Stay Connected

Thursday, January 23, 2025

Finding a Work-Around For My "Lazy" Sourdough Starter

I've been working on my sourdough starter for the past month. It had been sitting in the fridge for a couple of years untouched. When I pulled it out of the fridge, it took several attempts to get a good rise on a loaf of bread. 


Our house is so chilly in winter that the starter just could not get itself revved up. Perhaps a little mid-winter laziness is affecting the starter.  

Finally, about a little over a week ago, I stumbled upon something that helped boost my dough's rising ability. I doubled the amount of starter I used in each batch of bread. To do so, I also had to reduce the water called for in the recipe. The bonus is by using so much starter in each loaf, I didn't have discard starter to try and use up.


My starter is still not what I'd call robust. It doesn't overflow the jar after feedings. It just bubbles.  That could be due to room temperature this time of year in our house. But I did find a way to make it work.


I had to get the starter back in good shape so I could store it in the fridge again for a couple of weeks. This coming Monday I have the last of my dental procedures. I may or may not remember to feed a starter for a couple of days. 

This is the same starter I made in 2020 when I ran out of yeast. It takes some work to get a starter going from scratch (just flour and water). I wanted to keep this one alive for future batches. So I wanted it back in the fridge where it can remain dormant and not need feeding.

It never ceases to amaze me how sourdough bread can rise without added yeast. They are simply a combination of starter, water, flour, salt, and sugar -- nothing else.

For the next couple of weeks, we'll eat yeasted bread. I can make 3 loaves at a time, and it's softer and easier for me to chew while my mouth heals.

2 comments:

  1. I haven't had sour dough starter for a long time, but enjoyed using it when I did. One time my mother was visiting and helped me by cleaning out my fridge and threw away my starter. I'm sure it look like something long past its prime. She felt bad, but I was able to get more from a friend. Good luck with your dental work. I know you will be happy to have it over.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ugh, more dental work. I hope this truly is the last of it for you.

    I don't have the patience to deal with a starter and I admire those of you who do. I was wondering--I thought you were sensitive to gluten, but I've read that sourdough bread is easier to digest for people with gluten intolerances. Is this true for you? It's so interesting to me how different methods of preparation can affect digestion.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for joining the discussion today. Here at creative savv, we strive to maintain a respectful community centered around frugal living. Creative savv would like to continue to be a welcoming and safe place for discussion, and as such reserves the right to remove comments that are inappropriate for the conversation.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Be a voice that helps someone else on their frugal living journey

Are you interested in writing for creative savv?
What's your frugal story?

Do you have a favorite frugal recipe, special insight, DIY project, or tips that could make frugal living more do-able for someone else?

Creative savv is seeking new voices.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

share this post