A sourdough starter is so easy to make-all you need is water and flour and a week for them to work together and create a thriving colony of healthy, probiotic wild yeast. The starter will reward you for years to come with tasty sourdough breads, waffles, pancakes and more, with no need for added yeast. Stir up a batch today--it's truly the gift that keeps on giving.
Table of Contents
What is a sourdough starter?
A sourdough starter is a natural culture made with flour or water that can be used to leaven baked goods like breads instead of commercial yeast. To make a sourdough starter you mix the water and flour and let stand for a week, feeding it a little more flour and water every day. The flour already contains good bacteria and over time, as the starter ferments, it also captures wild yeast bacteria from the environment, creating a lively colony of beneficial microorganisms.
When you add sourdough starter to baked goods instead of bread, you don't just get a natural leavening agent; you also get its powerful health benefits. There are billions of yeast bacteria in a sourdough starter and they are great for your gut. When a sourdough starter is added to a batter or dough, these bacteria break down the starches in the flour, making the baked good easier to digest and also giving it a distinctive, delicious tang. Some studies show that sourdough can be eaten by people with celiac disease who cannot normally tolerate gluten while others show that breads made with sourdough are better for diabetics because they don't cause blood sugar to rise as high as regular bread would. (If you do have these health problems, though, check with a doctor before making changes to your diet.)
I've been nurturing a sourdough starter for almost a decade now. After I first made it, my jar of commercial yeast sat in the freezer while I experimented with not just breads but sourdough pancakes, sourdough waffles, pretzels, English muffins, sourdough biscuits, sticky buns and so much more. The sourdough made eating these treats not just more fun and delicious, but also more guilt-free.
In this post I'm sharing my best tips - learned over years of experience - on how to make and maintain a foolproof sourdough starter. This is an extraordinarily easy recipe that anyone can make. But it is not a process that can be rushed. When you start a sourdough starter from scratch, you will need seven days before you can use it.
Be sure to name your starter. 🙂 Mine was named George by a reader, and over the years I've smiled many times as you've come back to tell me the names you've given your starters: Georgina, Crunchy, the Hulk and Tina (after quaranTine :)) among others.
Recipe card
Sourdough Starter Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- ¾ cup bottled or non-chlorinated water
- 3 cups (approx) Unbleached all purpose flour (for feeding. Or bread flour or whole wheat flour)
Instructions
- Measure out the whole wheat flour into a large bowl or a crock. The container you use should be large enough to hold the sourdough starter as it rises and bubbles. Also make sure you use a glass or ceramic or sturdy, food-safe plastic container.
- Measure out the bottled or non-chlorinated, room-temperature water. Chlorine can inhibit the formation and growth of yeast, so it's rather important that your water be as non-chlorinated as you can get it.
- Now add the water to the flour and whisk together to mix well. You should not have any traces of flour.
- Cover the sourdough starter loosely with a kitchen towel.
- If the weather where you live is cold, place it in a warm spot, like on top of a radiator or in an oven with the light on. It was rather warm here when I started George so I could leave him out on the kitchen table, but this time - with temperatures kissing the 40s - I have my new starter in the oven with the light on. Keep in mind that it may take longer for the yeast to develop in the starter in cooler weather.
- Leave your starter alone for 24 hours. When you look at it, you might see some bubbles, or there may be none, especially if you are in cooler temperatures. Either way, mix the starter well with a whisk or fork, measure out half a cup of the starter, and discard* it. (You can use the discard in flatbreads or unleavened breads, and from day 4 you can use it in sourdough waffles and pancakes)
- After discarding a portion of the starter, add half a cup of unbleached, all purpose flour and ⅜ of a cup of non-chlorinated water. Use warm water (not hot) if you are working in cool temperatures, as I am. Mix well and again, leave in a warm place. You will start noticing that your starter lightens in color with the addition of all purpose flour.
- By the third day you should see some activity in your starter and also a fruity aroma. Once again, discard half a cup of starter and add half a cup of all-purpose flour and 90 milliliters of water (⅜ of a cup).
