• Reply by GinaG on January 14, 2012 at 5:21 pm
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Salutations, Mrsnow!

Congratulations on your starter, what a nice present to get!

Yes, it is more than okay, it is perfectly fine and no, you are not undoing anything.

The original KAF starter is what's called a mother, which is a piece of dough. She has been transformed into a liquid starter by way of feeding her water and flour to accommodate most sourdough recipes which call for a liquid starter with a 100% hydration. She's just trying to become her original self is all; there's nothing wrong with her.

Another poster had the same issue with her KAF starter and eventually got the consistency she sought with time, patience and regular feedings. Most of us can tell you that we often make hydration adjustments to our starter to accommodate recipes specifying different hydration starters from what we have on hand, it's commonly done.

Please post back with any questions, your progress and what's new and exciting.
Good luck,
GinaG.

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• Reply by placebo on January 14, 2012 at 5:12 pm
• 

The consistency of the starter changes after feeding, so you needn't be worried that the starter's consistency is different than it was when you got it from your friend. The more time that has passed after a feeding, the more slack the starter will become.

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• Reply by Cindy Leigh on January 15, 2012 at 9:30 am
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Does it get nice and bubbly after you feed it?

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• Reply by Harrison Brook on January 15, 2012 at 10:51 am
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You need to qualify that. A sour dough starter could take several hours before it starts percolating. A lot depends on the quality of the culture you're using and the room temperature. I prefer to keep my starter a little wetter than the stuff KAF sends out. Not runny but also not thick like a bread dough. I have the KAF culture going a couple years now. I find cutting (feeding) my culture once a month is adequate. When in doubt, make a new mixture of 50/50 flour/water and add a quarter cup of your old starter. Let it set all day and overnight. Next day mix in another 50/50. By the secong day, you should have a nicely refreshed culture bubbling away. 1 cup flour and 1 cup water works. If you want to build up, do 2 and 2. Remember, sour dough and baguettes take a long time. Don't rush it.

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• Reply by cwcdesign on January 15, 2012 at 11:45 am
• 

One of the comments that has often been made about adding flour and water is to add equal amounts by weight, not volume. For example 1 cup of flour (4.25 oz) has approximately the same weight as 1/2 cup of water (4 oz). But, I guess if you added 1 cup of water (8 oz), it would certainly be more liquid :-)

Mine has been different thicknesses at different times, sometimes thin like pancake batter, sometimes thicker. It still seems to work whichever way it is.

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• Reply by christaogle on January 15, 2012 at 4:22 pm
• 

I got the KAF starter a couple weeks ago and fed it as directed. I am confused about the water and flour ratio. The feeding instructions say to add 1/2 water and 1 cup flour which makes a very thick starter.

My mother has a starter she got in Alaska 50 years ago and she feeds hers 1:1 (1 c water and 1 cup flour). Her starter is thinner and easier to work with.

If I switch to 1:1 for mine, will the starter be too thin for bread?

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• Reply by GinaG on January 15, 2012 at 5:10 pm
• 

Cristaogle,

As a few of us have assured, it will thin over time.

Most recipes recommend equal weight measures for your starter, as cwdesigns explained: One cup of flour weighs roughly the same as 1/2 C of water.

No, it won't be too thin for bread and it's pretty hard to wreak havoc on a starter, but by consistently following the instructions given by KAF, you have a better awareness of your hydration percentage which really comes in handy when it comes time to make adjustments for your recipes.

Congratulations on your new "baby" starter!

~GinaG.

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• Reply by mrsnow on January 15, 2012 at 5:44 pm
• 

Thanks to all for your kind and informative comments. I must admit this sourdough starter business is turning into a fascinating pastime...mine is a consistency I cannot describe (you can almost play with it), but it does bubble happily soon after a feeding, like a contented infant.
My first loaves were similar in looks to flattened out cobblestones (and every bit as heavy), but the flavor was outstanding (I had used a 4:1 ratio of white/wheat flour) They will nobly serve as croutons and bruschetta palettes. My next loaf was all-white flour, the texture was chewy and heavenly and, again, fabulous tasting but the loaf was still rather deflated.
For my third attempt, I tried to figure out what was preventing the loaves from rising to my desired expectations (for the final rise, I always put my bread-machine dough on a cornmeal-dusted piece of parchment, then bring the long sides of parchment together and put a few staples in at the top to encourage a more rounded loaf...and it always works, but the sourdough resisted this treatment). I re-read the KA instructions and decided to let the starter come to room temperature before processing. Seems to be working...the dough is in its second rise (in a bread pan....hubby needs sandwiches tomorrow one way or another!)
In any case, thanks for the input, folks, and I now firmly believe that sourdough bread making will a.) never be boring and b.) like the weather, always a topic for lively conversation!

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• Reply by GinaG on January 15, 2012 at 5:47 pm
• 

Mrsnow,

Do keep us posted. Glad to hear you're enjoying yourself!
GinaG.

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• Reply by placebo on January 16, 2012 at 1:49 pm
• 

You'll probably find it helpful to get into the habit of measuring ingredients using weights rather than volume. The KAF amounts of 1 cup of flour and 1/2 cup of water correspond respectively to 4.25 oz and 4.17 oz. (A fluid ounce is a measure of volume whereas an ounce is a measure of weight. One cup of water contains 8 fluid ounces, which weighs 8.34 ounces.) This gives you roughly a 100%-hydration starter. Your starter might be a bit thicker than normal if you measure the flour by volume because you're probably getting more than 4.25 oz of flour.

The main reason for sticking with a 100%-hydration starter is that many recipes will assume that's what you have. One cup of 100% starter will contribute different amounts of water and flour to a recipe than one cup of 196% starter. You can always adjust the amount of liquid and flour in the rest of the recipe to account for the difference, but you can avoid this complication simply by sticking with the 100% starter.

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• Reply by amywdowney on January 28, 2012 at 1:56 pm
• 

Thank you all for your comments! I had exactly the same question. My baby starter just arrived yesterday and after 24 hours of TLC, is bubbling but still thick and doughy. Veteran sourdough bakers, how often do you feed yours assuming you bake with it once or twice a week? Only when you're baking or more often?

I baked my first two loaves (w/KAF All-Purpose Flour) and they look and smell great! Still cooling... oh the temptation.

Thanks again.

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• Reply by njsandvick on January 29, 2012 at 1:07 am
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So happy you sent this question in. Just got my starter about 10 days ago, and made loaves 3 & 4 today. I am using the KA Extra Tangy Sourdough Bread recipe, and all 4 loaves turned out beautifully.
My starter was SO thick, and SO messy to work with, too. The last time I fed it, I added 1 cup water and 1 cup flour. Much better consistency now :)
If it gets too gooey on me again, I will make it a cup water and 3/4 cup flour.
Happy baking!

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• Reply by GinaG on February 10, 2012 at 4:53 pm
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A tip I observed on Breadtopia.com which may help some of you with thick starters like he has:

Mix the water called for in your recipe with the starter. It looks like it makes it easier to work with. You can see this technique for yourself on his video which is on his home page, showing how to make sourdough bread.

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