What exactly happens during the sourdough ripening?
I am following a recipe from the well established Italian Baker Bonci, to make my liquid sourdough starter (with some success too).
In his recipe he says to refresh the starter with a 1:1:1 proportion every day for a month before it can be considered matured and ready to use.
I would like to know what happens during these 31 days and why this time frame is needed (the starter seems very active after a week or two and is capable of leavening bread already).
My understanding /theory is that the successive rounds of feeding, souring and re feeding help grow yeasts while acidity weeds out some of them, in fact selecting the right "genes" we want to keep in our starter.
I would like to know :
- If my theory is correct and if it is
- Exactly what traits/type of yeasts are we selecting for?
- What are the typical proportion of a yeast types found in starter?
- Is there any source describing the detail of this process (I'm interested in the selection part more than in the recipe part, but I don't won't a bio textbook)
Best Answer
Here is a small piece of the answer. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33496265/ It is not just yeast strains but especially lactobacillus bacteria that develops and helps to change the ph of the starter. This change in ph is what helps the sourdough bread retain moisture and results in the creation of acetic and lactic acids which create the tanginess.
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How do you know when sourdough is ripe?
One popular way to know that your sourdough starer is ready is to try floating a bit of it in water. Fill a glass bowl or cup with room-temperature water, and drop a small scoop (a teaspoon or less) of the starter into the water. If it floats, it's ready to use.What does ripe sourdough starter mean?
Hi Katlyn, "ripe" starter means starter that you've recently fed at room temperature and allowed to rise to its highest point. It's considered ripe when it's at that high point, or just beginning to fall. If you're measuring your starter by cups, be sure to stir it down before measuring.What happens during sourdough fermentation?
Sourdough fermentation can be in the form of a firm dough or a liquid suspension of flour in water. The higher the water content, then the higher the production of lactic acid and the lower the production of acetic acid. It also makes the bacteria and yeast grow faster.How long does it take for sourdough starter to ripen?
Adding a starter at any point in the window where it is at its peak will produce quality bread. A starter \u201cpeaks\u201d after it has been fed. When it reaches the top of the container, before falling down, it usually takes 4-8 hours to reach its peak.The science behind sourdough
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