gray6•7mo ago

I just found out my sourdough starter was a total fraud

For about six months, I was feeding my starter with tap water straight from the kitchen sink. My loaves were always a bit flat and dense, but I blamed my shaping. The tip-off was when a baker friend visited and asked if my water was filtered. She said the chlorine in my city's water was probably killing the wild yeast. I switched to bottled water and the starter doubled in size overnight. Has anyone else had a simple fix like this that turned things around?

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3 Comments

kaifox7mo ago

My city's water is so chlorinated it could probably sanitize a hospital floor.

2

the_ray7mo ago

Get a filter for your shower head, makes a huge difference.

6

oscar6666mo ago

Honestly kaifox, that's the wrong chemical for cleaning floors. Chlorine bleach is sodium hypochlorite, but the stuff in water is just chlorine or chloramine. It's for killing germs, not cutting grease. The_ray has the right idea with a filter, because that smell gets in your hair and towels. My skin gets all itchy if I don't run mine through a filter first.

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