- Continue the process for the next three days (try and do this at the same time of day- for instance, I began my starter Sunday morning, so I have to try and feed it around the same time every day, although an hour here or there won't be amiss). Your starter should have started to thrive by now, rising after you feed it, and eventually settling down. King Arthur Flour, where I got my initial recipe, recommends discarding and feeding your starter twice after day 3, but I found that doing it just once was okay, especially since it was quite warm when I made my starter. This time, with cooler weather, I might feed the new starter twice depending on how it goes.
- By the seventh day, your starter, if it's healthy and bubbling, should be ready to use. When I made George, I used the "discard" portion of the starter to make waffles, and they turned out great. If your sourdough starter is still slow in developing, increase feedings to twice a day and continue to keep it warm. It will eventually strengthen.
- Once your sourdough starter has matured, you will need to feed it once every week. I mix the starter well, take out the amount of sourdough starter I need to bake with, and replace it immediately in the proportion of 1 cup of flour to ¾ cup of water. For example, if I take out ½ cup of sourdough, I replace it with ½ a cup of flour and ⅜ths of a cup of water. After feeding the starter, I leave it on the counter for a day, and then refrigerate it.
Nutrition Information
To print recipe card without images, uncheck "instruction images" after clicking the "print recipe" button.
Ingredients
- Flour. Use whole wheat flour to begin the starter. Whole wheat flour gives your sourdough starter a stronger start because it's full of micronutrients and friendly bacteria. You can also use all purpose flour, bread flour or rye flour. (If you want to make a starter without gluten, see my recipe for a gluten-free sourdough starter).
- Water. Use distilled or filtered water to both make and maintain the starter. Tap water usually has chlorine in it, and chlorine can kill the wild yeast.
How to make sourdough starter (day by day, with pictures)
Day 1
Measure out 1 cup of whole wheat flour into a large bowl or a crock. The container you use should be large enough to hold the sourdough starter as it rises and bubbles. Measure out ¾ cup of bottled or non-chlorinated, room-temperature water. Chlorine can inhibit the formation and growth of yeast.
Add the water to the flour and whisk together to mix well. You should not have any traces of flour.
The sourdough starter should look like this after mixing.
Cover the starter loosely with a kitchen towel. Set aside in a warm spot. A temperature of 75 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit (24 to 27 degrees Celsius) is optimal.
Day 2
On the second day, you might see some bubbles in the sourdough starter, or there may be none, especially if you are in cooler temperatures.
Either way, mix the starter well with a whisk or fork, measure out half a cup of the starter, and "discard" it. Add ½ cup unbleached, all purpose flour and ⅜ cup or 6 tablespoon or 90 mils of warm, non-chlorinated water. Mix well and again, leave in a warm place. You will start noticing that your starter lightens in color with the addition of all purpose flour.
Day 3
By the third day you should see some bubbling activity in your starter and also a fruity aroma. There may also be some darker liquid on top.
Mix the starter, discard half a cup and feed by adding half a cup of all-purpose flour and ⅜ of a cup of water (90 mils or 6 tbsp).
Day 4
On day 4 the sourdough starter should look quite bubbly and active.
Once again, mix the starter, then discard half a cup and feed by adding half a cup of all-purpose flour and ⅜ of a cup of water (90 mils or 6 tbsp).
Day 5
On the fifth day the sourdough should get quite bubbly, especially about 10 minutes after you feed it. If your sourdough starter isn't showing much activity you can bump up the feedings to twice a day to help it gather strength.
Day 6
The sourdough should be quite strong now and should rise easily after feeding.
Feed the starter once or twice on the sixth day, depending on how strong it is.
Day 7
By the seventh day, your starter should be ready to use. It should look healthy and bubbly, like in the picture above. If your sourdough starter is still slow in developing, continue feeding twice a day and keep it warm. It will eventually strengthen.
How to use sourdough starter
To use the starter, mix it well, especially if some of the liquid has separated on the top. Then take out about the amount of sourdough starter you need to bake with, and replace it immediately. So if you take out 1 cup of sourdough, you should "feed" the remaining starter by adding to it cup of flour and ¾ cup of water.
