How to make your own Sourdough Starter, using simple ingredients with no special equipment, in just six days, that can be used in our sourdough bread. Video.
When you understand one thing through and through, you understand everything.~ Shunryu Suzuki
With over 500 five-star reviews and hundreds of success stories, my chef’s perfected sourdough starter guide has everything you need to make your own homemade starter. In just six days, you’ll be baking the most beautiful sourdough loaves!
But first, What is a starter?
Sourdough starter is a “wild yeast” made from flour, water, and the natural wild yeast in the air. With a little care and patience, it ferments, and when strong and active, just a little bit of starter replaces commercial yeast and makes your bread rise, while transforming the gluten in the bread into something more easily digestible. Store-bought yeast is not needed!
How to Make Sourdough Starter | 20-Min Video
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Fast forward to Specific Day by video time (using scroll bar underneath video)
- Day 1 Morning: :23
- Day 2 Morning: 4:10
- Day 3 Morning: 7:00
- Day 3 Evening: 9:12
- Day 4 Morning: 11:50
- Day 4 Evening: 13:37
- Day 5 Morning: 14:45
- Day 6 Evening: 16:50
- Day 6 Morning: 18:12
- Day 6 Evening: 20:10
Sourdough Starter Recipe Ingredients
- Jar – A wide-mouth quart jar or a Weck’s 1-liter tulip jar.
- Flour – 5 lb bag of organic bread flour (plus 1 cup organic whole grain flour )
- Water – filtered water, tap water, or mineral water (specifically, San Pellegrino, for the correct mineral ratio). Distilled water does not have enough minerals.
- Scale – using a kitchen scale is optional but handy.
- Thermometer – Knowing the temp of the starter using a thermometer is optional but handy!
Understanding starter
- Think of sourdough starter as yeast. Only in this case, instead of buying a packet of yeast from the store, you are making your own living “wild yeast” by fermenting flour and water. Once it’s bubbly and happy, it is very much ike a very low-maintenance pet.
- You must feed it (stir in a mixture of flour and water) once a week to keep it active and strong. You know it’s happy when it bubbles. 😉 And YES, you can even name it.
- Some people believe that bread made with sourdough starter is actually better for you than bread made with yeast. Here and Here are a few articles to get you started on your own research. While I’m not sure if this is scientifically proven, I do know that bread made with sourdough starter, tastes infinitely better, feels easier to digest, and has more complexity and better texture, than bread made with commercial yeast. So if you are a bread lover- this is absolutely the way to go, as far as the quality of your finished bread.
How to Make Sourdough Starter
*See the recipe card for detailed instructions.
This recipe for Sourdough Starter takes 6 days (or up to 12 days if it is very cold where you live). For a primer, watch the 20-minute Sourdough Video above!
Day 1: Staring in the morning or at night, using a wide-mouth quart jar, tulip jar, or Crock or Glass Measuring Cup , mix 1 cup whole grain flour (120 grams) with 1/2 cup filtered water (120 grams) using a fork (or chopstick) making sure you’ve incorporated all the dry flour.
Place the lid lightly on top (using the Weck jar lid is really handy here) or a wet towel to keep moisture in, or plastic wrap- and let sit at room temperature (70-ish degrees) on the kitchen counter for 24-48 hours. If you are unsure how warm it is, use a kitchen thermometer and check it a few hours later. See notes for TEMPERATURE.
TIP #1: For your first measurement, weigh the flour using a kitchen scale so you can get an idea of how the mixture should feel. Do not weigh the measuring cup! It should be like a thick paste, like peanut butter. If you need to add a little more water to incorporate the flour, that is OK too!
Day 2: After the first 24 hours, there may or may not be a bit of bubbling. Let the mixture rest until you see activity (bubbles or rising) sometimes this takes 36 hours or even 48 hours if very cold. When you see active bubbling, discard all but 1/2 cup of the starter (4 ounces).
To the remaining ½ cup of starter, stir in 1/2 cup water (120 grams), and mix well with a fork. Add 1 cup of organic bread flour (120 grams)spooned and leveled. Stir until combined. Again, it should feel like a thick paste. If overly dry, feel free to add a bit more water. Cover again and allow the mixture to sit at room temperature for another 24 hours.
Day 3: After 24 hours, hopefully, you will see some bubbling or rising and if not, let it go a bit longer until you see activity. Be patient.
