More than just a food fad, sourdough is an ancient practice of breadmaking. We reveal everything you need to know about sourdough.
More than just a food fad, sourdough is an ancient practice of breadmaking that has captured our imaginations for centuries.
Among many things, a sourdough starter bubbling away on your kitchen bench means you’re taking care of your gut health through the proper preparation of grains. You’re connecting with nature in the form of the microorganisms and wild yeasts that are hanging out in your kitchen, and you’re slowing your life down in a nourishing way.
What is sourdough exactly?
Sourdough is the way people have made bread for centuries. Before commercial yeast and the quick-rise industrial loaf, bread was made using three simple ingredients: flour, water and salt.
A sourdough bread culture – or starter – is made with a mixture of flour and water which, with time, captures wild yeasts from the air in your home and forms a relationship with the bacteria on the grain.
When a small amount of this bubbly, active starter is added to bread dough it causes the dough to rise slowly over many hours.
What can you make with sourdough other than bread?
If you make it with flour, you can make a sourdough version of it by soaking – or souring – your flour in something acidic before baking.
To do this successfully, you need four elements to create an environment for yeast to build and for pre-digestion to happen. The first is moisture; your flour needs to be wet enough. The second is warmth; between 18 and 25 ºC, third is acidity which, in the case of bread, comes from the starter, and the last is time, usually between eight and 12 hours.
In the new issue of Pip Magazine, we reveal the secret to a successful sourdough starter, explain the health benefits of sourdough, and share recipes for sourdough pizza, crumpets and ginger cake,
Pick up your copy of Issue #18 today to find out absolutely everything you need to know about sourdough. Subscribe to Pip here.
Images: Village Dreaming
