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How can I make a rye starter?
66 grams of rye sourdough starter
Why switch to a rye sourdough starter?
In my experience, one type of sourdough starter is not objectively better or worse than another. With observation of the dough, starters made from different flours, stored at different temperatures, and used at different degrees of ripeness and quantity will all leaven a lean dough. (Heavily enriched dough, like panettone or pompe à l’huile, can be a bit more tricky, requiring starters that are low hydration and very vigorous — also a warm final dough temperature.)
Different flours and processes may work better or worse for different bakers though, and I do believe that trying new techniques and ingredients is a valuable way to learn and improve as a bread baker. So the answer to why a rye starter for me is “Why not try it?”
All that said, many bakers report that their rye sourdough starters peak faster and ferment dough more quickly than refined (white) flour sourdough starters, and perhaps you’re looking for a faster process. Here’s some experimental evidence indicating this as well. Additionally, you can learn about sourdough starter pH levels, the ash content and buffering capabilities of different flours, and resulting lactobacillus quantities in this fascinating thread in our forum.
How can I make a rye sourdough starter?
If you have 3-10 days to spare, you can create a new sourdough starter using only water or pineapple juice and rye flour (or any other flour for that matter). But if you already have a thriving sourdough starter, it’s much easier to pull off a tiny bit of it to feed with rye flour and water until the original flour is essentially diluted and discarded away.
Here I’ve pulled 6 grams of all purpose flour starter from my jar in the refrigerator and put it in a new jar, and I’m going to feed it 30 grams rye flour and 30 grams water.
This is a feeding ratio of 1:5:5. One part starter to five parts flour and five parts water. This makes the ratio of rye flour to all purpose flour 10:1 because there is 30 grams rye flour and 3 grams all purpose flour in the fed jar (6 grams starter is made of 3 grams flour and 3 grams water). This starter doubled in about eight hours.
Just after feeding on the left; After 8 hours at room temperature on the right
I made pizza dough with most of the ripe rye starter (~ 60 grams) and then fed the remaining 6 grams. This second rye feed was again 1:5:5. Specifically, I fed the 6 grams rye starter with 30 grams rye flour and 30 grams water. This starter again doubled in about eight hours.
6 grams of rye starter on the left; On the right, fed and left to ferment for 8 hours and then refrigerated for later use and refeeding
The ratio of rye flour to all purpose flour after the second feeding was 109:1. The jar contained 0.3 grams all purpose flour and 32.7 grams rye flour.
You can see how with a third feed, the all purpose flour would essentially disappear.
Of course, if there’s going to be a shift in microbial populations because of the flour choice (and there is debate on this), it would likely require more than a few feedings with the new flour to take hold, but with this method, you’re guaranteed a successful sourdough starter right off the bat.
How can I make a rye starter?