Depending on how warm your house is and how active your starter, you may need to begin feeding more often or move to two feedings a day, in the morning and at night. If it is cold, one feeding a day may be enough.
TIP #2: Only feed the starter after it has peaked or looks hungry. See the “3 Signs of Hunger” below. Feeding it when it is “not hungry” will basically dilute all the growing yeast and make it lethargic. Better to underfeed than overfeed.
The 3 Signs of hunger
The photo below was taken after the starter was fed, and after it peaked (reached its highest), and now is sliding down. It is now “hungry” again. See the downward slide marks on the jar? Pay attention – your starter is telling you it is hungry.
- Look for “slide marks” (be sure to use a clean jar so you can see these clearly).
- Liquid at the top of the starter.
- Thin and runny. The starter is liquidy enough to pour out of the jar (when at room temp).
This might be 12 hours, it might be 14, it might be 18, or 24, depending on the temp in your house. In very warm climates, it may only be 6-8 hours. In winter, this may take 36 hours. It is better to underfeed rather than overfeed here.
For each feeding, discard all but 1/2 cup of the starter (keeping roughly ½-cup of starter in the jar). Add 1/2 cup water and 1 cup Bread Flour (spooned and leveled). Mix well, cover, and let this rest at room temperature for 12-24 hours or until the starter looks “hungry” again before repeating.
Day 4: Feed 1-2 times, discarding all but 1/2 cup of starter each time. Feed 1 cup bread flour, 1/2 cup water.
TIP #3: It is typical on day 4 for the starter to slow down and stall a bit. This is OK. Just keep going, be patient and look for the hunger signs, and only feed when clearly hungry. Hopefully, you’ll begin to see some rising and falling. It’s helpful to put the starter in a clean jar each day and mark the beginning level (with a sharpie, string or rubber band) so you can easily see this.
Above, you’ll see it peaking, and below, you’ll see it deflating and getting “hungry.” There may not be too much difference in the beginning, so look closely.
Understand that your starter has a schedule of its own; it is a living thing, so watch it and pay attention.
If your starter is not rising and falling, look at its consistency. As it metabolizes the flour and gets hungry, it will get runny and liquidy, like to the point where you can pour it right out of the jar. If it is still thick like paste, it’s not done metabolizing (eating)the flour.
Day 5: Feed again, 1-2 times, discarding all but a 1/2 cup the starter each time. Adding 1 cup bread flour and 1/2 cup lukewarm water. The starter should look visibly active, bubbling, rising, hopefully, close to doubling in size.
Repeat day 5 until the starter is rising and falling predictably and is close to doubling in size within 6-8 hours.
TIP #4: If your starter is not rising but there is evidence of hunger (liquidy or liquid at the top) try 3 things: substitute 1/4 cup whole grain flour (add to ¾ cup white bread flour) on your next feeding. Try using mineral water like San Pellegrino instead of water. Stir the starter a few times after feeding to allow more wild yeast from the kithcen to get inside.
DAY 6 Morning: Baking day! Give it one last feeding in the morning: this time discard all but a 1/3 cup. (The reason we are changing this to 1/3 cup is to feed it a little bit more.) Add 1 cup flour (120 grams) and 1/2 cup water, stir, and place it in a clean jar so you can see the action clearly. You can use a sharpie or place a rubber band around the jar to mark the beginning level. The starter should hopefully double in volume within 6-8 hours of feeding.
In the photo above, on the 6th day, the starter was fed at 8 am, it peaked around 2 pm, then it started deflating, and by 8 pm, it was “hungry” again. See those downward “slide” marks on the jar?
DO THE FLOAT TEST: When the starter is at its peak, or just after, place a teaspoon of starter (just from the top, don’t stir it down) in a glass full of water; it should hopefully float. If it floats, success!!! Congrats. You can now make our sourdough bread…tonight!
TIP #5: When baking bread always use hungry starter that has already peaked!
STARTER DOES NOT FLOAT? If it doubles in size but does not float, you can still try baking a loaf if it doubles within 6-8 hours of feeding it.
At this point, if your starter does not double in size within 6-8 hours of feeding, don’t give up! Often, it just takes longer, especially during the winter months. Continue feeding one to two times a day until you see a consistent, predictable rise and fall.
Read the troubleshooting section. If you need to take a break, put it in the fridge and try it again up to a week later. Don’t toss it!
