Monday, February 21, 2011

Adventures in Sourdough

I've decided it is time to raise my zombie army! I don't know if it's because I've listened to far to much of the Get It Done Guy, Stever Robbins, or if I have a hankering for brains. Maybe it is because everyone has been playing the Michael Jackson game on the Wii and I have been hearing far too much Thriller (and I know the Vincent Price rap by heart*).

Anyway, I'm going to start small. I think I'm going to start with bran instead of brain. But I need creepy... I know I'll start with an oozing slimy mass of goo! A gelatinous mass of yeasty bacterial power that will wreak havoc upon the world! Mwa-ha-ha!

Silliness aside, I want to give credit to Slice (all of their links to this project are below). I have wanted to make a starter for some time and they have given me the kick in the butt to try it. so here we go...

Meet Igor, the sourdough starter.

Igor was created with simple materials: A canning jar with a lid, Something to stir with, Flour, and Water

Did you notice that I didn't include yeast in the mixture? "Sourdoughs cultivated in different areas will result in different breads. Not only will the flavor be different, but the crust, crumb, and rise will be different. It's as far as you can get from the concept of nationwide mass-produced industrial bread."(1)

Igor is staring very small: One level Tablespoon on flour and one ounce of water, stirred in the jar and covered with plastic wrap. Igor is on the counter. I'll check back on Igor tomorrow and give you an update then.

Until then, Peace, Love, and Hollandaise Sauce!

For the entire collection of articles from Slice, check out the links below:

Day 0
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7
Day 8
Day 9
Day 10
Day 11

*Darkness falls across the land
The midnight hour is close at hand
Creatures crawl in search of blood
To terrorize yawls neighborhood
And whosoever shall be found
Without the soul for getting down
Must stand and face the hounds of hell
And rot inside a corpses shell
------
The foulest stench is in the air
The funk of forty thousand years
And grizzly ghouls from every tomb
Are closing in to seal your doom
And though you fight to stay alive
Your body starts to shiver
For no mere mortal can resist
The evil of the thriller


(1) http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/how-to-make-sourdough-starter-day-0.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+seriouseatsfeaturesvideos+%28Serious+Eats%29&utm_content=Google+Reader
 

3 comments:

Nicole said...

If you decide you want some 100% hydration sourdough starter, I'm willing to share some of mine. Just let Ton know and I'll pass it along.

You can see the results of my sourdough baking on my flickr account.

lachapelle221 said...

Thanks Nicole!

This is my first attempt at sourdough, so I want to see just how good/bad it goes. I definitely would like some of your starter in a couple of weeks to compare against. I'm sure it will be superior to what I am able to produce!

-Denis

Nicole said...

I doubt it is superior! It's just...different. I want a starter that's more sour than what I have, so I've been upping the rye flour in it. We'll see how that goes!

Whenever you're ready, I'm happy to share.