Li.Co.Li.: the liquid Lievito Madre as a pizza preferment

What Li.Co.Li. is

Li.Co.Li. stands for Lievito Madre in Coltura Liquida - mother dough kept in a liquid feed. It’s the Italian take on a sourdough starter, but instead of the firm classic Lievito Madre Solido it’s run at 100% hydration: equal parts flour and water by weight, plus a small share of mature predecessor culture. The result is a thick, bubbly culture that’s easy to stir, weigh and dose evenly.

Li.Co.Li. has gained traction in Italian pizzerias in recent years because, compared to a firm mother dough, it has two practical advantages: it stays more active (higher water activity = more active yeasts) and is easier to maintain, since you stir it instead of kneading. For the home baker that means less ritual, more lift, same flavour family.

Li.Co.Li. vs. sourdough vs. Biga vs. Poolish

In short: Li.Co.Li. is sourdough - but handled like Biga or Poolish. It’s a pure wild culture without commercial yeast, but the workflow (weigh, stir in, no salt, no second yeast source) is closer to a classic preferment than to a fed levain.

When does Li.Co.Li. pay off?

• You want a sourdough flavour without the harsh edge of a vinegar-heavy firm starter.
• You bake regularly (at least every 1-2 weeks), so the maintenance is worth it.
• You’re already using Biga or Poolish and want to move to a wild culture without changing your entire workflow.
• You want more predictability than a firm Lievito Madre: 100% hydration makes the activity more reproducible.

For occasional bakers (every 4-6 weeks), keeping a Li.Co.Li. isn’t worth it - a classic sourdough in the fridge is more forgiving, or stick with Biga/Poolish or a direct dough from the pizza dough calculator.

Starting and maintaining a Li.Co.Li.

If you don’t have a starter yet, you can build a Li.Co.Li. from flour and water in 5-7 days - essentially like a classic sourdough, but every refresh follows the 1:1:1 ratio (starter : flour : water by weight). A typical refresh cycle:

1. Take the mature Li.Co.Li. out of the fridge, scoop a portion (e.g. 20 g).
2. Feed 1:1:1: 20 g Li.Co.Li. + 20 g flour (Tipo 0 or Manitoba) + 20 g water (22-24°C), stir smooth.
3. Let it ripen: 4-6 hours at room temperature until it doubles and the surface is bubbly.
4. Use or fridge again: either bake now or store cold until next time.

Before each bake day the Li.Co.Li. is built 1:3:3 for the dough (1 part Li.Co.Li., 3 parts flour, 3 parts water) and ripens for 5-6 hours at 18-25 °C, from 26 °C only 3-4 hours. Only then does it reach full leavening power. A well-kept Li.Co.Li. smells slightly alcoholic and fruity, never sharp like nail polish remover.

How the calculator in PizzaPlan works

In PizzaPlan Pro, Li.Co.Li. is a dedicated preferment type. You enter total dough weight, main-dough hydration and total fermentation time - the app calculates:

1. Li.Co.Li. build: 1 part refreshed mother, 3 parts flour, 3 parts water (1:3:3), ripe after 5-6 hours at roughly double the volume. How much depends on room temperature: ripe Li.Co.Li. at 25 % of the total flour below 22 °C, 20 % at 22-25 °C, 15 % at 26-27 °C and 10 % from 28 °C. The warmer it is, the less you use, otherwise the dough ferments too fast and turns too sour. The app counts the flour and water of the build towards total flour and hydration.
2. Remaining amounts in the main dough: flour, water and salt - already adjusted for what’s already in the Li.Co.Li.
3. No added yeast: unlike Biga or Poolish, the app does not include a yeast booster. The lift comes entirely from the wild culture.
4. Step-by-step schedule: from refreshing the mother to mixing the bake-day Li.Co.Li., the main dough and the final bake, with timings matched to your room temperature.

You can also tell the app that your mother is already refreshed - it then skips the refresh step. Everything runs offline, no account required.

Common Li.Co.Li. mistakes

• Not refreshed: straight from the fridge into the dough - not enough lift. Always build it 1:3:3 beforehand and let it ripen for 5-6 hours, from 26 °C 3-4 hours.
• Too little mother: after long gaps between bakes, one refresh isn’t enough. Do two cycles 6-8 hours apart, then bake.
• Run too warm: from 26 °C acidity turns sharp fast, 22-24 °C is ideal. In summer find a cooler spot and use cool water, but do not put the Li.Co.Li. itself in the fridge. Only the finished main dough should ripen cold.
• Mixed with salt: salt inhibits the culture. Salt goes into the main dough only, never into the Li.Co.Li.
• Wrong flour type: low-protein Tipo 00 won’t sustain the lift. For the mother use at least Tipo 0 or Manitoba (W ≥ 300).

Which pizza style suits Li.Co.Li.?

Li.Co.Li. works with every style in PizzaPlan - but it shines with longer fermentation times and medium-to-high hydration:

• Neapolitan (60-65% hydration, 24-48 h total): wild lift gives the crumb a fruity, gently sour character.
• Pizza in Pala / Romana (70-85% hydration, 48-72 h total): the long cold proof develops complex aromas without acidity taking over.
• Pan pizza / Teglia (medium hydration, 24 h cold): particularly digestible, since fermentation also breaks down starches.

For short fermentations (up to 10 hours) Li.Co.Li. doesn’t pay off, and the app does not offer it there - the wild culture needs time to develop flavour and lift.

Who built PizzaPlan?

PizzaPlan comes from Forstinning near Munich, written by Christoph. The Li.Co.Li. calculator exists because, after years of working with Biga and Poolish, moving to a wild liquid culture is the natural next step - and the maths gets tedious. The app handles the maths. More about the app on the about page.

Li.Co.Li. is part of PizzaPlan Pro. A one-time 2.99 € (no subscription) unlocks Biga, Poolish, Li.Co.Li., 220 flour profiles from 72 brands, sweet yeast doughs and all future pro features. If you prefer to bake with a classic firm sourdough: the sourdough workflow is free. Play Store · App Store.