It didn't rise as high as I might have expected or hoped. I should have made just one loaf and baked it in my Dutch oven.
I need a sharp(er) knife to slash my loaves before baking. Even my serrated bread knife wasn't sharp enough so I ended up tearing and deflating the dough.
I didn't get that desired San Fransisco sour taste.
That was my whole reason for starting my starter. Years ago, John had an office in Richmond, CA that he had to visit monthly. He used to bring me a loaf of sourdough bread every time he went there, and it was one of the best things I ever ate. My own starter didn't produce anything resembling that delightful tang.Ryan often judges foods using a ratio of work/deliciousness. First, he looks at the amount of work involved in the cooking process. Is this simply mixing in water, like making Jello? Are there multiple complicated steps involved, or are you required to make something before you could proceed further to make the final product? And then there is that all-important deliciousness factor. How good does it taste? Ryan often prepares things with a relatively low work/deliciousness ratio. Pancakes are good, but the work involved is minimal, even from scratch. French toast is even better - really delicious, but there's nothing difficult about soaking bread in an egg mixture and frying.
Pasta sauce has a few more ingredients, but the work involved is just a bit more chopping, and it's made in the same pan. Pad thai gets a lot more complicated with procuring out of the ordinary ingredients, a lot more prep, and good timing during preparation. Yes, it's delicious, but the work/deliciousness approaches 8/9, and it's really easy to order from a good Thai restaurant (at least in Fort Collins). So with a high work/deliciousness ratio, I'm not sure I'll be making sourdough bread again with my starter. The hoped-for deliciousness was too disappointing.
Be sure to visit Carole for more Three on Thursday thoughts.
Did you do a long rise in the frig? I have found that it is almost required for taste and texture. My experience is that good sourdough requires lots of time. But it may not be your thing, Bonny. I agree with Ryan about work/deliciousness ratio. It something takes a lot of work or exotic ingredients, I would just as soon do take out.
ReplyDeleteYour loaves look a bit better than mine, but I understand the frustration. I'm still feeding my starter because I'm determined to bake at least one good loaf -- but I'm also thankful that my family isn't relying on me for bread! We do have a pound of yeast coming later in the month (my husband ordered from Amazon), so at least I'll be able to make some challah.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE the "bite" of REAL sourdough bread (and that's one of my favorite things about visiting Erin -- getting bread with a real BITE). I had great luck with my own sourdough starter several years ago, but when it went bad (after almost 2 years) (and "bad" starter is really gross, just sayin), I just never started up again. It takes some time to get that starter really . . . going. I also found that the weather made a lot of difference in terms of the overall quality and deliciousness of my bread.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with Ryan -- some delicious things are just not worth the effort! XO
So, I have a couple of thoughts . . . and I'm not sourdough expert by any means. I think your starter might still be a big young and that could be part of the problem. You definitely need a razor blade to make those cuts, a knife won't give you the look you want. And I can't recommend enough the book Tartine. It's a thorough and detailed resource for baking sourdough bread.
ReplyDeleteThis was interesting to me Bonny. I am not a fan of sourdough bread at all! I know I am in the minority. But I do love good homemade bread. I prefer it made the "old fashioned" way - kneadng the dough (which I find to be a bit like meditation), letting it rise and then popping it in the oven. I do, however, use a bread machine just for convenience. I also have a great recipe for Cuban Bread which is not labor intensive, doesn't take all that long and is delicious!
ReplyDeleteI adore sourdough bread. When we lived in a Minneapolis I could buy some called Nasty Bread, which was fabulous. In an attempt to re-create that deliciousness I ordered some sourdough-taste stuff from King Arthur Flour. When it comes I will report the results on the blog
ReplyDeleteDoug loves nothing more than a good sour dough. There's an old college bud in town who's offering starter...I am not a bread maker but these different times have me considering it! I love Ryan's thought process!
ReplyDeleteI have never been successful at baking any kind of bread and the only time I've done anything with a starter is making "Amish Friendship Bread" years ago. Mostly, I'd forget to feed it or it would end up exploding all over my kitchen. Obviously, baking is Not my forte!
ReplyDeleteHmmm...maybe if your starter is new, it hasn't had time to develop that tangy flavor that is unique to sourdough. I have been fooling around with my starter for 10 years and a lot of my loaves I made initially were pretty disappointing. Keep trying. I usually use a full cup of starter in my loaves, allow them to rise most of the day, and pull my starter out of the fridge 2 or 3 days before I bake and feed it once or twice a day. Here is a recipe I love:
ReplyDeletehttps://anoregoncottage.com/easy-sourdough-artisan-bread/
The one change I make - I don't knead the bread at all. I like the uneven texture from no-knead bread.
Let me know if I can help!
My DH the baker in the family uses the dutch oven and swears by it. He also has fashioned a razor blade on a chopstick to do the slashing thing.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I will try the dutch oven and razor blade on a chopstick before I abandon all hope. I didn't want to buy a special lame bread slashing tool, but I think I can fashion a razor blade on a chopstick!
Deleteawww Shoot. THat's disappointing. WE ran out of flour and have had to use oatmeal flour that we grind.
ReplyDeleteWe found a recipe for drop biscuits with oat flour....they were good, but they looked bad
I too had epic first loaf failure (although my loaf qualified for a door stop, lol) I have not given up! I watched some youtube videos that have given me some tips and I ordered Tartine on Carole's recommendation.
ReplyDeleteBonny, the other thing I thought about was telling you to check the site Breadtopia. They have lots of tips and recipes that are helpful, and they also have forums where folks talk about their problems. I have always found it helpful. There are others, but that one seems the most straightforward.
ReplyDeleteThe bread looks good but I'm with Ryan. If a recipe is too much work, I'm out. Looks like others have offered helpful ideas. Does sourdough age with time and use? just a thought.
ReplyDeleteyour bread looks delicious! I couldn't bake bread because the stores are out of flour! But there was toilet paper...go figure!
ReplyDeleteI am completely enjoying the fresh bread ... vicariously. Katie actually baked a very successful loaf today, but she had yeast (from a neighbor). I hate to say this, but I think you're going to have plenty of time to master your loaves ;-) xoxo.
ReplyDeleteWhen I could bake bread it was something I really enjoyed. I never attempted sourdough as my b-i-l lives in SF an would bring us bread every time he visited. Nothing, but nothing, can compare. I'm so happy I have a baker in town (she even has a "sourdough" GF loaf) so, I don't need to figure out how to make GF bread.
ReplyDeleteI do think you should keep trying! Don't give up after one attempt. Sourdough bread has to be doable and the deliciousness ratio has to be within reach!
ReplyDelete