The Sourdough Keeper: A Starter Companion
To bake sourdough is to be a custodian of a living thing. The starter—that bubbling, breathing culture of wild yeast and bacteria—is the heart of the loaf. It’s a partner in the baking process, with its own rhythms, needs, and moods. And as any baker knows, its vitality is profoundly tied to temperature. The Baker’s Dilemma Our modern kitchens are rarely the ideal environment for this ancient lifeform. Temperatures swing with the seasons, the time of day, or whether the oven has been on. In winter, a starter can be sluggish, refusing to rise with the vigour needed for a great bake. In summer, it can ferment too quickly, becoming overly acidic and losing its strength.
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DIY Wireless Fermentation Controller
Fermentation is a dance between control and surrender. We create the conditions, add the culture, and then step back to let an invisible world of microbes work its magic. But any fermenter knows that the environment is everything. The wild sourdough that thrives in a cool, humid kitchen might struggle in a warm, dry one. The perfect kimchi requires a consistent chill. A home-brewed beer like a lager demands a precise, unwavering cold fermentation, while an ale needs a steady warmth. The mash for a future distillation, perhaps using surplus lemons or plums from your own garden, needs to be kept at an optimal temperature to ensure a clean ferment, free of off-flavours. Even a simple Hard Lemon brew can turn if the temperature swings too wildly.
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