I let Vitale sit in the refrigerator for a few weeks. No feedings. No attention. Just neglect. And when I pulled her out, she had a thick layer of hooch sitting right on top.
โ ๏ธ Thatโs not failure. Thatโs chemistry doing exactly what itโs supposed to do.
I did this on purpose.
I wanted to show you what a neglected starter actually looks like, because too many bakers panic when they see hooch and think theyโve killed their starter.
You havenโt.
Sheโs hungry, not dead.
๐ฅฃ Hereโs what I did:
โข Poured off the hoochโข Discarded almost everything in the jar except 30 grams of dregsโข Built her back up as a stiff starter with:โข 30g starterโข 100g waterโข 200g flour
Thatโs it.
No fancy Rescue. No starting from scratch.
๐ And hereโs where it gets interesting.
Iโm running two experiments at once.
1๏ธโฃ First, Iโm bringing Vitale back to life so you can see exactly how a neglected starter responds.
2๏ธโฃ Second, once sheโs showing signs of life, Iโm splitting off a portion into a separate jar and treating it like a brand-new sluggish starter.
That one gets fed with pineapple juice, the trick Candy mentioned in our live chat last weekend, to show you how the acid can rescue a starter that just wonโt get going.
๐งช Two scenarios.
๐ซ One jar of dregs.
๐ฅ Real footage of what actually happens.
Stay with me on this one. Iโll be posting updates as she comes back to life.
Perfection is not required. Progress is.
~ Henry โญ๐ฅ