Sourdough - History of Sourdough - Types of Sourdough Bread

Types of Sourdough Bread

There are many breads that use techniques similar to that used in the making of sourdough bread.

Baking soda (and sometimes baking powder) may be added to a sourdough-type starter. This neutralizes the acid in the starter and generates carbon dioxide in the process, providing a lift to the dough or batter in a manner similar to Irish soda bread. This method is used in kitchens where the starter is kept off-balance with a high acid level. It is common in Alaska.

Amish Friendship Bread uses a sourdough starter that includes sugar and milk. It is also leavened with baking powder and baking soda, making like a quick bread. An Amish sourdough is fed with sugar and potato flakes every 3–5 days.

German Pumpernickel is traditionally made from a sourdough starter, although modern pumpernickel loaves often use commercial yeasts, sometimes spiked with citric acid or lactic acid to inactivate the amylases in the rye flour.

The Flemish Desem bread is a popular form of whole-wheat sourdough, cultured in a dryish medium.

Other recipes use starters that are not natural leavens. The Italian Biga and French Poolish add sourdough-like flavors to breads by allowing the yeast to ferment for at least half a day. Unlike a true sourdough, these recipes usually start with commercial yeast, and the production of lactobacillus is incidental.

In Azerbaijan, whole-wheat sourdough flatbreads are traditionally eaten.

In Ethiopia, teff flour is used to make Injera. A similar variant is eaten in Somalia (where it is called canjeelo or lahooh) and Yemen (where it is known as lahoh)