Day 6 Evening: Let’s Bake! Use 1/3 cup starter to make this sourdough bread recipe and place the remaining starter (or if not making bread, place all of it) in the refrigerator, and feed it at least once a week, reserving ½ cup starter, before feeding it the usual 1 cup bread flour, 1/2 cup water.
TROUBLESHOOTING Starter
- SMELL: Starter should smell sweet, tangy, earthy, like a wet horse – not “bad”. If it really smells foul or unpleasant, you may have used an unclean jar, unclean utensil, or somehow introduced other bad bacteria. I would start over.
- NO ACTION: On day 4-5 it is typically for it to slow down. If your starter is not rising at all but there is evidence of hunger (liquid at the top, or bubbles) try 3 things. First substitute 1/4 cup whole grain flour (add to ¾ cup white bread flour) on your next feeding. If no rise, then try using mineral water, specifically San Pellegrino instead of water. San Pelligrino specifically has the right mineral ratio, I have great luck with it. Others not so much! Also try stirring the starter a couple of hours after feeding, a couple of times throughout the day to allow wild yeast from the room to get in there. Lastly, you could try pineapple juice instead of water.
- FLOUR: Try to use fresh milled whole grain flour to start, then organic BREAD FLOUR. The more wild yeast in the flour, the better your starter will do- so smaller brands like Bob’s Red Mill seem to do better than bigger conventional brands that have been overly processed. It is totally OK to mix flours and to switch them up- this adds different kinds of wild yeast- a good thing!
- DO NOT overfeed. For example, maybe feeding 2 x day at 12-hour intervals is too often. You want to feed after the starter has peaked, then deflated (see photo above- you’ll see some slide marks on the jar) and this tells you that it is hungry. If you feed the starter before it has had a chance to metabolize (or eat) all the flour (before peaking) and then you discard part of it, and feed it again, you are actually diluting all that amazing bacteria, weakening your starter. So it’s all about watching your starter in your home. If you are not seeing rising and falling, but notice the starter just gets liquidy, this too is a sign of “hunger”. Or if it gets runny enough to pour out of the jar, another sign it is hungry. There are lots of variables here. Just be patient, pay attention and watch. This is a living thing- it doesn’t care about time schedules and recipes or what it “should” do. It will “eat” when it is “hungry” and sometimes it likes to eat slowly. 😉
- TIME: It may take longer than 6 days in colder environments. Use a kitchen thermometer and take its temp. Is it over 65F? Find a place where it can be warm. In the oven with the light on, or in an upper cupboard ( heat rises). Sometimes it takes 12-14 days! Be patient, keep going. If it is doing absolutely nothing, leave it out on the counter for 24-48 hours and see what happens. If you run out of flour or need a break, don’t just toss it, put it in the fridge and see if you can get it going a few days later.
- ACIDITY: If you still can’t get that starter going, some people recommend subbing pineapple juice for the water for one feeding- raising the acidity level. My good friend just tried this and it got hers going.
- LIQUID: If you see any liquid at the top of your starter, it means your starter is hungry. So, yes it’s still alive which is a good thing! You can stir the liquid in, or pour the liquid out, either way, but feed it. This is a sign that you may need to feed it more often.
- MOLD: if you see any discoloring or mold on the surface, starter was probably contaminated. If it is only on the surface, it is probably ok to save. Scrape it off, save 1/2 cup of the underneath starter, and keep going, using a clean jar. Feed, smell, use your best judgment.
- FLOAT TEST: Try testing when your starter is peaking. Take a spoonful from the top without stirring it down. If your starter is rising and falling consistently, but not passing the float test and it has been over 8-10 days- just try baking a loaf. People are having luck with good loaves without passing the float test. It may be the flour…
How to Maintain Your Starter
- REFRIGERATE & FEED AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK: Pick a scheduled day and try to stick with it, always reserving 1/2 cup and feeding it 1 cup flour and 1/2 cup water. Discard the remaining, give it away, or keep the discard in a separate container for sourdough pancakes, sourdough buns, banana bread, biscuits, etc. I usually don’t feed the discard unless I give it away.
- If you forget to feed it one week, it is most likely OK; feed it 1-2 times a day for 1-3 days in a row to revive it (keeping it out on the counter) until bubbly and active and doubles within 6 hours. I’ve left my starter for a month on vacation (in the fridge) without feeding and simply revived it by feeding it 3 days in a row, 1-2 x day. It’s surprisingly hard to kill. You can also freeze it for more extended storage.
