolysis, and why is skipping it a mistake?
Autolysis takes place when you mix your flour and water until it's barely combined, then
you let it sit.
What's going on as it sits is that the flour is fully absorbing the water, and the enzymes
that are going to contribute to the creation of your final product are activated.
Adding this extra step will create dough that's easier to work and requires less kneading,
and a final product that's taller, softer, and has a better taste and color.
Sounds pretty good, right?
And it's super easy - remember, you're just mixing your flour and water enough to get
everything wet, you're not kneading it at all.
Doing too much to your pre-dough and you'll start to develop gluten, and that'll end up
being worse than if you'd just skipped this in the first place.
How do you know when the autolysis phase is complete?
Pick up your dough, drape it over your fingertips, and stretch it.
If you can stretch the dough thin enough that you can see your fingers through it - without
tearing it - you're good to go.
You usually think of baking soda in terms of making something rise, and since that's
the job of your sourdough starter, you might think you don't need the baking soda.
But if you skip it, you're making a mistake - and here's why.
Adding a bit of baking soda to your sourdough will help keep your final product from coming
out too dense, and that's a good thing.
It doesn't take much, either - just add between half a teaspoon and a whole teaspoon to the
dough right before you start to shape it, and you'll find you get a lighter bread.
That's a win, right there.
Baking soda plays another role in sourdough, too.
If you have a starter that's a little too acidic, that's going to make your bread a
little too sour.
Add a dash of baking soda and it'll neutralize some of the acid, and you won't get that tangy
bite.
If you've made sourdough before, you know there are two proofing stages: one happens
after your dough is mixed, and the other happens after your dough is shaped into whatever form
you're going to bake it in.
You might also call it "rising" or "proving," but it's the same thing.
Now, did you know the temperature you let your sourdough proof at has a major impact
on how your bread comes out?
This is because yeast will consume sugars in different proportions depending on the
temperature.
It can get complicated, so here are some guidelines to keep in mind.
Yeast is most efficient if dough proofs at between 80 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit, which
results in a more mildly flavored bread.
When it comes to sourdough, though, you want some serious flavor - so proofing your sourdough
between 75 and 82 degrees Fahrenheit is a good sort of general rule.
If you want a more sour bread, you're going to want to get outside of that temperature
range to change how the fermentation process happens, and that means proofing either below
50 degrees Fahrenheit, or above 82 degrees Fahrenheit.
And yes, that may mean putting your bread in the fridge, or planning on getting some
space in some direct sunlight, but it'll make all the difference in the world.
When it comes time to bake, do you reach for a bread pan?
Next time you make sourdough, skip that for something else instead.
Baking your sourdough loaf in a Dutch oven will absolutely make all the difference in
the world.
Why?
Because the dough is going to release moisture as it bakes, and the Dutch oven will keep
all that moisture in.
The result will be a larger loaf, and a crust that's super shiny, deeply colored, and extra
crispy, just as a good sourdough loaf should be.
It's entirely possible that if you do everything the same way you would with a regular bread
pan, you're going to burn the bottom of the bread.
You'll need to either drop your baking temperature, insulate the bottom with a baking stone, or
sprinkle a layer of cornmeal on the bottom of the Dutch oven.
That'll allow just enough space between the pan and the bread to prevent burning, and
once you do it, you'll never go back!
With baking, you can usually find a great recipe and get the same results every time.
But if you're expecting that of sourdough, you're setting yourself up for disappointment.
Sourdough is complicated.
Your starter is a living, ever-changing thing, and it's one of the most important ingredients
to your sourdough - so that means you're starting off with something that's very different every
time you scoop some out.
It'll have different levels of moisture.
Different spores.
Different microbes, different contaminants - even dust particles can change your starter.
It's doing more than just changing, it's evolving.
Bottom line?
It's going to change, and because of that, it's incredibly difficult to get consistency
in your sourdough.
So, don't expect it!
What comes out of the oven can be a surprise no matter how much you've baked or how closely
you follow the directions, so don't expect consistency, don't get discouraged at a failed
loaf, and definitely try again.
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