| 2TORIAL |
| Learn2 |
Make a Sourdough Starter
(3 steps)
|
|
Ready...set...Sourdough!
Today, most breads doughs are made with some form of leavening, an ingredient which lightens and softens the texture of the bread. About a hundred years ago, cultured yeast was discovered in a French laboratory, and that's the leavener that's used commercially in many types of bread (and snacks like pretzels and breadsticks.) But for thousands of years prior to the French discovery of cultured yeast, bread was often leavened with a sourdough starter: a mixture of flour and water (sort of a mini-bread dough) that was fermented by naturally present airborne yeasts. When sourdough starter is added to a bread dough, the result is (no surprise) sourdough bread. This 2torial teaches you one method of making sourdough starter from scratch; although as with many kitchen practices, there are several possible variations on the basic procedure described here.
Why go sourdough? Aside from its prized flavor and texture, sourdough bread has been hailed recently as a healthful alternative to breads baked with commercial yeast. (Commercial yeasted products can cause indigestion and stomach bloat in some persons; additionally, for those who suffer from candida yeast overgrowth, ingesting commercial yeast can worsen their symptoms.) One of the basic tenets of modern nutrition states that the nutrients you eat are subject to their accessibility: are they in a form your body can easily use? If not, your body has to work hard to digest them, and much of that inaccessible nutrient may be passed out of the body as waste. Using sourdough starter addresses this issue in a couple of ways: sourdough's long rising time breaks down cellulose in the flour, and allows helpful bacteria (lactobacillus) to form. Both of these factors increase the availability of nutrients.
Last but not least, if you've baked bread with mixed success, try baking with sourdough--it's a baking method that can forgive many mistakes.
Before you begin
If capturing live airborne yeast and persuading them to reproduce sounds like a daunting task, don't worry--it's a snap. Just lay out a nice space for the yeast, and they'll take care of the rest.
|
| |
Go to Step 1 of 3
|
|
| 2TORIAL NECESSITIES |
- 1 cup of water (about 250 ml)
- 1 cup (about 250g)of any unbleached flour: whole wheat, white wheat, and rye flours are some options
- A starter jar: any short, squat glass jar or ceramic crock, at least 18 ounces in volume (600 ml), with a lid
- A pot large enough to contain the jar or crock
- A clean cotton cloth
- A stove or burner
Optional: - A pair of kitchen tongs or rubber gloves
|
|
|
| OTHER 2TORIALS AND LEARNLETS |
 2torials:
|
 Learnlets:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
