# I need a little help with my first sourdough starter...



## RedTartan (May 2, 2006)

Three days ago I mixed up my first sourdough starter. I only want to use naturally occurring yeasts so I only used water and rye flour. It smelled yeasty after the first 12 hours. Yesterday it smelled really yeasty, but also a little... "off". This morning when I stirred it it smells a little yeasty, but more like cheese than bread. Did I do something wrong?

Little help?

Thanks,

 RedTartan


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## XLT (Apr 7, 2005)

Have you been feeding it? It will start to bubble, but go sour quicker if you don't. Usually takes me about 5-6 days to start a new one... dumping out about half, adding 1/2 cup each of flour and water each day...


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## RedTartan (May 2, 2006)

You dump out half and replace each day?!! My instructions just say to stir it. It says I won't need to feed it until it's about a week old. My starter was 2c water and 2c rye flour. So I should dump out about 1c of starter each day and add 1c water and 1c flour back in and stir, right?

Thanks,

 RedTartan


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## squeezinby (Apr 26, 2004)

That sounds right to me. Normally you would use that one cup of starter to make bread,cake,biscuts or feed to your animals.(back in the old days) Way back when people baked bread every day or everyother day. So the starter always got stirted up and fed. I like to add a tiny tiny bit of sugar or honey when making my starter it helps keep it going longer in my oppenion. 
Yes, you do need to do more than just stir it.


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## RedTartan (May 2, 2006)

Do I need to start over or can I salvage this starter?

 RedTartan


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## woodsman (Dec 8, 2008)

Start with a smaller amount like 2tbs rye/2tbs WW (1/4 cup total). At first refreshment you add another 1/4 cup at second 1/2 cup at 3rd 1 cup. This way at 3rd refreshment you'll have 2 cups of flour invested without discarding anything. I go for 5-6 refreshments after starting sourdough starter from scratch and cook what I discard for the chickens or use the discarded dough to thicken broth for a nice sourdough soup.

The yeast in your starter probably died so you might as well start a new batch. That is if by smelling like cheese you mean some nasty stinky cheese or dirty unwashed feet like smell  Sourdough should have a pleasant smell - sorta like mash - if you've ever been to a distillery or brewery.


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## Bret (Oct 3, 2003)

Before you start over, I agree that it may be a little hungry. Try to stir in a little white flower and sugar in a warm place and see if it picks back up in a few hours to a day. If it smells a little sour, you may have just made sour dough starter. 

White flour and sugar always pick me up?


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## chewie (Jun 9, 2008)

i am having the same issue. it got a little foamy but not much. its about 2 weeks old. i've fed it, stirred it. now its got water on top and sludge underneath, smells veyr sour but not rotten. but no bubbles or foamy any more. should i toss mine? thanks


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## RedTartan (May 2, 2006)

Update on my starter. I started a second starter just in case the first one is a loss. I gave the first starter a BIG meal and this morning it smells like beer and looks great. I want to try to make some pancakes with it. It doesn't smell like I think a sourdough starter should smell (yeasty bread smell) but it doesn't smell bad really either. It smells like a strong beer.

Is it safe to use or we will all drop dead in an impressively short time after eating it? 

 RedTartan


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## Mid Tn Mama (May 11, 2002)

Try letting some grapes go soft on your counter. Soak these in water and use the water for your sourdough.


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## NostalgicGranny (Aug 22, 2007)

Yeah sourdough is kicking my butt too. 

I think though that I read you shouldn't use 100% rye, and to get a good sourdough you had to have white wheat or wheat flour.

My last one smelled to much like alcohol and not enough like sourdough.


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