# Tell me about baking with sourdough **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 9, 2013, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758 "2013-02-09T03:38:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/1 "2013-02-09T03:38:10Z")
My starter is on day 5; I just fed it with more flour and water and left it on the stovetop to percolate overnight. So now what? I’d like to start with a basic crusty bread, but what else do I do with all the excess starter I’m supposed to pour off every time I feed it? It goes against the grain just to toss it out…pancakes/waffles? Any favorite techniques or recipes? ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/2 "2013-02-09T03:59:52Z")
> [@Eva\_Luna](#): > > My starter is on day 5; I just fed it with more flour and water and left it on the stovetop to percolate overnight. > > So now what? I’d like to start with a basic crusty bread, but what else do I do with all the excess starter I’m supposed to pour off every time I feed it? It goes against the grain just to toss it out…pancakes/waffles? Any favorite techniques or recipes? My mother always made pancakes with hers. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/3 "2013-02-09T04:08:31Z")
One key trick on sourdough is to make sure that the starter that is acting as your yeast is really going. When I first started doing sourdough, I’d just toss in some starter and wonder why my rise was terrible. Took a while to figure out that you’re supposed to take some starter (night before is an easy way), add some flour, let that get nice and bubbly then use it in your bread. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/4 "2013-02-09T04:25:31Z")
> [@China\_Guy](#): > > … you’re supposed to take some starter (night before is an easy way), add some flour, let that get nice and bubbly then use it in your bread. Right. > [@Eva Luna](#): > > … what else do I do with all the excess starter I’m supposed to pour off every time I feed it? Making bread once a week seems to work fine - no additional feeding needed. ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/5 "2013-02-09T16:33:22Z")
I fed the starter again last night, and am about to try the basic whole wheat sourdough recipe from the King Arthur Baker’s Companion: 2.5 c. whole wheat flour 1.5 c. all-purpose flour 1.25 c. warm water 2T honey 2t salt It’s doing its first rise now. I’m dying to see how it comes out! ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/6 "2013-02-09T19:23:19Z")
Has anyone outside of the greater central California region gotten good, sour taste out of their sourdough? I’ve bought it many places around the country and we’ve tried making it here in blizzard country a few times, and it never has the deep tang of real SF-region sourdough. (We successfully made it many times in CA.) Sourdough, tri-tip and boysenberry jam… three things I did not expect to leave behind in California. Vistors know to jam their suitcases with as much Colombo green as they can fit in. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/7 "2013-02-09T19:59:41Z")
Here ya go: get some free starter for the price of a self addressed stamped envelope. [Friends of Carl](http://carlsfriends.net/). I just love this concept and the starter is good. I had a batch in Shanghai going for about 5 years, and just started a new batch here in the US. "The history has been asked for. All I know is that it started west in 1847 from Missouri. I would guess with the family of Dr. John Savage as one of his daughters (my great grandmother) was the cook. It came on west and settled near Salem Or. Doc. Savage’s daughter met and married my great grand father on the trail and they had 10 children. It was passed on to me though my parents when they passed away. I am 76 years old so that was some time ago. I first learned to use the starter in a basque sheep camp when I was 10 years old as we were setting up a homestead on the Steens Mountains in southeastern Oregon. A campfire has no oven, so the bread was baked in a Dutch Oven in a hole in the ground in which we had built a fire, placed the oven, scraped in the coals from around the rim, and covered with dirt for several hours. I used it later making bread in a chuck wagon on several cattle drives - again in southeastern Oregon. " Carl used to send out his starter, and after he passed away Friends of Carl have kept his memory and starter alive by sending out the starter for a self addressed stamped envelope. NitroPress - make sure your starter is really going strong when you make the dough. For a long time, I just dumped in starter from the fridge into the dough, and didn’t get much rise or sour. Doh! But most sourdough I’ve had outside of SF isn’t baked correctly or has preservatives in it or something that makes it lackluster. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/8 "2013-02-09T21:54:25Z")
Thank you for posting about that starter! I think I’ll write to them. ---
**Author:** ![the\_O](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@the\_O](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_O)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/9 "2013-02-10T01:24:24Z")
For more resources: > **[The Fresh Loaf](https://www.thefreshloaf.com/)** > > News and Information for Artisan Bakers and Amateur Bread Enthusiasts ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Stilettos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/fbc32d/32.png) [@Red\_Stilettos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Stilettos)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/10 "2013-02-10T01:30:46Z")
> [@NitroPress](#): > > Has anyone outside of the greater central California region gotten good, sour taste out of their sourdough? I’ve bought it many places around the country and we’ve tried making it here in blizzard country a few times, and it never has the deep tang of real SF-region sourdough. (We successfully made it many times in CA.) > > Sourdough, tri-tip and boysenberry jam… three things I did not expect to leave behind in California. Vistors know to jam their suitcases with as much Colombo green as they can fit in. I’ve had good luck with two slow rises in the fridge. It takes all weekend to make a loaf of bread, but it’s worth it for the increased flavor. I’ve even gotten it too tangy this way. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/11 "2013-02-10T01:39:54Z")
> [@the\_O](#): > > For more resources: > > [http://www.thefreshloaf.com/](http://www.thefreshloaf.com/) As a professional baker I’ve just found a new place to love! ---
**Author:** ![Hershele\_Ostropoler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e47c2d/32.png) [@Hershele\_Ostropoler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hershele_Ostropoler)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/12 "2013-02-10T04:48:25Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > My mother always made pancakes with hers. How do you make pancakes? I can’t seem to find a recipe that recognizes I’m doing it by weight. ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/13 "2013-02-10T06:18:15Z")
> [@Hershele\_Ostropoler](#): > > How do you make pancakes? I can’t seem to find a recipe that recognizes I’m doing it by weight. I use this recipe: [Classic Sourdough Pancakes Recipe | King Arthur Baking](http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/classic-sourdough-waffles-or-pancakes-recipe) ---
**Author:** ![the\_O](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@the\_O](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_O)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-baking-with-sourdough/649758/14 "2013-02-10T07:22:16Z")
> [@Baker](#): > > As a professional baker I’ve just found a new place to love! I hope you \*love \*it as much as I do!