-
1
Day 1: Mix the flour and juice together in a bowl until they form a ball of dough.
-
2
Do not worry if the dough is stiff or soft, but be sure that all the flour is hydrated.
-
3
Press this piece of dough into a 4-cup measuring beaker and place a piece of tape on the beaker to mark the top of the dough.
-
4
Cover the beaker with plastic wrap and leave it at room temperature for 24 hours.
-
5
Day 2: The dough should not have risen much, if at all, during this time.
-
6
In a mixing bowl, combine the Day 2 ingredients with the Day 1 sponge, mixing with your hand or a spoon until all the ingredients are evenly distributed.
-
7
The dough will be somewhat softer and wetter than the Day 1 sponge.
-
8
Return this to the beaker, pressing it down, and replace the old tape with a new piece of tape to mark the spot.
-
9
Cover with plastic wrap and ferment for 24 hours at room temperature.
-
10
Do not be put off by the strong aroma of the dough; it will eventually brighten.
-
11
Day 3: Check to see if there has been a rise in the dough.
-
12
There will probably be some fermentation but not a lot, perhaps a 50 percent rise.
-
13
Regardless, discard half of the starter (or give it to a friend to cultivate), and mix the remaining half with the Day 3 ingredients.
-
14
It will be a little wetter.
-
15
Again, return it to the beaker.
-
16
It should press down to the same height as on Day 2.
-
17
Re-tape the beaker to mark the top of the dough, cover, and ferment for 24 hours.
-
18
Day 4: The sponge should have at least doubled in size; more is even better.
-
19
If it is still sluggish and hasnt doubled in size, allow it to sit out for another 12 to 24 hours.
-
20
Otherwise, discard half of the starter and mix the remaining half with the new ingredients, returning it to the beaker as before.
-
21
Cover and ferment until it at least doubles in size.
-
22
This may take 4 to 24 hours.
-
23
It is okay if it triples in size, but because it is now fairly soft and spongelike, it will not be able to sustain that large of a rise without falling.
-
24
If it falls easily when you tap the beaker, that is the sign that your seed culture is ready to be turned into a barm, or mother starter.
-
25
Before embarking on the wild-yeast adventure, be sure to review the discussion on pages 6566.
-
26
If you want to make a pure rye starter for 100 percent rye bread (rather than convert a regular starter as shown in most of the following rye-bread formulas), you can substitute white rye flour wherever the steps call for high-gluten or bread flour.
-
27
You can also make this seed culture with wheat flour alone, replacing the dark rye of Day 1 with unbleached bread flour or whole-wheat flour.
-
28
I find that the rye adds a more complex flavor and sort of jump-starts the process, but in the end the seed culture will develop regardless of the flour you use.
-
29
If you do not have pineapple juice or want to try using water, use filtered or spring water.
-
30
You can also substitute orange juice or even lemon juice.
-
31
The starter may or may not stay on the predicted feeding schedule, depending on the presence or absence of leuconostoc bacteria in your flour.
-
32
About 30% to 40% of starters end up with the leuconostoc problem, depending on the growing conditions in the wheat and rye fields that year.
-
33
However, if you aerate the starter a few times each day, the starter will eventually overcome any leuconostoc even without pineapple juice.
-
34
I have updated the original seed culture to account for a strain of leuconostoc bacteria that hinders many starters but generates lots of carbon dioxide in the early stage of a seed culture starter, making it seem that the wild yeast cells are growing rapidly.
-
35
I learned from a group of dedicated home bakers (all contributors to the King Arthur Flour Bakers Circle website) that the bacteria can be defeated by using pineapple juice on the first two days.