- This batch will allow you to bake 2 loaves of bread per week with enough left to feed for the next week. If you want to bake more often, you can keep it out and feed it 1-2 x daily. Or if baking every few days, you can pull it out of the fridge, feed it 10 hours before using, leaving it out, use what you need while it is peaking (or slightly after), then put it back in the fridge that evening. Do the same thing a few days later when ready to use again. So this would be feeding 2-3 times a week, best if baking 4-5 times a week.
The best time to use sourdough starter is just after it peaks or on its way down when you know it is hungry.
Sourdough Bread Starter FAQs
Yes. While you are building your starter, during the first week, it is the simplest, easiest, fastest, and most economical way to create a healthy starter. (Or save it separately -in the fridge- and use it in Pancakes, Waffles, Buns, or Biscuits. ) This is because you always have to feed it two times its volume in flour. For example-if you kept all the 1 1/2 cups of starter, you would have to feed it 3 cups of flour (instead of keeping just a 1/2 cup and only feeding it ONE cup). Discarding will shorten the fermentation process, require less flour in the long run, and create a stronger starter. Once your starter is “established” after the first week- then you can give it away to friends, use it in pizza dough, pancakes, etc) or give it to a friend.
How to use your Sourdough Starter
- See all our Sourdough Recipes!
- Sourdough Scones
- Sourdough Crackers
- Sourdough Biscuits
- Sourdough Buns
- Sourdough Tortillas!
- Vegan Banana Bread
- Overnight Sourdough Waffles
More from Feasting At Home
Simple Sourdough Starter
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 6 days
- Total Time: 144 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 1 ½ cups
- Category: sourdough, fermented, cultured, bread, baking,
- Method: fermented
- Cuisine: bread
- Diet: Vegan
Description
How to make your own Sourdough Starter (see the step-by-step video in post) using simple ingredients with no special equipment, in 6 days, that can be used in sourdough bread. Sourdough Starter is a wild yeast, made from fermenting flour and water.
Ingredients
- 120 grams whole grain flour (whole wheat flour, rye flour, or freshly milled flour) 1 cup, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- Organic White Bread Flour (5-10 lb bag ) I like Shepherd’s Grain or Bob’s Red Mill.
- 120 grams Water per feeding (1/2 cup water)
Instructions
-
- Day 1: Starting in the morning or at night, using a wide-mouth quart jar or Crock or Glass Measuring Cup mix 1 cup whole grain flour (120 grams) with 1/2 cup (120 grams) filtered water using a fork making sure you’ve incorporated all the dry flour. For your first measuring – it is a good idea to weigh the flour, using a kitchen scale so you get an idea of how thick it should feel. It should be like a thick paste. Thick like peanut butter. If you need to add a little more water to incorporate the flour, that is OK, but be precise with the flour. Place the lid on top (using the Weck jar is really handy here) or a damp towel to keep moisture in, or plastic wrap- and let sit at room temperature (70-80 degrees) on the kitchen counter for 24-48 hours, or until you see some bubbling. If you are not sure how warm it is, use a kitchen thermometer and check it a few hours later. See notes for TEMPERATURE.
- Day 2: After the first 24 hours, you may or may not see a bit of bubbling. I prefer to let this rest until I see a tiny bit of activity (bubbles) and sometimes this takes 36 or up to 48 hours. So start “day 2”, when you see a little bit of bubbing. Discard all but 1/2 cup (136 grams) of the starter. (See notes for discard). Add to the remainder, 1 cup of white bread flour, (120 grams), spooned and leveled, and 1/2 cup filtered water (120 grams), mixing well with a fork. Place the lid on loosely again and allow the mixture to sit at room temperature (70-80F) for another 24 hours.
- Day 3: By the third day, you should definitely see some bubbling- and if not, let it go a bit longer. Depending on how warm your house is and how active your starter, you may need to begin feeding more often, or even move to two feedings a day roughly 12 hours apart, like in the morning and at night. In a nutshell, you want to feed the starter only after it has peaked (metabolized all the flour from the last feeding) and has started sinking down or gets liquidy- this is when it is hungry! This might be 12 hours, it might be 14, it might be 18, or 24, depending on the temp in your house. In very warm climates it may only be 8 hours. It is better to underfeed rather than overfeed here. For each feeding, like before, discard all but 1/2 cup of the STARTER (keeping roughly ½-cup of starter in the jar -4 ounces or 136 grams) Add 1 cup Bread Flour (spooned and leveled) and 1/2 cup water to the 1/2 cup starter and let this rest at room temperature for 12-24 hours or until the starter looks “hungry” again before repeating.
