Question

Microbiology critical questions:

1.) If you are making sourdough bread, and you want a more “sour” or “tangy” taste, what might you try to do? Hint: think about the organisms involved and what they need!

Answer 1

Sourdough bread is having an inherent sour taste. It is made by the fermentation of dough using naturally occurring lactobacilli and yeast. It has better inherent keeping qualities than breads made with baker's yeast, due to the lactic acid produced by the lactobacilli. lactic acid bacteria lend the bread its notable sour flavor.
Lactic acid bacteria thrive in acidic environments. They produce lactic acid in response to the conversion of available carbohydrates into the sugars they need to survive.
So, in order to bring more “sour” or “tangy” taste, more lactic acid has to be produced by the bacteria. If more carbohydrates are supplied and acidic environment is maintained, then more amount of lactic acid is produced, which will give more sour or tangy taste to the bread.