Keep in mind that if you make my sourdough recipe and bake a recipe for sourdough bread from another cookbook or blog, you should first check what the hydration---or water-to-flour ratio---of their starter is. So, for example, if the starter they used has a lower hydration, you might need to cut back on the liquid in the bread recipe when you make it. If it has a greater hydration, you might need to add more liquid.
Here's a picture of my mature sourdough starter, a couple of hours after feeding, and then a day after he was last fed. He rose overnight and was beginning to fall back in the morning.
How to feed sourdough starter
It is good practice to feed your sourdough starter each week so it's ready--or close to ready--for baking at any time. But if you forget to feed it for a couple of weeks, or even for a month, don't panic. You might be able to revive your starter so long as it's not moldy and you refrigerated it in an airtight container. Don't go too long without feeding it, though, and do it as soon as you remember.
Sourdough starter FAQs
Sourdough starters in different temperatures perform very differently. For instance, if you're in 90+ temperatures, your sourdough might ferment too fast and taste extremely tangy within a day or two. On the other hand, in a cooler climate, you might not see any activity at all for a few days after beginning.
To get a strong and healthy starter that'll give you the best results when you bake and taste your baked good, you want to try and keep your sourdough starter in a room where the temperature is between 75 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit (24 to 26 degrees Celsius).
After seven days. You might find that the starter ferments more quickly in warmer temperatures, but to get the best flavor, try and keep your sourdough in a room at a temperature no more than 75 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Feed it every day for seven days.
Yes and no. You can make a sourdough starter with any proportion of water and flour but the hydration will matter for the baked goods recipes you'll make with it because it will change how much liquid you will need to add to that particular recipe.
If you do accidentally add more or less water to your starter, don't worry, it won't go belly up on you. Just continue feeding it in the right proportions in future and it should be fine.
You will know it's ready when it starts to rise within six to eight hours of feeding and gets really puffy.
The sourdough starter, once it begins to bubble, will have a smell similar to buttermilk. It should smell fresh and somewhat fruity, and not moldy or spoilt.
A sourdough starter will keep for years, even decades, and there are sourdough starters out there that are family heirlooms. A mature, well-established sourdough starter is a treasure - one day you might pass on this gift of good health to your sons and daughters.
For the first seven days, between feedings, leave your starter outside at a room temperature of no more than 80 degrees F. Make sure it's covered with a kitchen towel.
If you find that your starter is forming a hard crust on top, but otherwise appears to be developing nicely, stir it, feed it, and cover it with something more airtight or even cling wrap after the first couple of days.
Once your starter is ready, you can store it in the refrigerator. Each time you feed it, leave it out at room temperature for a few hours or until it gets puffy and expands, then put it back in the fridge.
No. One of the reasons you discard a portion of the sourdough each time you feed it because you don't want the sourdough starter to keep growing. The other is that your starter will grow stronger if there's more food for the hungry yeast in your starter. If you don't discard, there will be more hungry yeast cells competing for the same food and they won't grow as strong, see?
You don't have to waste a drop of your discard. See my post on easy recipes for sourdough discard. You can also add the sourdough to flatbreads like this sourdough roti from day 1.
You can also share your discard with a friend so they have their own sourdough starter without making it from scratch. Just give them a quarter to a half cup of discard and ask them to begin feeding it, preferably with a cup of flour and ¾ cup of water.
Troubleshooting tips
- Not enough starter for a recipe. If a recipe calls for, say, two cups of starter, just make sure you feed your sourdough starter the day before with more flour. Stick with the correct proportions of water and flour.
- Sourdough starter not bubbling after a few days of feeding: This could be caused by cool temperatures. Remember the ideal temp to maintain sourdough is between 70 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit. In cooler temperatures it might take a while and extra days of feeding for your starter to kick off.
- Sourdough starter getting too bubbly, too tangy, too fast: Just as cold temps will delay your starter process, extremely hot climates will make it act like it's on steroids. Again, make sure you move the starter to a cooler part of your house, where the room temperature is no more than 75 degrees.
