What type of flour should I feed my sour dough starter?

[parallei]

Yeah, my bad. My moldy brain meant "fungus". In the future, please substitute what I say with I meant.

I can relate.  Classic Engineer to Contractor line:  "Yes, you're right, that's what the drawings show but our intent was...."

[TXCraig1]

What if .... starters contain multiple strains of molds and bacteria in complex symbiotic relationships and feedback loops and that the relative population densities during fermentation play a role in the flavors developed? Can you imagine a scenario where these population differences during fermentation could be maintained or even amplified? And that the type of flour during feeding could be responsible for a range of densities?

Could be. I wouldn't exclude it as a possibility.

[bradtri]

I have a spare fermentation vessel (Mason jar!).  One is aways clean.

I guess I'm at the opposite end of the spectrum.  I've been using the same jar for many months.  I guess it is well seasoned.

[mwakem]

For years, I've just used the least expensive All Purpose flour I can find at the grocery store.  00 flours are expensive!  Your starter will not care what kind of flour you use in your doughs (00, AP, BF), it will eat them all.

Have fun!

THANK YOU !

[specialmonkey]

Interesting question. I know that when I add just a very small amount of rye into my AP culture it changes quite a bit. More activity and more acidic.

I maintain an Ischia, a rye and an AP starter. I'll switch the AP to 00 starting tomorrow and report any noticeable change.

Do you recall how your 00 experiment went?

I'm attempting to create a starter started on 100% KA whole wheat - since it tends to be more active - but subsequently fed only on Caputo Pizzeria (1:1:1), as that's what I plan to make all of my pizzas out of.

My reasoning is a starter that's accustomed to feeding only on Caputo Pizzeria will be more likely to easily and predictably ferment a Caputo Pizzeria based dough? I wonder if that's what the OP was getting at?

It's something that seems to make sense - AP and  Caputo Pizzeria seem less active than KA whole wheat - so if you add a starter accustomed to feeding on KA whole wheat to dough that is 100% Caputo Pizzeria - maybe it won't be quick to act on it? My recent experience  tells me this, though I haven't exhausted other possibilities as to why it might not have worked out.

Eventually my starter (assuming it comes to life) would be only Caputo Pizzeria based. I imagine the feeding cycles would reduce the initial KA whole wheat to only the initial cultures it provided.

I have a 55 lb bag of Caputo Pizzeria, for me, like @Bill/CDMX, it makes sense to use it in any way I can. The expense of the flour is already realized. Experience tells me I'll not come close to finishing the bag making pizzas alone. Using it to feed starter (assuming it is viable food for starter) helps me waste less by throwing away less when the bag inevitably goes out of date.

[gdepozsgay]

Went up north for Christmas and took about 25g of my starter with. As previously, the container leaked and I wound up with about 10g and the household had only a small amount of gluten free flour on hand. I had some fear about how or if it would work and it actually did work. After two feedings and purchase of a bag AP it produced a very tasty sourdough bread.

[TXCraig1]

My reasoning is a starter that's accustomed to feeding only on Caputo Pizzeria will be more likely to easily and predictably ferment a Caputo Pizzeria based dough?

I highly doubt that it would make a difference.