This is a good indication. I kept mine in the fridge as well, I’ve not much problem to reactivate it and the starter doubles in size after 2 feedings, but it seems to me that 1 day out of fridge is a bit short even if it is active. One of the bread I’ve baked with this starter, the taste was a bit funny, not really sour and with a certain “floral” smell. In the beginning we have accused the flour but discovered it was the starter, maybe not fermented enough?! I think 2 days or more may be more ideal for my starter, and it established an acidity that is more evident.
For a while, I’d tested to leave one part of my starter out of the fridge for several weeks, the starter became extremely acid, and even I fed it every 2 days, it became less active after a few weeks.
Is there a way to measure the rate of hydration?
I read a bit more on that, my bread starter (in terms of weight) flour : water - 1:1 but I don’t really keep track of how much starter starts off in the jar, I guess its between 100 - 200g, nor did I keep track of the feeding weight, varies from 30g the routine maintenance to 100g each feed before using.
Well, I thought it was the final weight, for example the 125g starter added to the recipe of 500g of flour that really counted. I have assumed that the micro organisms adjusted themselves in the jar. LOL. I don’t see much consistency change, unless I change the flour - water ratio.
You can make an educated guess based on its consistency,
but if you have been feeding it equal parts by weight water and flour, then it is 100% hydration. No need to keep track of how much is in the jar - as long as you feed equal parts flour and water each time, it will remain 100% hydration.
Both the total amount of starter and its hydration level can be important. If you use a very small amount of starter, the hydration level is less important because it won’t change the overall hydration of your recipe as much. Take your original recipe. If you use 50g of 100% hydration starter, your recipe will have 325g water and 525g flour or 62% hydration - only 2% difference from the original. That is probably not enough to notice a major difference in the finished product. If you use 200g of 100% starter, you have 400g water and 600g flour or 66% hydration. 6% difference is definitely enough to notice a difference in texture from the original recipe.
Deciding on the total amount of starter is more of a personal preference thing and depends on the behavior of your starter and how fast you want your dough to rise. 10% of the amount of flour in the recipe is a good place to start, but you can add more for a faster rise (or if you suspect your starter is lazy, LOL).
Thanks a lot. Understand much better now, and will put in practice.
I’ve another starter that is fed with milk and flour. It is to make brioche. Although it’s 1:1 milk flour ratio, the consistency is more like a thick paste than liquid as with a bread starter. Is it also a 100% hydration starter?
Yes, if it is equal parts milk and flour by weight, that’s 100% hydration. I assume the fats/protein in the milk are what make it thicker than the water starter.
I appreciate @biondanonima s thoughtful reply below and agree. I am primarily a sourdough baker, and I must confess that I don’t really get the concept of adding both starter and dry yeast, as most of the rise will then take place because of the dry yeast. I guess that you get some flavor benefits from adding the starter, but not the benefits of the long fermentation.
To address the initial question, if your starter is 1:1, and you are adding it in to an existing recipe in place of yeast, you subtract 1/2 of the total weight of starter for each water water and flour from the starting recipe as you suggested, considering the original weight of yeast to be negligible. This should not not change hydration. In regard to proofing, if you want to use sourdough year round in cold environments, consider using a styrofoam or other cooler and an electric seed starting mat (available from many online suppliers) for heat. Much more accurate than using an oven light, and really trouble free.
However, I believe you are was not talking about only adding starter to a recipe, but converting an initial yeast recipe to long fermented sourdough. I believe there is no one answer, and it depends on size of the planned bake and the flours you use. I generally use about 200 g of starter for a double boule recipe that encompasses 1000 g of mixed flours at 78% final hydration. If you are unsure of your starter, use more and subtract from the initial recipe as above. I use a 4 hour first proof after 4-6 turns, and an overnight refrigerator proof after shaping. I do not do a second room temp proof prior to baking. I would add that my starter is very active, and gets used regularly.
