How To Make Sourdough Starter From Scratch
Make your own sourdough starter right in your kitchen using only simple ingredients. No fancy equipment is required and it can be ready as quickly as in 7 days! Use it to make multigrain bread, pancakes, flatbread, pizza, English muffins and so much more. Simply follow the detailed step-by-step guide: it is easy to make and the process is quite satisfying! Troubleshooting tips and a short video are included.
Servings: 1 cup
Equipment
- Scale
Ingredients
- 20 g unbleached all-purpose wheat flour you can use bread flour as well
- 20 g whole wheat flour rye flour works well too
- 40 g water not tap water, use low-in-chloride water, such as bottled water
Instructions
- I highly recommend you read the blog post in detail to get all the tips on how to make your own sourdough starter.
- I also recommend weighing the EMPTY jar that you will use to build up your starter, this will help know how much of the mixture you have to discard.
- DAY #1 (START): combine the flours and water in a large glass jar (non-reactive container). Stir very well leaving no dry clumps of flour behind (use a non-metal utensil). It should look like a pretty thick paste, similar to peanut butter. Then, use a cloth or even paper towel, tie with an elastic band, and leave at room temperature (around 70-80º) for 24 hours. You will have a total of 80g. in the jar.
- DAY #2 (FIRST FEED): After 24-48 hours, you might see a few bubbles or some activity, but usually not that much. You might also notice a thin darker liquid-y film over your starter, which means it is starting to get hungry. But again, at this point, it should be subtle. If your starter still is very quiet, especially if your home is colder, then wait for 36 or even 48 hrs hours before feeding. When ready to feed, then discard 40g. of the starter, then add the same ratio of water and flours to the remaining 40g. in the jar, stir very well and cover. Let it sit at 70-80º covered for 24 hours. You will have a total of 120g. in the jar.
- DAY #3 (SECOND FEED): 12-24 hours later, you should start seeing some action in your starter. You want to feed when it looks hungry, such as: 1- it went up, but now is back down in the jar (rising/sinking), 2- a thin darker liquid-y film over the starter, 3- there were bubbles in the starter, but now not so much. It should also start smelling nice, like bread or beer. Feed it when you see the signs of hunger and avoid feeding when it is at its peak and high in the jar. When ready to feed, then keep 40g of starter in the jar (or discard 80g.), then add the same ratio of water and flours, stir very well and cover. Let it sit at 70-80º covered for 24 hours. You will have a total of 120g. in the jar.
- DAY #4 (THIRD FEED): At this point, you might need to feed your starter more often (every 12 hours instead of 24 hours). This will depend on the conditions of your home, especially the temperature (when warmer, the yeast metabolize the flour quicker, and you need to feed more often). So again, watch for signs of hunger, such as slide marks on the side of the jar, there were lots of bubbles but not anymore, thin liquid-y layer over the starter, etc. When ready to feed, then keep 40g of starter in the jar (or discard 80g.), then add the same ratio of water and flours, stir very well and cover. Let it sit at 70-80º covered for 24 hours. You will have a total of 120g. in the jar.
- DAY #5 (FOURTH FEED): This is when you start seeing your starter regularly going up and down in your jar after each feeding and creating lots of bubbles within the starter. It should smell acidic, but very nice and pleasant, a little like bread. If your starter isn't looking that active yet, that's fine, sometimes it just takes more time. Wait maybe 36 hours before feeding as you don't want to overfeed it: this can dilute the yeast if it's struggling. So, always watch for signs of hunger before feeding, this is important.When ready to feed, then keep 40g of starter in the jar (or discard 80g.), then add the same ratio of water and flours, stir very well and cover. Let it sit at 70-80º covered for 24 hours. You will have a total of 120g. in the jar.
- DAY #6 (FIFTH FEEDING): If all the conditions were good, then the starter could be ready to make bread (although there are good chances that yours isnt ready yet). So discard + feed as usual, stir, cover and watch it rise. If the starter at least doubles in height in the jar, is all bubbly and looks active (about 4 hours after the last feed), then you will be able to start using it to make bread! If it does not double, then keep the same schedule of discarding and feeding. See notes for more tips.
- Once you use some of your starter to make bread, then keep the rest and feed as described. If you are not planning on baking any sourdough recipes anytime soon, then store the starter in the fridge, cover, and take it out ONCE A WEEK TO FEED IT. In that case: take it out, feed it and leave it overnight at room temperature (70-80º), then place it back in the fridge the next morning. To use it from the fridge, then take it out, feed and use it whenever it looks active and bubbly, which can take 1-2 feedings.
Notes
To know how much starter you have to remove before feeding your starter, then you will need to know the weight of your jar when empty. When you want to feed your starter, it goes this way:
- Weight of your jar with its starter - Weight of your jar empty = Total weight of the starter.
- Remove 80 g of the starter in the jar, so you have 40g. left.
- Then you feed what's in the jar.
- Keep in a warmer area and even measure the temperature to ensure it is close to 70-80º. If your house is colder, then keep your jar in a small cozy spot, such as your microwave with a large glass of really hot water just beside.
- Are you using a freshly milled and unprocessed kind of flour? These are best to reach an active starter quicker.
- Are you overfeeding your starter? I skip a meal once in a while if it seems a little dull and it often helps.
- Give it a little sugar to help feed the yeast and see if that helps. Just a little splash of maple syrup or any sweetener.
- Read the blog post for more tips!