I saw this random recipe on Facebook and decided to give it a try. The inside is so light and bouncy and the crust is just right! My usual recipe tends to be a little denser and the crust is much thicker and a little difficult to cut but just as tasty. Really curious as to how it can come out so good using discard straight from the fridge! Let’s discuss
by SmolLilTater
8 Comments
Please share the recipe/video so we can “debug” this.
During summer I also feed my starter straight from the fridge. Discard is basically unfed starter. So when you mix it with flour and water for the bread, you’re basically feeding it. So not surprised that it worked.
But curious in the recipe & process.
I always only use my starter straight from fridge and I think the flavor is better this way, too! It works so well! I also refeed the starter then and leave both it and the bread to rise at the same time : I just pop the starter back in the fridge ready for next time when it’s nice and active.
underproofed. you can see that it didn’t rise completely and there is a dense line on the bottom of the crust. here’s a photo to compare.
https://preview.redd.it/a7zrpz6ssqed1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c1db634b11ec5d2003984793d986dc34b524e4e1
It’s all starter. This trend of calling any starter that is not peaking ‘discard’ is silly. The yeast doesn’t start a big die off peaking. A healthy starter is a healthy starter. Do your starters have trouble fermenting and multiplying when you do feedings? Of course not, so why would it be any different if you use the same starter to make a dough? Think of your loaf as a giant starter if it makes you feel better.
I always use my starter right out of the fridge and it works just as well as fed and peaked starter ever has. It’s a huge time saver too since my ADHD ass can’t remember to pull the starter out and feed it ahead of time.
Actually I rarely ever wait for my starter to fully double before using it for bread. I usually feed it and will use it like 3-8 hours later. Everytime it comes out perfect. The reason it works fine is bc you are essentially feeding it when you mix it with the flour and water so it will still produce the same activity as if you fed it first, except the bulk ferment is going to take quite a bit longer. Personally I could care less about that considering I’d have to wait for the starter to double anyway and at least this way I don’t have a very narrow window for which I can use it. I’ve actually read that it can be better to use starter straight from the fridge bc by combining hungry yeast with such a large volume of flour it can cause the yeast to basically go on a frenzy and produce a lot of activity. Idk if I’d say it’s better but my bread turns out just as good as when I wait the full time after feeding it and my customers say my sourdough is the best they’ve ever had so I’d say they are pretty happy with it. I also never preheat my Dutch oven either and have never had an issue with that either. I’d say if it works and you like the result then who cares whether you use cold starter or not. What I said above tho is WHY it still works tho.
Looks so good! Im gonna try this
Yes, i use 200g of starter straight from the fridge, then feed it back to the same size (or larger if I have a big bake coming up) and have it rise with the bread to judge when it’s peaked so I’m not over proofing. Then straight back in the fridge.
Another thing that has me wondering is why individual loaf bakers are using shaping baskets; it strikes me those are for when you are running a bakery. Surely you can shape the dough and whack it straight into the oven. Might try that.