- Day 4: Feed 1-2 times, discarding all but 1/2 cup of starter EACH TIME. Feed 1 cup bread flour, 1/2 cup water. Look for the hunger signs. Hopefully, you’ll begin to see some rising and falling. It’s helpful to put the starter in a clean jar and mark the beginning level (with sharpie, string or rubber band) so you can easily see this. ***If for some reason your starter looks like it is still rising at the time of second feeding (at night) and there is no evidence it has fallen or no slide marks, it is still “eating” so skip this feeding and feed first thing in the morning. AGAIN, Feeding it when it is “not hungry” will basically dilute all the growing yeast and make it lethargic. Better to starve than overfeed.
- Day 5: Feed again, 1-2 times, roughly 12 hours apart, or when hungry, discarding all but a 1/2 cup the starter EACH TIME. 1 cup bread flour, 1/2 cup lukewarm water. The starter should look active, bubbling, rising, sliding down, hopefully, close to doubling in size. (If not, repeat this day until starter doubles in size within 8-12 hours of feeding- and read the troubleshooting section.)
- DAY 6: Give it one last feeding. Discard all but a 1/3 cup. Add 1 cup flour ( 120 grams) and 1/2 cup water, and place it in a clean jar so you can see the action clearly. You can use a sharpie or place a rubber band around the jar to mark the beginning level. The starter should hopefully double in volume within 6 hours of feeding. When it peaks, DO THE FLOAT TEST: To test the starter, place a teaspoon of starter (just from the top, while it is peaking, don’t stir it down) in a glass full of water, it should hopefully float. If it does, you can make sourdough bread. Tonight! Let the starter keep resting at room temperature or a few more hours allowing it to fully metabolize the flour, perhaps sinking a little before making your dough. You want to make dough with slightly hungry starter. Place the remaining starter in the fridge and feed it in a week. You’ll have enough stater to make one more sourdough loaf during the week, and still have enough to feed. If you want to wait to make bread until later in the week place starter in the fridge. Be sure to feed it in 7 days. Read maintenance section.
- At this point, if your starter does not double in size don’t give up! Often it just takes longer, sometimes up to two weeks, especially if it’s cold. Continue feeding one-two times a day (only when hungry) for a few more days, until you see a visible rise and fall. Read the troubleshooting section. If you need to take a break, just put it in the fridge and try it again up to a week later. Don’t toss it- if there are bubbles, it is still alive.
- This batch of starter will make two loaves of bread with enough left over to feed for the following week.
Notes
- TEMPERATURE: The colder your home, the longer it will take for the starter to grow and become active (bubbles). Find a warm spot (70-80 degrees) for the best results. On the stovetop, with the light turned on, or on top of the fridge. Or in the oven with the light on. On top of a heating pad (set to low) with a towel in between). You can still make the starter in a colder home, it will just take longer- even up to 2 weeks.
- FLOUR: Always try to start the batch by using organic, freshly milled whole-grain flour (wheat or rye) because it has more wild yeast in it than All-Purpose or white flour and will get it active and growing sooner. You can, of course, continue to use whole grain, but I’ve had the best luck using organic “bread” flour for days 2 through 6. People have made a sourdough starter with All-Purpose flour- but personally, this has never worked for me– there are fewer nutrients and wild yeasts in the flour and results in a very lethargic starter. If it is your only option, try mixing in 2+ tablespoons of whole-grain (wheat or rye) with the AP flour per feeding. Feel free to use different flours or mix different flours together. It is OK to use all-purpose flour if in a pinch, but using it repeatedly will result in sad starter.
- WATER: I usually use tap water -but sometimes the chlorine in tap water can inhibit the growth of your starter. Lukewarm water helps fermentation to start faster. Sterilized bottled water is often overly sterile, and can also inhibit. Mineral water, like Perrier (carbonated is OK) can sometimes work miracles.
- HYDRATION: Hydration refers to the ratio of water to flour in terms of weight. It is a ratio. The starter is typically at 100% hydration- meaning equal parts flour and water, in terms of weight. So if you use 120 grams of water, use 120 grams of flour. This roughly translates to 1 cup of flour and 1/2 cup water. Feel free to weigh instead of measure if you want to be more precise, or want to familiarize yourself with the consistency you are aiming for. If using whole grain flours (which tend to be “thirstier”) and your starter seems very thick, it is totally OK to add more water to thin it a bit. I intentionally keep the hydration a little lower here (a thicker starter) so you can more clearly see the rise and fall “action” in the jar.
