I have just bought a packet of freeze dried sourdough mixture,it seems its mixed in with the dough mix,has anyone used it before or got any recipes for it please?
There are some one-use-only products where you just add water and follow the recipe, like cake mixes. But more common is the freeze-dried sourdough yeast starter Nick mentioned. I also bought the San Francisco starter packet years ago.
You make your starter according to the instructions, then you use most of it for baking by mixing with the rest of the ingredients. But leave one cup (250ml) of your starter mix which will become your next starter for your next bread after you have been feeding it. By always leaving a little bit and feeding it up again, you keep your starter going. If you want a break, you can keep your starter alive by freezing it and defrosting it when you want it again. I use a plastic takeaway container for this, because they are suitable to go in the freezer and have a tight fitting lid.
http://www.goldrushproducts.com/4 Recipes on the webpage, including a video on how to make the first starter from freeze-dried yeast. Beware the temperatures in the video are quoted in F not C - the water should be warm not hot.
There was a recent thread on sourdough you might be interested in:
http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/smf/index.php/topic,75019.0.html
