December 15, 2018 - 3:11am
"Cover loosely" -- why cover at all?
Newbie bread baker and bread baking book reader asks...
Why am I instructed to cover sourdough starter or rising dough loosely? I think I understand the "loosely" part -- it permits gases to escape, avoiding pressure build-up. Or, for too-small containers, it allows expanding dough/gas to escape instead of breaking the container.
But then why cover at all? I have one tentative guess, but I'll withhold it to avoid biasing your answer. :)
Share
That's all there is to it. A loose cover traps enough moisture in the air above the dough to prevent it drying out too badly.
precisely
OK -- we have a concurrence!
Thanks; makes sense. Abstracting a bit, the cover is protection against breezes/drafts causing displacement of the humid air above the goodness happening in the container.
will help keep the dough a little warmer, too.
keeps fruit flies out in the summer..
is higher than the starter, covering can help maintain a lower hydration.
If loosely covered with a damp cloth, evaporation of the water in the cloth can actually cool the starter somewhat in warm temps. Although I prefer to cover the starter jar and set inside a water soaked ceramic jar with cover, much the way a ceramic wine cooling jar cools a bottle of wine.
Agree with the above. Furthermore:
Why cover: to prevent moisture loss in the case of lower ambient humidity, and to prevent moisture gain in the case of higher ambient humidity.
Why loosely: to prevent the cover, for example plastic film or a cloth, from excessively sticking to the dough. An inverted bowl works as a loose cover.