- Sourdough bread made with starter doesn't taste tangy enough. There could be two reasons for this: your sourdough starter is either really new, or your starter was just fed. Starter that's just been established will not taste tangy enough because it just hasn't been around that long. But don't fret, it will still have loads of flavor and with regular feeding you will get there. And you'll still be able to make great bread and other baked goods with the starter. If your starter is mature with a lovely tang, but you recently used most of it up and fed it and then used it again the next day to make bread, you might find that the starter simply doesn't have the same tang (although it will develop faster once your sourdough has matured further).
- Brownish/grayish/blackish, hooch-like liquid forming on top: This does not mean your sourdough starter has gone bad, it just means it's hungry. When you are still creating the starter, just stir it back in and feed your starter. Once your starter is established, and you see the liquid on top, you can either stir it back in or, if it's too strong-smelling, pour it off, then feed the starter.
- Sourdough smells like acetone or nail polish remover: This just means the starter--or rather the bacteria in your starter--are hungry, and it's time for feeding.
- Forgot to feed starter: Not a biggie, just feed it immediately and continue feeding according to schedule.
- Added too much water to starter. Is it spoilt? No. You can't spoil a starter by adding too much water to it. See the hydration tips in my FAQs above for more detail.
- Neglected the sourdough and now it looks dry: Don't beat yourself up if this happens, it's happened to me, more than once. An established sourdough starter is extremely hard to kill. To revive a dry but not moldy sourdough starter, pour some filtered water into the container, let the sourdough starter sit for some time, and then try to stir it until you have a smooth paste. You can discard some of the starter at this point and feed it for 2-3 days, twice a day, to build up its strength. (I once spent two to three days soaking and crushing my dry sourdough starter between my fingers to crumble it up (it was my gluten-free starter which dries more readily), but I brought it back to life and it's bubbling away now. :)) Try not to get to this point, though!
- Sourdough starter has pink or orange streaks and it smells moldy: If you have an established starter that gets moldy, you may be able to save it in some cases. If the mold is only on top, carefully skim the layer of mold off and save a small amount of the clear starter underneath. Place the retrieved starter in a new container and feed it a few times to build up its strength. But if the mold has penetrated through into the entire starter, just discard it and start over.
Marg says
I’m on day 7 and my starter rises each time but doesn’t have many bubbles. Was getting bubbles around day 3 & 4 but not getting many bubbles at the moment. Is there possibly too little water
Vaishali says
No, it sounds perfect. 🙂
Gloria Alexander says
Hello. I've been feeding my starter for about a week and a half. Tonight I discarded half a cup, fed it, and took out what I need for sourdough rolls. Tomorrow when I put it in the fridge, can I transfer it into another bowl and also does it need to be in an airtight container? Thanks.
Deena Siegel says
Hi Vaishali,
I started my starter (her name is "Tina", for "quaranTine") last Monday, 4/18, so this is day 7. I began with one cup of flour, have been discarding 1/2 cup and adding 1/2 cup fresh flour, plus 3/8 c. water.
1. It's very watery; is it supposed to be?
2. I only have 1 cup, total--is there a way to increase it? By discarding 1/2 cup and adding 1/2 cup flour, the volume has remained the same and one cup seems like a small amount to be able to start baking with.
Thank you in advance!
Vaishali says
Haha, love that name. 😀 The sourdough shouldn't be too watery, but it will be liquid. You can just increase the volume of your starter by adding more flour and water in the correct proportions.
Deena Siegel says
Thanks for answering so quickly. That was very helpful. I guess I just didn't realise how liquidy the starter would be--you reassured me! And I will add more flour and water to increase the amount.
Thanks, again. Stay safe!
KC says
Hello! I have two questions...
1. On day 2 I fed my sourdough baby but forgot to remove half a cup. Is there anything I should do to compensate for that the next day?
2. I used whole wheat flour to start and then all purpose flour like the instructions said. From this point on can I feed with any flour I want or should I keep it consistent with white flour?
