Making Sourdough Starter, Charlie is his name!

Welcome to the adventure of sourdough baking!

I would like to say from the start that this is not one of my quick fifteen minute recipes but one I enjoy tremendously and puts me in touch with roots.

Several years ago my family spent an amazing weekend in Hacker Valley, West Virginia with an amazing lady we call Nanny Pugh. She is a gracious hostess and I learned so much from spending that weekend with her on her farm way out in the hills of West Virginia. While there she made some wonderful bread for us as well as a lot of fresh food from her garden! She taught me to make “Charlie” and how to feed him and make bread with him. I am going to share that recipe with you today. First I will share the starter recipe and then a scrumptious bread recipe.

Charlie Sourdough Starter

To make your starter…

3 packages of yeast or 3 Tablespoons

1/2 cup warm water 105°-115°

1 cup warm water

2/3 cup sugar

3 Tablespoons of instant potato flakes

Dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup of warm water (105°-115°)  and then “feed” it with 1 cup of warm water, 2/3 cup sugar, and 3 Tablespoons of potato flakes

Let this mixture set out all day then refrigerate it for 2-5 days. Take it out and feed it again with the same ingredients: warm water, 2/3 cup sugar, and 3 Tablespoons of potato flakes. Let it set out all day or all night. Now remove 1 cup of the starter and maker your first Charlie bread or shape it into rolls.

Charlie Bread Recipe

1 cup of Charlie starter

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 ½ teaspoons salt

1 ½ cups warm water

6 cups flour

So take your starter and mix it with the sugar, oil, salt and warm water and then I add 6 cups of flour ( I usually use 4 cups unbleached and 2 cups whole wheat). Mix well and then pour the mixture into a greased bowl and don’t forget to oil the top of the dough or it will be a bit tough (don’t ask how I know this) and let it set out all night covered with a clean cloth. Divide the dough into two parts and knead it a bit, maybe 10 times at most, on a floured surface. Put each part into a greased pan. I like to shape some of mine into round loaves and some regular loaves. Brush lightly with oil and let rise on the counter top uncovered (or lightly covered with plastic wrap if you must) for 7-8 hours (mine doesn’t always take that long) or until it has risen and ready to bake. Bake 325° for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush with butter. Within 10 minutes remove the bread from the pan to prevent sweating. Place on a cooling rack.

Helpful hints:

Let Charlie breathe. Keep him in a plastic bowl with holes punched in the lid or covered with plastic wrap with holes. Do not put anything on top of it or Charlie will die.

Do not stir with a metal spoon. Use wood or plastic.

If your starter gets too full or you want to share, pour out 1 cup of Charlie into another plastic bowl. Feed both Charlies on the same day and pass one on to your friend. At least 1 to 2 cups of Charlie must be kept in order to keep him alive.

Bread can be baked any day as long as 1 cup of Charlie has been allowed to set at room temperature for 8 hours before mixing.

To see my original article I wrote about my visit to Hacker Valley, West Virginia visit my reddingmountain.com blog

April 17, 2017 UPDATE: I cheated and this is the result! On Sunday morning early I wanted to make some rolls. I decided to take “Charlie” from the fridge and feed him.  I then took one cup full of Charlie and mixed up rolls and shaped them. I put them in the pan and let them rise while I was at church. When I came home I could tell they were ready to bake so I baked them and they were great! So if you need to speed up the process this might work for you!