[Ag-eq] Taming wild yeasties

Sat Dec 15 15:04:07 UTC 2018

Thanks Aaron.  How long did it take for your starter to get going?  Did you
start it in winter or summer?
My book does say that the flour should have enough yeast to get started,
with patience.
The method I'm using is to combine 100 grams of water and 50 grams of flour,
stir them up good, and put the mix in a clean jar or bowl, cover it loosely,
and leave it on the counter for as long as it takes to smell/taste right.
Then mix it up, take a tablespoonful, and add it to another 100 grams of
water and 50 grams of flour.  Repeat until it actually leavens, and still
tastes and smells good.
Mine does taste and smell good, kind of like wine or beer with no hops.
It's zingy, and not bitter.  But so far it doesn't leaven.
I'm happy to keep trying, though.  It's only about half a cup of flour at a
time, so it's not a big investment.
If you think it makes a difference, and mine doesn't take off in the next
couple weeks, I'll hold off until the weather gets warmer.
Tracy

-----Original Message-----
From: Ag-eq [mailto:ag-eq-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Aaron Cannon via
Ag-eq
Sent: Friday, December 14, 2018 7:03 PM
To: Agricultural and Equestrean Division List
Cc: Aaron Cannon
Subject: Re: [Ag-eq] Taming wild yeasties

My wife and I have been making sourdough for years, and we love it!
Unfortunately, the reality is that there is a lot of bad advice that's been
passed down through the years that just isn't true. One of the biggest
misconceptions is that you can help jumpstart your starter by adding yeast
from other sources, such as grapes, leaves or other things. I've even heard
of an old guy who swore that he kept his starter very healthy by spitting in
it every so often. :) The truth is that there are hundreds of thousands of
types of yeast, and you are only interested in a very few kinds. Namely, you
want the ones that are adapted to living on wheat. You're also looking for
lactobacilli, which is a type of bacteria that consumes the dead yeast, and
produces lactic acid. These acids are what give your bread the sour flavor,
and that also act as a type of antibiotic, to keep your culture from being
invaded by less desirable microorganisms, such as mold and such. Anyway, the
best place to find this 
 type of bacteria and yeast is on the plants they are adapted for, I.E.
wheat/flour.

They did a study a while back, where they heated the flour to kill off all
the yeast on it. They wanted to see if the yeast in sourdough starter were
caught from the air, or already found on the grain. The result was that they
were unable to get a starter started from the staralized flour, but feeding
that already staralized flour to an existing starter showed no ill effects.

I'd be happy to mail you some of our starter. It can sometimes be easier to
start out with an established starter, and then try creating your own, once
you know what healthy starter smells/feels like.

Can you tell me more about the process you used to create your own starter?
Perhaps I can offer some tips.

Once you get a starter going, unless you plan to make bread with it often,
you should probably keep it in the fridge. Keeping it on the counter
requires at least daily feedings, whereas with starter kept in the fridge,
you are fine with once every week or two.

Good luck. Sourdough is amazing!

Aaron

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> On Dec 14, 2018, at 14:06, dogwood farm via Ag-eq <ag-eq at nfbnet.org>
wrote:
> 
> Tracy,
> 
> I don't know much about wild yeast except when it comes to fruit wines
> and some beers that are brewed in Germany.  However, reference yeast
> starters for breads, you need to put your starter in a warm place and
> covered.  Matt puts his starter in a container with an airtight lid.
> This traps the heat from the yeast as it firments and that also helps
> keep it warm.  His starters, which have different names depending on
> the process and what kind of bread he is making.
> 
> Susan
> dogwoodfarm62 at gmail.com
> 
>> On 12/14/18, Tracy Carcione via Ag-eq <ag-eq at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> I'm having some fun, running experiments in microbiology, aka creating my
>> own sourdough starter, trying to convince wild yeasts to come play with
me.
>> 
>> I have a guidebook, The Sullivan Street Bakery cookbook.  It describes
well
>> how the starter should smell and taste when it's ready to use.  I thought
>> mine could be ready to go, but it didn't actually leaven, so I added some
>> store-bought yeast and made bread anyway.  Even so, it added a nice taste
>> to
>> the bread.
>> 
>> The book says that, when the yeasts have done their thing, there will be
a
>> foamy residue of flour on the side of the jar.  I thought I could feel
>> that,
>> but maybe I'm mistaken.
>> 
>> The book also says that I could catch more yeast by getting some off
leaves
>> in the garden, like kale or cabbage leaves.  It says the yeast is a
>> powdery,
>> water-resistant layer on the underside of a leaf, but I'm not sure how to
>> tell that from dirt or whatever.  Not to mention that most of my leaves
>> have
>> now frozen.  I'm sure the cold isn't helping my experiments, even inside.
>> 
>> However, it's a small investment in time and flour, so I'll keep carrying
>> on.  According to the book, I can create a starter that is to my taste,
and
>> not as sour and sharp as the stuff sold commercially.
>> 
>> Tracy
>> 
>> 
>> 
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