That time in Portland a baker told me to stop using instant yeast

I was at a tiny shop in Portland last fall and the owner basically laughed at my sourdough starter made with instant yeast. She said it ruins the whole point, and now I only use wild yeast from my own kitchen. Anyone else ditch the commercial stuff and notice a real difference?

3 comments

3 Comments

reese_hayes711mo ago

Ngl that baker was blunt but honestly she had a point. Instant yeast is like using a microwave for a slow cooked stew you get speed but you miss all the layers. Once I started feeding my own wild starter from grapes in my kitchen the difference hit me right in the taste buds. That tangy funk you can only get from wild yeast? Yeah it shows up way stronger in the final crumb and the crust gets this deep crackly thing that instant just can't give you. Tbh it's a pain to keep alive but the payoff is real especially in a plain sourdough where the flavor has to carry the whole loaf.

karencampbell1mo ago

So you're feeding it grapes, huh? How long did it take before that grape starter actually started giving you the sour you wanted? I tried a raisin starter once and it took almost three weeks before I got anything that wasn't just flat and mildly beery. The tangy funk you're talking about, does it hit stronger in the first few days of feeding or does it mellow out after a couple months of keeping it alive? I'm wondering if the grape yeast just gives a different kind of sour than the stuff that floats in from flour alone.

nelson.vera1mo ago

Grape skins bring yeast but not the lactobacillus that gives sourdough its actual tang, just so you know.