Terrible sourdough bread?!
Answers: A friend gave me a sourdough bread starter. I had so much trouble getting my bread to rise. It is rather cold in my house. Would this affect the rising? What can I do to correct this problem.
The answers above are all good advice. I got better results with my starter once it got nice and healthy -- several days of feeding it and leaving it alone at room temperature.
The temperature for dough rising is important for the slow-rise yeasts in sourdough. Look around your house -- you may have a nice warm place for it to rest and rise. A stereo cabinet with the equipment turned on is good. In a cabinet behind the TV, if you're watching a Lord of the Rings movie or something else LONG!
You can also warm up the oven (turn it on for a couple of minutes) and rise the dough in there. Give it another couple of minutes of heat every few hours.
Ambient temperature could be a factor, but it's also quite possible that your start isn't particularly healthy.
Sourdough starts tend to get sluggish is they're not fed regularly. When you get a new starter, you probably want to feed it at least once a day for a week or so. Just add a cup or so of fresh water and flour and mix well. Obviously, this means you'll have tons of start--throw half of it out every few days. With a consistent source of food, you'll foster the growth of the yeast culture (which produces rising) as well as the bacterial cultures that produce the 'sour' flavor.
Also keep in mind that most wild yeast cultures will work more slowly that the commercial strain that has been selected primarily for its consistent, rapid rise.
Good luck!
Yes the fact that your house is cold can make the bread not rise. Some things that can help are to.
1.Take a heating pad turn it on low and place it under your bowl.
2.Place your bowl in a sink with warm water.
3.Warm a hot pack in the microwave and put it under or on top of your bowl.
Happy cooking