Sourdough

      In the most ancient of times, flat bread was made from ground grains and water. One day someone allowed a water and flour mash to sit on the shelf too long and it fermented. Disgusted but still hungry, this desperate soul cooked it anyway and discovered sourdough bread. The dough is soured by yeast that causes the formation of carbon dioxide bubbles which cause the dough to rise and form lighter, spongier bread.

      Using sourdough techniques is a direct substitute for using commercial yeast to make your bread rise. Sourdough techniques were used by the ancient Egyptians and others back into pre-history. There are sourdough cultures in use that have been perpetuated for hundreds and perhaps thousands of years. All of these cultures originated from a wild yeast somewhere.

      When you are making sourdough don't forget that the dough has to be warm to rise. One of the most common mistakes is to allow insufficient time or temperature for rising. Sourdough is usually slower to rise than commercial yeast.

      Sourdough is bread that has been leavened with a wild yeast culture. The culture is maintained in a dough sample which becomes 'sour' due to the action of the yeast. A dough sample is then inoculated with the dough starter and allowed to rise.

      Many people like the taste of sourdough bread. When you use the basic sourdough techniques described below, the flavor contribution may be relatively subtle. You can make it stronger by allowing the bread to rise overnight rather than only an hour or two. You can also enhance the flavor by using a starter that has been fermenting for at least two days before use.

      Another sourdough recipe is based on milk. Sourdough starter that uses milk will impart a stronger, more pungent flavor to the bread.

Sourdough Starter

      To create a basic sourdough starter, using only whole wheat flour, do the following:

      To a non-metallic (stainless steel is OK) container with a lid add:

      2 cups warm water

      2 cups fresh whole wheat flour

      1 package dry yeast

      Place this mixture in a warm place and allow it to rise overnight. Now you have sourdough starter. You have to keep renewing it as you use it. If you can't refrigerate it, you can dry it to keep it from spoiling. In contrast to these instructions, some old prospectors believed that the starter had to be kept for several weeks or even a year before it was ready to use.

      There is also a difference between wild yeast and commercial baker's yeast. Baker's yeast is far more active and will cause bread to rise much faster than wild yeast. Some connoisseurs claim that the wild yeast creates superior sourdough bread.

      If you don't have any commercial yeast to use, you can use wild yeast the same way the early pioneers did. Juniper berries, cedar berries, Oregon grape berries, other wild fruits and berries, and the bark of some trees have a white dust on them. This white film is a wild yeast culture. Mix some of this material with the flour and water and keep it warm until the action starts. Then remove the berries and bark.

This is an excerpt from: How to Live on Wheat

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