Sourdough (rec.food.sourdough) Discussing the hobby or craft of baking with sourdough. We are not just a recipe group, Our charter is to discuss the care, feeding, and breeding of yeasts and lactobacilli that make up sourdough cultures.

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Don Hellen
 
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Default Old Starter Might Be OK

A while back I asked about rejuvenating my old starter that
didn't seem to be doing anything at all. a few had given
some advice on removing only the smallest portion of the
yeast (in my case, what was on the bottom of my liquid
starter container) and trying to use it to get things going
again.

I had just about given up on it when I tried using a smaller
amount and feeding it twice over a few days' period. I also
replaced the oven light bulb and measured the temperature in
it when the light is left on--about 86 degrees F.

It is showing signs of activity and smelling a lot like it
used to- a bit yeasty but also a bit pungent.

I'm going to try getting it back to it's former volume and
making bread with it again.

To those who sent me dried starters, I haven't given up on
trying them out. I just want to get this one back on track
(if I can) before I experiment. I've refrigerated the
samples so they would keep a while (how long???) and would
like to try them out as a liquid starter first (using a
small portion of the sample). If that doesn't work out, the
rest will be used as a conventional dough starter.

I like the liquid starter because it remains free from mold
and keeps well for at least 6 months without feeding. (Mine
went inactive, after 12 years, only after not feeding it for
about a year!!!) I use an airlock from my brewing/winemaking
equipment in the top of a Tupperware container with a round
opening on top to keep out the air but allow CO2 to be
released. I've tried a dough type starter and don't like how
mold formed on it, but that may be because of the way I
handled it.

The liquid starter is easy to gauge as to how active it's
doing since I can see the bubbles from fermentation. If this
goes well, I will be making bread again, and a lot more
often than every 6 months. I don't know why I got away from
making sourdough bread.

I really do appreciate the starter samples and may be using
them if this doesn't turn out to be like it used to be. I
had exposed the starter to the air and it might actually be
a different strain (which might be desirable or not).

Deer season is upon us in Ohio next week, however, so I
don't think I'll be doing anything this next week with it.

Don Hellen
To reply, substitute "firstnamelastname" with
my firstname and lastname in the header and
use no spaces.
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Gene Benzing
 
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Default Old Starter Might Be OK

Don, I just got done resurrecting some of the nastiest, vilest Carls starter
I have ever seen. I could have sworn it was DOA. The hootch was black and
moldy, smelled like vomit and reminded me of something they clean out of the
wastewater treatment plant. It was bad!. I consulted the starter doctor
FAQ and Dick Adams book and thought what the heck. It would either revive
or morph into some flu virus that would wipe out the world. It took about 2
1/2 weeks of the washing process that Dick Adams talks about to get it back
among the living but I finally made pancakes and sourdough refrigerator
rolls with it yesterday and they were marvelous.

Gene
Kansas City

"Don Hellen" > wrote in message
...
> A while back I asked about rejuvenating my old starter that
> didn't seem to be doing anything at all. a few had given
> some advice on removing only the smallest portion of the
> yeast (in my case, what was on the bottom of my liquid
> starter container) and trying to use it to get things going
> again.
>
> I had just about given up on it when I tried using a smaller
> amount and feeding it twice over a few days' period. I also
> replaced the oven light bulb and measured the temperature in
> it when the light is left on--about 86 degrees F.
>
> It is showing signs of activity and smelling a lot like it
> used to- a bit yeasty but also a bit pungent.
>
> I'm going to try getting it back to it's former volume and
> making bread with it again.
>
> To those who sent me dried starters, I haven't given up on
> trying them out. I just want to get this one back on track
> (if I can) before I experiment. I've refrigerated the
> samples so they would keep a while (how long???) and would
> like to try them out as a liquid starter first (using a
> small portion of the sample). If that doesn't work out, the
> rest will be used as a conventional dough starter.
>
> I like the liquid starter because it remains free from mold
> and keeps well for at least 6 months without feeding. (Mine
> went inactive, after 12 years, only after not feeding it for
> about a year!!!) I use an airlock from my brewing/winemaking
> equipment in the top of a Tupperware container with a round
> opening on top to keep out the air but allow CO2 to be
> released. I've tried a dough type starter and don't like how
> mold formed on it, but that may be because of the way I
> handled it.
>
> The liquid starter is easy to gauge as to how active it's
> doing since I can see the bubbles from fermentation. If this
> goes well, I will be making bread again, and a lot more
> often than every 6 months. I don't know why I got away from
> making sourdough bread.
>
> I really do appreciate the starter samples and may be using
> them if this doesn't turn out to be like it used to be. I
> had exposed the starter to the air and it might actually be
> a different strain (which might be desirable or not).
>
> Deer season is upon us in Ohio next week, however, so I
> don't think I'll be doing anything this next week with it.
>
> Don Hellen
> To reply, substitute "firstnamelastname" with
> my firstname and lastname in the header and
> use no spaces.



  #3 (permalink)   Report Post  
 
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Default Old Starter Might Be OK

On Fri, 28 Nov 2003 16:45:37 -0600, "Gene Benzing"
> wrote:

>Dick Adams book


I didn't know Dick Adams had written a book. What is the title?


  #6 (permalink)   Report Post  
 
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Default Old Starter Might Be OK

On Sat, 29 Nov 2003 03:36:18 GMT, "Dick Adams" >
wrote:

>> > I didn't know Dick Adams had written a book. What is the title?


>> I think it's called "Sourdough Is Our Friend."


>In fact, I did not write a book about sourdough. And, if I did, I=20
>would name it something other than "Sourdough Is Our Friend".
>Really, I would. Maybe "Sourdough Debunked", or "Baking=20
>with the Old Wives". "Bake a Better Doorstop" seemed good
>for a while, but that one never got beyond a couple of dozen
>pages. "Sourdough Sorcery" is good alliteration. "Simple
>Sourdough" would not be so good because sorcerer conveys
>more dignity than simpleton. How about I change my name to
>Simon and write "Simple Simon's Sourdough Sourcebook"?
>How about "Bakerspeak for the Novice" subtitled "Baking=20
>Naturally-Leavened Breads in Simple English", looking at=20
>sourdough from the point of view of General Semantics?


>Sometimes I go back and start the book again but I get worn
>out before getting through the glossary.


Try "Crock Pot Sourdough Rye Glop For Dummies".

Bet it sells a million.


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Dick Adams
 
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Default Old Starter Might Be OK


> wrote in message =
...

> > [ ... ] ( replay of =

)

> Try "Crock Pot Sourdough Rye Glop For Dummies".


"Crock-pot glop for sourdough dummies" rolls better off the tongue.

But, frankly, Spam-Spam, you're never going to be a poet.

Anyway, at best, the instruction for Crock-Pot Pumpernickel
would be a single page in length, and certainly not a book.

---
DickA


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Bob
 
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Default Old Starter Might Be OK

On Sat, 29 Nov 2003 17:38:43 GMT, "Dick Adams" >
wrote:

>Anyway, at best, the instruction for Crock-Pot Pumpernickel
>would be a single page in length, and certainly not a book.


A lot like "Famous Jewish Athletes".

[Apologies to "Airplane".]


  #9 (permalink)   Report Post  
Gene Benzing
 
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Default Old Starter Might Be OK

My mistake, would be Ed Wood. I was referring to Classic Sourdoughs.

Gene
> wrote in message
...
> On Fri, 28 Nov 2003 16:45:37 -0600, "Gene Benzing"
> > wrote:
>
> >Dick Adams book

>
> I didn't know Dick Adams had written a book. What is the title?
>
>



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