Fantastic yeasts and where to find them: The science behind sourdough starters
On Location: April 2, 2021
Replay Video Sourdough bread has nurtured humans for thousands of years perhaps even more so during the bread-making hype of the COVID-19 pandemic and bakers have perfected the craft of making it over generations. Now, scientists are beginning to understand the identities and activities of the microbes in sourdough that are key to making a delicious loaf. People are making sourdough all over the world it s the most ancient form of bread-making and an ancient form of fermentation, said Elizabeth Landis, a microbiologist at Tufts University near Boston, Massachusetts. But she added, We really didn t know a lot of the diversity of microbes that are currently in people s starters. MORE: Back to Basics: What you knead to know about making bread from a master baker
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The big fat sourdough study: researchers reveal surprising diversity, tackle baking myths
Scientists peered into those sourdough starter jars to see what makes it tick.
When the pandemic started, sourdough bread boomed almost overnight. Stuck inside their homes, many turned to this comforting ancient craft and baked, at least for a while, delicious sourdough bread.
There’s a deceptive complexity to this craft, however. In a new study, scientists mapped the microbial life of sourdough starters in unprecedented detail and confirmed two things: sourdough starters really are different from one another but despite this, you can make delicious bread regardless of where you are on the globe.
Updated:
January 27, 2021 20:57 IST
Here are some of the most interesting research papers to have appeared in top science journals last week
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Parts of the molecules attracted to or repulsed from water, shown in purple and blue respectively, orient and guide the molecules to form a nanostructure. Credits: Peter Allen
Here are some of the most interesting research papers to have appeared in top science journals last week
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