- STORING AND FEEDING: When your starter is kept cold, in the fridge, you don’t need to feed it as often- only once a week. Feel free to feed it “cold”, and put it right back in the fridge if you like. If you keep it out on the counter, you’ll likely need to feed it 1-2 x daily (or just watch and feed only when hungry). Cold slows down the fermentation, heat speeds it up.
- USING: When you need to use your starter for baking bread, feed it 10-12 hours before making bread dough, using it after its peak height. For a more “sour” flavored bread, use the starter straight from the fridge, 3-6 days after feeding. The starter gets more sour tasting the longer it goes without feeding. Feeding the starter the same day as making bread will produce a milder sourdough flavor.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 tablespoon
- Calories: 31
- Sugar: 0 g
- Sodium: 0.2 mg
- Fat: 0.1 g
- Saturated Fat: 0 g
- Trans Fat:
- Carbohydrates: 6.2 g
- Fiber: 0.2 g
- Protein: 1 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
I’m trying so hard to get this starter going! This is my second attempt. Is it normal that my starter seems to get very runny and less bubbly on day 4 or 5? I worry that it’s dying. You mention in the recipe notes that it may take longer in a colder house, which I suspect is my problem. In this case, would you just extend the number of days feeding it 12 hours apart each time? Or feed it less often, or use less water? Thanks so much.
Don’t give up. It is not dying. Feed it less often, maybe 16 hours, maybe even twenty? The key is to watch it. Perhaps add a few tablespoons of whole grain flour at the next feeding, then don’t feed until you see some activity. Do you see any slide marks on the jar? Can you take its temp?
Thank you so much for your helpful reply. I will not give up! haha I have added whole wheat flour, and stretched out the feedings. I haven’t taken the temp but the bottom of the jar feels slightly warm to the touch? More bubbles today are giving me hope…
Hello, thanks for the recipe!! I’m just beginning with my starter, I left it for 36 hours (after day 1) until I saw some bubbles!! However I have a question about measures, I only have a measuring 1/2 cup (118.3 ml) is it right if I’m putting a cup of flour (equivalent to 2x this measuring cup) and 1/2 cup water (118.3ml) ??? I’m a bit confused please help haha
yes this is right, 1/2 cup water, 2x 1/2 cup flour ( slightly heaping).
Thanks Sylvia, it is day 4 and it finally doubled in size, however I haven’t seen any slide marks. It has been over 16 hours since I last fed my started, do I have to keep waiting for slide marks until its next feeding?
I would just give it a little time to make sure it is not still going up?
Hi Sylvia, everything is going great (I think), it keeps doubling its size after 4-6 hours I feed my starter. However, it is day 7 and did not pass the float test. It floated for a few seconds then sink all the way bottom. Should I keep feeding it?
Strange! Are you taking the starter form the top without stirring it down?
Yes, taking it from the top it floats for a second and then sinks. I am going to feed it today for the last time and wait what happens after 4 hours. If it does not float, should I keep feeding my starter for couple days more?
I would. Just feed it ( when it looks hungry) let it fully metabolize rise and try the float test again.
Is it natural for my sourdough starter to smell pungent? It smells a bit vinegary but with a musky sorta smell. It does smell sour…. I just am hesitant because I don’t want to food poison anyone with hazardous bread. Thanks!
What kind of flour are you using? is it rising, bubbling and passing the float test? You can send me a picture if you want. 🙂 sylvia@feastingathome.com
Hello, Thanks for all this great information. I am on day 11(!) but the kitchen has been in the 60s. I’ve now got the starter under the lamp on the stove and I ran out of bread flour, so I switched to whole wheat flour and in the last two days since doing this, I’ve seen the starter double and it has lots of bubbles. Today (day 2 of this change) it doubled in five hours after feeding it. However, it still hasn’t pass the float test yet. What do you suggest that I do next?
Thanks!
That’s pretty good. Don’t feed it again until it looks “hungry” ( slide marks) feed once more ( basically repeat day 6) and see if it floats.
I’ve been baking breads for decades. Several tries to create my own sourdough starter failed. This recipe worked! I think a key point was using filtered water, so as to avoid the tiny bit of chlorine in tap water. Also, I did modify the recipe slightly — about half the flour I used was whole wheat. Anyway, last week I made the starter, and it was bubbling up strongly by the third day. On the sixth day, I made the bread, letting it rise a total of 7 hours before baking. It was very good, with a definite mild sourdough flavor. Thank you, Sylvia.
