Hi Abby, if your starter is rising that quickly, it's possible that adjusting your feeding routine slightly will help your twice a day feedings to line up closer to the peak rise. This should keep the yeast more active, but may also help get rid of the acetone aroma. If you're currently feeding 1:1:1 (starter:water:flour, by weight), I would try reducing the portion of starter as compared to water and flour you're feeding. If you're following our sourdough starter routine, you could shift to something more like 1:2:2 or even 1:3:3, which would look like: 38g starter + 113g water + 113g flour. Feeding your starter in this way will slow down the ripening process a bit, but will build the populations of yeast and lactic acid bacteria (LAB), and may help restore the yeast/LAB balance.
February 17, 2023 at 12:24pm
In reply to My sourdough starter took on… by Abby (not verified)
Hi Abby, if your starter is rising that quickly, it's possible that adjusting your feeding routine slightly will help your twice a day feedings to line up closer to the peak rise. This should keep the yeast more active, but may also help get rid of the acetone aroma. If you're currently feeding 1:1:1 (starter:water:flour, by weight), I would try reducing the portion of starter as compared to water and flour you're feeding. If you're following our sourdough starter routine, you could shift to something more like 1:2:2 or even 1:3:3, which would look like: 38g starter + 113g water + 113g flour. Feeding your starter in this way will slow down the ripening process a bit, but will build the populations of yeast and lactic acid bacteria (LAB), and may help restore the yeast/LAB balance.