Gold Medal "Better for Bread" flour - OK to use for starting sourdough/ levain?

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added 10 months ago

Yes, but it will be best if you use an unbleached flour.

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Sadassa_Ulna added 10 months ago

Thanks boulangere, the "Better for Bread" type by Gold Medal is unbleached but it has a higher gluten content than AP unbleached I believe. I know higher gluten is good for bread dough but I haven't found anything written on the subject of using it for actual starter. I have read that organic flour is better for starters and also using part rye flour; I have neither of those at the moment. But I am OK with this being experimental. It will either work or I will procure better ingredients for next time....

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Cynthia is a trusted source on Bread/Baking.

added 10 months ago

Oh, even better! I've not looked at that one for a while, so good to know about the protein content; thanks! Rye is suggested because it ferments so fantastically (think rye whiskey). I like to use it when I've, ahem, let my barm go unfed for 5-6 days, and never use more than a tablespoon in the refreshment. If you use any more, you risk throwing the fermentation into overdrive. In a wild-yeast sourdough, there are some serious acids at work (lactic, acetic), so the stronger the protein the better. You'll be fine with what you have!

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Sadassa_Ulna added 10 months ago

Thanks boulangere. It was going well until I overfed yesterday. I am trying to rescue but might start over if unsuccessful. Years ago I followed Nick Malgieri's method for sourdough (but I think it involved a tiny measure of commercial yeast). This time I was following Daniel Leader's stiff levain method with no commercial yeast.
Do you recommend a favorite person's method for beginners to follow?

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