Hi there, it's normal for starters to gradually rise after having been fed and eventually reach a peak rise and then slowly fall back down again. Ideally you want to try to replenish (feed) your starter when it's at that high point, or just beginning to fall. This will keep the yeast active and vigorous. Allowing the starter to fall significantly between feedings tends to lead to sluggish yeast behavior. When your starter is rising as rapidly as yours seems to be doing, rather than adding another feeding to your maintenance routine (I never like to suggest feeding a starter more than twice a day when it's at room temperature), you might want to use room temperature water to feed it and keep it in a slightly cooler spot (68-70°F). You might also want to consider reducing the percentage of starter as compared to water and flour your feeding it, which will slow down the ripening process and hopefully allow your twice a day feedings to line up closer to that peak rise. So, rather than the 1:1:1 (starter:water:flour, by weight) routine we normally suggest, you could try something more like 1:3:3 or even 1:4:4. Adjusting our regular feedings to this formula would look like this for a 1:4:4 feeding: 28g starter + 113g water + 113g flour. The goal here, again, is to allow your twice a day feedings to line up closer to the peak rise, which will help keep your starter rising vigorously when you're maintaining it at room temperature.
February 28, 2023 at 9:44am
In reply to A friend gave me a sourdough… by dlk (not verified)
Hi there, it's normal for starters to gradually rise after having been fed and eventually reach a peak rise and then slowly fall back down again. Ideally you want to try to replenish (feed) your starter when it's at that high point, or just beginning to fall. This will keep the yeast active and vigorous. Allowing the starter to fall significantly between feedings tends to lead to sluggish yeast behavior. When your starter is rising as rapidly as yours seems to be doing, rather than adding another feeding to your maintenance routine (I never like to suggest feeding a starter more than twice a day when it's at room temperature), you might want to use room temperature water to feed it and keep it in a slightly cooler spot (68-70°F). You might also want to consider reducing the percentage of starter as compared to water and flour your feeding it, which will slow down the ripening process and hopefully allow your twice a day feedings to line up closer to that peak rise. So, rather than the 1:1:1 (starter:water:flour, by weight) routine we normally suggest, you could try something more like 1:3:3 or even 1:4:4. Adjusting our regular feedings to this formula would look like this for a 1:4:4 feeding: 28g starter + 113g water + 113g flour. The goal here, again, is to allow your twice a day feedings to line up closer to the peak rise, which will help keep your starter rising vigorously when you're maintaining it at room temperature.