In reference to baking bread, what is a "mother culture"?
I saw this question entitled "How can I bake bread using a mother culture?", but I have no idea what a "mother culture" is. Can someone explain what the term "mother culture" means?
Best Answer
A mother culture is sometimes known as a starter dough and is a fermenting dough that is used to 'start' the fermentation process in the bread you are going to make by adding a bit of the starter dough to the dough you are making. Mainly sourdough I think, but I believe you can use different mothers for different breads.
The starter dough is 'fed' flour and water to keep it alive and going, and then used everyday to make the days bread. The mother can then be kept going for many years and gives the bread made using it a distinctive flavour.
At least that's my understanding, I'm hoping to get a more detailed picture from this and the answer to my question...
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What is the mother in making bread?
The mother-dough is made of a mixture of flour and water fermented with bacteria such as Lactobacillus, Acetobacter and Saccharomyces. To create it and keep it alive requires patience and constant care. The mother-dough is a great leavening agent and makes a highly digestible bread.What is a mother yeast?
Mother dough \u2013 also known as mother yeast or starter \u2013 is a simple dough of flour and water acidified by the proliferation of yeasts and lactobacilli able to provide natural fermentation.What is a sourdough mother?
Sourdough Mother / StarterInitiated by the simple combination of flour, water, and time. Allowing the naturally occurring yeasts and bacteria to feed and grow, successively developing a stable habitat for microbes to persist.What is a mother loaf?
The Mother Loaf Breads is a sourdough bread bakery in Milan that uses a long, cold, slow-ferment process on each of their breads. Besides bread, they make soups, treats, and sometimes specialty items, like pasties.More answers regarding in reference to baking bread, what is a "mother culture"?
Answer 2
There is a good blog post on the Al Dente blog that talks about getting started with a sourdough starter. They use a starter from King Arthur Flour that is supposed to be 250 years old. :)
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