A brief intro would probably be great to help explain what’s going on here. So, I am currently a Microbiology Major at CSULA and I am currently taking a course on Applied & Environmental Microbiology (Micro 3900). As part of this class one of our assigned projects requires us to make sourdough bread at home. So exciting! Mainly because I’ve alway wanted to make sourdough before, but never really worked up the energy to do it.
In this experiment I will be following a modified recipe from Tartine Bread by Chad Robertson (Chronicle Books 2010; ISBN 978-0-8118-7041). As this is a microbiology class instead of using a ready made packet of yeast to help leaven the bread I will be cultivating wild yeast from my kitchen and hands (don’t worry I will be washing them before starting any step). Once the culture has matured, I will then proceeded to prepare the bread dough and bake my sourdough bread. So, follow along with me as I try and nurse my young starter culture into a full grown adult to make a loaf of bread that hopefully doesn’t end up terribly wrong.
Will the Bread Sour, Before it Bakes? 