Guidelines On Converting Sourdough Recipes To Salt Free
Submitted by bivs99 on March 07, 2004 at 8:42 am

DESCRIPTION
Guidelines on converting sourdough recipes to salt-free

SUMMARY
Yield 0 File under sourdough

INSTRUCTIONS
This is one area where salt-free bakers have it easier! Sourdough is full of flavor, which makes it a great option for our salt-deprived palates. Even better, because we leave the salt out, our sourdough bread rises a lot faster! You will have a lot of fun with this.

For general information about the care and feeding of sourdough starters, I highly recommend the Sourdough Starters 101 posted in the FAQ section of the recipe archive. (Go to Member Recipes, then Search on Member Name; in the search box, type "faq." All the FAQs will come up.)

1. As for conventional bread, the most important thing to remember is that salt inhibits yeast. Therefore, if you take all the salt out (and don't worry, you can--I do), the bread will rise too fast/too much unless you reduce the yeast. Therefore, you must eliminate all or most of the commercial yeast in the recipe, as well as reducing the rise times. (Don't try to reduce the amount of sourdough starter or it will ruin your recipe!)

2. Your yeast reduction depends on the type of recipe. If your sourdough recipe contains a small amount of commercial yeast (1/2 teaspoon or so), this is there as a "booster" for the sourdough, and can safely be left out entirely. If the yeast amount is higher (say a couple of teaspoons), you should reduce it by 75-90%. For instance, my favorite sourdough rye recipe calls for 2 teaspoons of yeast for a 4 lb. bread recipe. I have cut this to 1/4 teaspoon, and the bread comes out perfect. If the recipe contains a tablespoon of yeast or more, it is not a "true" sourdough, as the commercial yeast provides most of the leavening. You, however, can make yours as a true sourdough, because salt-free rise times are so much faster. I recommend cutting the yeast to a token amount as just indicated. If you treat it like a conventional bread recipe and cut the commercial yeast by 50-75%, your bread will rise a lot faster than the recipe specifies, but you will get less depth of flavor.

3. Even with the yeast reduced as specified above, your bread will rise a lot faster than your recipe indicates. Be happy, this is a good thing! Whereas conventional sourdough takes about 3 hours each for rising and proofing, salt-free sourdough takes 1 hour or less for each of these stages. However, that means you have to check early and often to avoid over-proofing.

4. For best results when using sourdough, make sure your starter is very active before beginning the recipe. I generally feed mine three times, each one doubling the weight, before I begin. This should give you a starter that has tripled in volume since its last feeding and is totally permeated with small bubbles, possibly with a bit of froth or foam on top.

To avoid having too much starter, begin with a small amount that will grow into what you need. For example, if I need 8 oz of starter for my recipe, I will begin with 1 oz, double that to 2 oz (first feeding), then double again to 4 oz (second feeding), and then double again to 8 oz (third feeding). So as a general rule, if you are going to feed three times, start with one-eighth of the final amount that you need.

4. For best flavor, I recommend keeping your starter quite sour. This means NOT throwing any away between uses and replacing with fresh flour and water, as commonly called for in sourdough instructions. It will not hurt your starter at all and will give you a nicer-tasting salt-free bread.

5. Although salt-free sourdough is quite flavorful on its own, I really feel that salt substitute comes in handy here. (I am referring only to the potassium chloride type, not the so-called "light salts" that contain sodium.) It adds a certain something that balances out the flavor. 1/4-1/2 teaspoon per recipe is probably the most you should use--don't overdo it or the bread will have an unpleasant metallic taste. But check with your doctor first--people with kidney problems are sometimes told to avoid salt substitutes. If you are unable or unwilling to use this, don't worry--your bread will taste very good anyway.

6. Although salt-free sourdough keeps a lot longer than conventional salt-free bread, because the acidity of the sourdough acts as a preservative, it still spoils faster than the salted kind. I recommend storing it in the freezer (slice before freezing).