Jack! I'm so frustrated! I just made a batch of sourdough and proved it for about 4 and 1/2 hours at 75° F and it turned to mush! Couldn't shape it couldn't touch it, it just turned to Bubble gum! All I could do is just pour it into the Benetton and pray! It rose about 50 -75 % 75% hydration...hope it bakes ok!!!
When making a starter they can go quiet (even when continually being fed), after an initial burst of energy, at around days 3-4. This is very normal. If you have fed it and it goes quiet then skip feeds! It has enough food because you have fed it and it hasn't bubbled up. It may look like nothing is happening but the starter is 'sorting itself out'. Don't be tempted to over feed it to 'wake it up' as when fermenting the pH is trying to drop. When it has dropped enough to support the yeasts that eventually take up home in a starter it'll begin to bubble up again. Should you continually discard and feed while it has gone quiet all you are doing is throwing away all the good stuff. So if it goes quiet just keep warm and stir every 12 hours. Should it become very watery then just thicken it up, that's all. Once you begin to see some sign of life then begin the feeds again. Start off with smaller feeds at first and increase them according to the strength of the starter.
I've come late to your videos. You're already moving on. Nevertheless I want to thank you for these videos and your way of teaching. You are a happy spot in a day of learning more about baking bread. Good luck with whatever journey you are embarking on. I bought your book. :)
This makes so much sense. Thank you! I bake gluten free so I'm not your target audience but I really enjoyed this video. After years of lackluster results, I've finally near- perfected gf bread-making. Finally I make homemade bread worth keeping fresh. I'll work thru some of your videos in search of tips, but gf baking really is counter to many traditional methods. Still, if your other videos are like this, it will be a pleasure regardless.
Quite a few years ago there were a lot of people reporting failed loaves around the country. They advised that because of poor weather the wheat quality had suffered. They advised to add some lemon juice to the dough and it solved the problem. Perhaps what she could have done, which people have almost stopped doing nowadays, is to proof the yeast before adding to the dough. Making sure it is healthy.
Have you heard of Salt Rising Bread and would you ever do a video on making it? I have wanted to make it for a long time but it can be tricky and I also haven't plucked up the courage yet.
Hello, I am wanting to make pizza's tomorrow but I'd like to make this recipe using sourdough instead of yeast...how could I adjust the recipe accordingly please?
I made sourdough focaccia and it was delicious but it wasn’t as fluffy as yours.. I want it super fluffy.. do I need to use more starter. I used two tablespoons of unfed starter. My starter isn’t very old, but it’s nice and sour, just the way I like it. Very tasty, just not so fluffy.
I’ve followed this recipe exactly but my dough is so sticky from the beginning it just won’t form a nice ball and is really hard to work with. It tastes ok but I can’t score the dough and it’s kind of flat after baking. Any ideas what I can do?
Thanks for explaining how the yeast can continue to inflate, and why the dough is so flat, and how the moisture is what inflates in the oven. Thank you for your positivity.
Ahhhhh make a skin…. Thank you!!! Brilliant! Not going to use a shower cap on top of my banetton for the final proof in the fridge! Time to get it naked! ❤
That's all good and well, but what we need help with is "what" to observe..."what" are we watching for...50% rise, bubbles, jiggly dough, poke test, etc...we don't know what we're to expect if we aren't told what to watch for. If I'm not educated, and i see that my dough barely covered the bottom of the container and then it rises to well above the container, I may think, in my ignorance, "great, it looks so happy and puffy", not realizing my dough is at its peak and now doesn't have enough oomph left for oven rise. Truely, thank you for your videos. I'm not trying to criticize. Only clarifying what I would mean by "how to tell when it's ready to bake". 👍🏻
I had my dough in the microwave (where I always leave it) in between stretch & folds and we were cooking on the stovetop…. Needless to say when I retrieved it it was VERY warm like a 200 degree oven and the last 2 stretches turned my dough into glue 😢. I guess it’s over fermented. It’s in the fridge in a rubber banneton. I may still try to bake and see what happens. 😮 that is off I can get it in the oven off a peel 🤣
If I'm making two full bread loaves with a 4 to 5 cup mixture... In my 5 cup mixer, 2 cups of flour salt and sugar, 3 cups of boiling water. High-speed whisk and it will come out a little Curded.. then I removed the whisk, use the beater bar, adding in the rest of the flour and the rest of the ingredients. Then I chill it. I treated more like croissant dough. Roll it layer it brushing light butter fridge until cool, then I take it out after one night of cold fermentation. Warm up the dough to room temperature, reshape, pan, then I use my Smart oven proofing at 80° brushing with half and half, egg.. then I bake it. Insane layers, fluffy. Yeast is a life form. Those life forms are breaking down the flour. You have to wake it up feed it put it back to bed spank it in the morning make it cry, feed it, then bake it.
Is it safe to use such amount of yeast to get it faster then use longer fermenation with less amount of yeast? i means is there any health problems or it doesnt matter?