By the way, the recipe says to discard half the starter when feeding. I kept the discards in a jar and made pancakes (add a little salt, some water with baking soda dissolved in it, a couple tablespoons of yogurt, an egg, a little sunflower oil) and they came out great. I made flatbread with other feeding discards, and that too was very good. Great flavors.
Perfect John – love how you used everything up and congrats on your bread and starter success.
My starter peaked on day 4. It was very bubbly and expanded a lot. So much so I had to switch from a jar to a bowl. Now there has been less activity for the last 5 to 6 days. It does not float now. Any suggestions on how to get it more active again?
Try stretching out the time before feeding. It may be overfed.
Great detailed recipe! My starter has passed the float test and I’m excited to try making sourdough bread. How much water and flour should I use on the “final feed” 4-8hrs before mixing?
Always feed the same amount. 1/2 cup water, 1 cup flour (120 grams)- let the starter metabolize before using for bread.
I got my starter up and going last week and its been safe in my fridge. I’m about to try your No-Knead Sourdough Bread recipe and I have a question. The recipe calls for 1/3 cup of starter. So would I want to pull 1/3 cup from the starter, feed it with equal parts of flour and water and then add it to the recipe? Or should I pull a little less (like maybe 1/4 or 1/8 cup) and feed it and scoop out 1/3 cup from that after it bubbles? Sorry if my question is confusing, I was browsing both recipes for clarification but couldn’t find it.
So it has been a week since you fed your starter in the fridge? If so, pull it out. Save 1/2 cup. (The remainder is now called “discard”- either toss, give it away or use in something else) . To the 1/2 cup starter ( that you keep) add 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup water. Let sit out 6- 8 hours before using for bread. Use a 1/3 cup for the bread, place the rest of the “fed” starter back in the fridge. You can also keep the discard in the fridge ( unfed) and use in pancakes waffles etc)
Started my sourdough saturday. Looking good, today. Day 4 with the leftover dough I’m making Belgium Waffles. The taste is different without the traditional recipe, but good.
Hi,
Thank you so much for your recipe and all your helpful tips! I’m on day 4 and my starter does not smell tangy. It doesn’t smell horrible but it’s a bit funny smelling. Is this a sign that other bacteria was introduced? Should I start again? Thank you in advance
Is it bubbling and active? Does it smell sweet?
Hi,
I’m up to day 10 or 11 and I’m seeing consistent bubbles on the surface (anywhere from 2 to 10 when I take a peek), but it feels like it’s just sort of stalled out. It doesn’t pass the float test. I haven’t really been noticing it grow/shrink and am not sure what to do. It doesn’t stink, so that’s a positive sign.
Should I stay the course and just keep feeding it? I’m going to try getting some pineapple juice next time I’m at the store and see if that helps.
Thank you!
Hey Zack, are you feeding it twice a day? If so, why don’t you skip a feeding, or even two feedings and see if you notice any more activity? It might be overfed? Also check the temp. 😉
Less then 24 hours after asking the question above, the starter took off and just doubled in just a few hours after feeding! I switched to whole wheat flour yesterday because I ran out of all purpose. Could that have done it, or is it just coincidence?
Anyway, thank you for your response and this recipe!
I think that did it, yes!
Scientist here! I just wanted to note that chloride is never going to “evaporate” out of water. It would only leave if the pH of your water was <3 (very acidic for tap). Usually just H2O evaporates which actually concentrates the chloride and other grimy stuff in water. Other than that, this recipe worked great for me! Thanks!!
Hey there! It seems like I have a super active starter, day 2: I fed it at 12pm and it is now 7:45 and it has completely filled my mason jar?? Should I wait up and see if it deflates a bit and feed it again tonight? Did I mess up by screwing the lid on too tightly- maybe I didn’t let the co2 escape?
You could wait till it deflates, yes, or skip it tonight and feed early tomorrow morning? You’ll feed twice tomorrow so best to start early.
You’re so amazing, thank you! I ended up taking out half and putting it another jar because it looked like it was ready to explode. It kept expanding, so I left it until this morning and did an early feed as you suggested. Thank you again!!
Hello there! I’m up to day 7 of my starter and all is going well.
