With the advent of all kinds of brands and models of bread makers, homemade bread baking has become very popular. In this regard, there is more and more information about recipes for bakery products, and there is also debate about what kind of bread to bake - with yeast or sourdough? With yeast, of course, it's convenient: I bought it, poured as much into the dough as needed - and that's it! However, many housewives prefer to bake sourdough bread. It is quite simple to make a leaven, it will take four days; it will be more difficult to maintain it later.
How to cook
To grow the starter culture, you will need one glass of rye flour and water at room temperature. The flour and water must be thoroughly mixed so that there are no lumps left, transferred to a glass jar, which should be large enough - 1-1.5 liters, since during the fermentation process the sourdough will at least double in volume.
Cover the top of the jar with gauze (not a lid!) To ensure a constant flow of air. Next, a jar of sourdough should be placed in a warm place for fermentation for two days. Evidence that the leaven has begun to work will be the appearance of a specific sour smell and the formation of bubbles on its surface.
After two days, the sourdough must be “fed” for the first time, that is, add another glass of rye flour and water, mix well and put it back in a warm place. At the end of the third day, the "feeding" procedure should be repeated once more, and at the end of the fourth day the leaven will be ready.
How to use
For baking bread, it is enough to take half of the resulting sourdough. The rest should be transferred to a clean glass container with a lid and refrigerated. The day before the next planned preparation of bread, the leaven should be put back in a warm place, after adding an equal amount of flour and water to it and mixing thoroughly.
To bake bread, take half of the resulting sourdough again, and leave the rest in the refrigerator for the next time.
Thus, the starter culture can be maintained for a long time. At the same time, you need to monitor its smell - it should not be sharp and musty, this is a sign of a spoiled product.
