WHAT IS WITHIN A WHEAT BERRY?

Included Inside of an unaltered whole wheat berry are the elements required to encourage growth. The protective casing on the wheat berry (also known as the bran) Is made up of fiber and nutrients. The starchy inside of the wheat berry is called the endosperm. As the seed germinates, the endosperm supplies it with nourishment until the plant can be maintained by its freshly grown root system. The embryo of the new plant is called the germ. Flour from commercially machined wheat has the germ and bran stripped from it, along with the connected nutrients. Legally, commercial suppliers are required to add three or four artificial in their retailed ‘enriched’ flour. Yet, eleven minerals and sixteen vitamins are found within a wheat berry.

THE SEED IS COMPLETE
The whole wheat grain arrives with strains of microorganisms that survive on whole grains. One gram of flour has around 13,000 yeast cells. Strong sourdough starters are populated by yeast cells which are designed to flourish off of grain. A starter doesn’t need to be exposed to the surrounding air to ‘catch’ untamed yeast. Uncovering your starter will only entice unwanted pests and bugs.

Sourdough starters consist of a balance of yeast and lactobacillus growing in a blend of flour and water. At room temperature the microorganisms are balanced, with yeast growing in a less rapid pace compared to lactobacillus. Cool storage decreases the rate of lactobacillus growth. As a rule of thumb, starters grow best in conditions between 65-85°F. In case you have a cooler residence, a starter might fare better resting close to a light bulb, near a warm, or atop your refrigerator. For residences that happen to be in warmer environments, the starter glass could rest inside a bowl of water to keep it cooler via evaporative cooling.

THE SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIP WITHIN A SOURDOUGH STARTER
Both yeast as well as lactobacilli take up residence inside a healthy sourdough starter whereas baker’s yeast contains only an isolated strain of yeast. Both of these microorganisms were designed to benefit one another symbiotically. Lactobacilli are anaerobic microorganisms that survive off of carbon dioxide. Yeast flourishes on the starch inside the endosperm and also creates carbon dioxide as a byproduct. The lactobacilli which have been enriched because of the carbon dioxide then stop unsafe bacteria from taking up residence in the starter.

Sourdough starters are merely containers that host this process and (in return for regular feeding) supply the bread maker a natural leavening agent.