Let's Bake Sourdough! (part 1)

I have loved sourdough for as long as I can remember; a staple of my childhood sandwich memories, sought our during high school lunch forays, searched for wherever I have lived.  Sourdough!  It is amazing, healthy and varies in flavor based on the location made due to the wild yeast spores.  Making a sourdough starter, to me, is like gathering wild flowers or searching for local mushrooms.  It takes time and patience, but is so worth the effort.
To make bread using sourdough starter, although not difficult, takes a little knowledge of bread making.  You need to be able to read your dough as exact measurements are almost impossible to say.  You need to be able to touch the dough, and tell by feel when you have enough flour to hold a rise. But, most importantly, you must be able to tell when you have your starter at the right consistency to get the sourdough flavor you are looking for.

Because the starter is the foundation of the loaf, it is the first thing that must be mastered.  This part is easy! Starter will be the focus for this post.  If you have never made one, you will be surprised as to how easy it actually is!

Now, I don't know if this is true or not, but years ago a baker told me that if you bake frequently using yeast, that you have tons of yeast spores floating around in your kitchen.  Personally, I think there are yeast spores everywhere.  You find them on fruits and vegetables.  They are floating around, waiting for a place to land and make little yeast children.  They are a healthy part of our environment.  What you want to do with your starter is give those little yeasties a place to land and call home.  They don't want much.  Just a bit of flour and something to make the flour a bit liquid. Are you ready?  Let's get going!  (I was really tempted to say "Started" but the pun was really silly.)

Sourdough Starter 

1 cup flour

3/4 cp water

1/4 tsp yeast (just for the first day)

Mix all ingredients together in a large glass bowl.  Don't use plastic.  Stainless steel is an option as well. Cover with a damp dishtowel, not plastic wrap as you want the wild yeast to be able to find their new home and plastic is like locking the door.

Let this mixture sit for 24 hours.

The next day, add about 1/2 cup of flour and 1/4 cup of water. Mix well and cover again.

Repeat this process for about 5 days.   

It should be the consistency of really thick wallpaper paste. If you think the starter is too thick, or it looks like ragged dough, add more water. Too thin? Add more flour.  

At this point your starter should also be very active and happy.  When you add  your daily bit of flour and water you should notice lots of bubbles and the starter should rise and expand.

You will have noticed that I didn't tell you to toss any portion of the starter from the previous days. I never have, nor did my mother or grandmother.  And I don't understand the rational behind that process. Anyway, by not discarding any, you should have enough starter made to make your first loaf of sourdough and have some left to replenish for your next baking foray!