What is the rise / fall / feed cycle of a sourdough starter?
I'm following this recipe to make a sourdough starter for the first time.
The recipe says to wait 3 days before the first feed. On the morning of day 2, the starter had increased 3 times in size. By the evening of day 2, it had reduced in size back to about 2 times the original volume.
My question is: what's the best way to judge when to feed the starter? If it is reducing in size now, does that mean it is "hungry" and running out of food? Or should we expect a couple of rise & fall cycles before the first feed?
Is feeding time best judged by time elapsed, or by volume of the starter?
Best Answer
For sure this method will work, but it can be risky starting with grapes as you're introducing more than just airborne wild yeasts. With so many bacteria strains active in a new starter, it very well might rise and fall multiple times, but an established starter will have one rise and fall cycle every 12-24 hours unrefrigerated, and then will need feeding.
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Should sourdough starter rise and fall?
Once your starter is bubbling and vigorous, it's time to make bread, feed it again, or refrigerate until its next feeding. Don't let it become bubbly, rise, and then fall and start to "calm down;" that's adding acidity to its flavor. Reduce the duration of ripening as necessary.How much should sourdough starter rise after feeding?
If your starter consistently rises to double or triple its height within 4-8 hours of feeding it, it is ready to bake with. If not, continue to feed on the 12-hour schedule until it does.Why is my sourdough starter rising then falling?
If your sourdough starter is left too long it gets hungry and exhausted. You will know because it will have doubled and then the air pockets start to collapse and the mix starts to deflate. This can happen at any temperature, but it will be slower to occur in cool environments and much faster in warmer.Should you feed sourdough starter every 12 or 24 hours?
Continue feeding your starter every 12\u201324 hours until it doubles in volume every 8\u201312 hours, has a pleasant, yeasty smell, and passes the float test (see note). Once it passes the float test, your starter is ready to be baked with! The whole process of getting your starter established can take anywhere from 5\u201310 days.Understanding Sourdough Starter | feeding, ratios, leaven, when to use, what to feed
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Answer 2
Judge your feeding by the time elapsed. It is unclear which bacteria will win the battles for the ecological niches in the first few days, but if you want to get a starter of the type the recipe author suggests, you have to provide the conditions he prescribes. Else you will end up with something entirely different (and possibly stinky). Don't feed the culture you have, feed the one you want to have - by the tried and proven time/temperature combination prescribed.
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