My question is regarding how to get more quantity out of your starter? My starter sits at around 300g (100g of starter, fresh flour and fresh water) and what do I do if the recipe calls for 400g of starter?
Do I take out 100g (for future use) and have 200g of starter left over and then add another 200g of water and flour? Wait a couple of hours for fermentation and then use for the recipe? Is there a maximum amount of fresh flour/water you can add?
Thanks!
Andrea, I think that would work. Save 1/2 cup for future. If the remaining starter is 1 cup, feed it double its volume- or 2 cups flour ( 240 grams) and 1 cup water. Wait until it metabolizes it be fore using.
Day 1 and I’ve already got bubbles. Wow! I must have captured some active yeasts! (Hopefully).
My question is, I can’t really work 2 feedings a day into my schedule, would 1 / day be alright?
What if you started 2 feedings on days 4 and 5? just two days?
I can do it on day 4 since I’m off work that day, but then I’d have to wait till day 7 to do it again.
I’m a grocery manager and have to go in pretty early in the A.M. so there isn’t really enough time to get everything done before I leave the house.
On another note though, it has already doubled in volume just feeding it once a day, though I’m not seeing any “slippage” where it’s gone up and then come back down.
Ok that is good, glad it is rising. perhaps just keeping doing once a day until you see the slide marks. You can refrigerate for a few days too between feedings.
I think I’m going to start over. I just fed it and the smell is hideous. I can only describe it as a banana scented home perm.
I think I’ve captured something disgusting.
Thanks for making me laugh hysterically. 🙂
Used unbleached AP flour and room temperature water… Let starter sit for 36 hours. Fed it for the first time this morning (still using unbleached AP) and it’s more than doubled in size already!!! I keep my house around 68-71 so not unusually warm or cold. I’m not complaining, but definitely growing faster than I expected!!! Still waiting for it to get hungry and “fall”, seems to just keep growing!
It sounds perfect Megan, yes, just feed it when it looks hungry. Great job
This is probably the most wasteful sourdough starter recipe I have seen now. Bummed that it was the first one I saw, I just went with it and wasted a ton of flour instead of looking elsewhere and finding out that you can use much less as long as you maintain the same ratio.
I have a healthy starter that someone gave me. I feed 1 cup of bread flour and 1/2 cup of filtered water to 1/2 cup of starter. The mix was dough like. The consistency is nothing like the starter. Is this normal? Will it become more fluid like as the starter eats the flour?
Yes it will loosen up. You can always thin it out if you prefer a looser one, just stir in more water the next time.
Thank you! My sourdough starter took one extra day (my house is a little cooler than 70 degrees), but it passed the float test this morning! Can’t wait to try your no-knead recipe :).
Hooray! Congrats Andi!
Hi! I’m currently on day 6 now and so far my starter’s looking good. I’ve been feeding it with whole wheat and all purpose flour, is it okay if I feed it white bread flour now? I didn’t have any bread flour until today.
Yes, white bread flour is great.
I was only able to find organic pastry flour (whole wheat), and all purpose flour. Can or should I use the pastry flour to start, or just just use the all-purpose flour?
I’d use the organic. Maybe the whole way through or mix them?
Thank you for all this great information! My starter floated last night (it is 8 days old), but this morning it sank. I tested it right before its feeding. Did I do something wrong?
No, I think it is probably ok. Did you put it in the fridge last night?
It was out the whole time, but it floated again last night. Today, we are making bread! Thank you! P.S. My daughter made pancakes from the discard and they were delicious.
So if I counted correctly, it takes 10 cups of flour to make starter? Is t there some way to be more efficient with this, maybe using 1/3 or 1/2 cup to start with?
I wonder if you could just do a half batch. I haven’t tried this, but I imagine it would work. Also you can use the discard for other things.
Quick question. I spent a very patient 7 days following instructions. 8 hours after my last feed – boom. Quadrupled in size ! Floated !
I was not ready to make bread – so at that point I put it in the fridge…was that correct ? And how many feeding before making bread? Thanks
That was correct! You did it. Congratulations! You could make bread in the next few days, it sounds ready.
Hello! I did my day 2 feeding last night. This morning, I see that’ll slide marks that my starter doubled overnight and had already started to sink back down and has lots of frothy bubbles on top. It has been about 14 hours now. Should I feed as it is showing signs of being hungry, or wait the full 24 hours as indicated for day 2? I am in south Florida, so it is very warm and humid. Thank you!
I think you could feed it. Just keep watching it. 🙂