I’m sure I’ll have more questions as time goes on but thanks for the detailed blog. It was the best one I found!
Vaishali says
Just continue discarding and feeding in future. And you can use either all purpose or whole wheat for subsequent feedings.
Renee says
Hello from next door in Maryland! What a great, comprehensive post. I've been wanting to make a starter, and after reading your terrific post, I feel like I'm set up for success. Thank you!!
Vaishali says
Hello neighbor! Happy the tips are helpful--good luck with the starter! 🙂
Nada Marriott says
Do I keep the discard in the fridge or on the counter? Do I feed the discard at all or ever?
Vaishali says
If you plan to use the discard within a day you can store in the fridge and use, otherwise just discard it. The only time you'd feed the discard is if you were planning to begin a second starter to give someone.
Catharine Harrell says
Can I double this so that I don't run out of starter when I make bread?
Vaishali says
Yes!
Karen says
Hi! I was given a sour dough starter years ago and loved it! I’ve decided to get back to baking with natural yeast and I’m excited to make my own starter this time. 🙂 I mixed up my flour and water yesterday afternoon and this morning it had a thick layer of brown water on top. Is that normal? Should I pour the brown water out before starting the steps for Day 2? Or should I mix the separated brown water back in?
Vaishali says
Are you in a very hot climate? It could be that the starter is developing too fast. Keep your sourdough at a temp between 75 and 80 degrees F. If your starter doesn't smell off or look moldy, stir in the liquid, discard a portion of the sourdough starter and continue feeding.
Leslie says
Question...am I taking out 1/2 cup every time I feed it while making the starter?
Amy says
Can I feed the starter with whole wheat flour? I only have bleached all purpose flour /:
Beverly says
I'm wondering the same thing. I couldn't find whole wheat flour in the store and ended up asking my neighbor for some. Because of this pandemic it's hard to also find unbleached flour in the store....we do have bleached. So, Amy, what did you do?
Sadhana says
Hi Vaishali,
I started with my sourdough "Crunchy" yesterday and I left it in my kitchen. I could see it rise well and bubble up too pretty well for day one itself but the smell is bad. I feeded it today and keep it in an ac room thinking it might help. Should I go ahead or discard it and start over all again??
Michael Smit says
Hello
I have a starter that's been going for 10 days now.I use non chlorinated tap water and half white flour and half stoneground floor and discard half each day and make new lot each day and add to starter.Yahweh starter has risen nearly twice as high and has bubbles but when I put a small amount in water it sinks.Does this mean it's not ready to make bread?
Thanks for your help.Michael
Vaishali says
Your starter sounds like it's ready. You could try making bread with it at this point. I've been baking with sourdough for more than eight years now and I've never done the water test.
Lucy says
Hi! I'm on day 5 (I think! Lost count of the days recently) and so far I think it's doing what it's supposed to be doing. If I run out of all purpose flour what other flours are acceptable? I have spelt and rice flour. There's not any flour in my grocery store right now. Thanks!
Vaishali says
Spelt is fine!
Sandra says
Hi there!
This is my first day ever trying sourdough starter! I only had buckwheat do used this for this morning day 1.
My question is on feeding days, once you discarded the half cup, do you mix in the new water and flour or just leave it on top?
Rebecca says
I just made this and I have a question. I have placed it in a glass jar with a glass lid that is not air-tight. Here are my questions.
1) can I place the lid on the starter for the next 7 days instead of a towel?
2) after the starter is healthy and ready to go, can I place the same lid on top even though it’s not completely airtight? It’s one of those big glass jars from Walmart that is kind of lose on top.
Thanks
Vaishali says
Yes, a loose fitting lid is fine for the starter on the countertop. It's better to have a tight lid for the fridge because the starter can dry out, but you could improvise with cling wrap and then place the lid on top?
Zach says
Hi there and thanks for the great recipe! It's giving my family something to look forward to each day. If I want to use say 1 cup of the discharge for pancakes, do I just feed it 1 cup flour (and proportional water) to replace the amount I took? Thanks!
Vaishali says
1 cup flour and 3/4ths cup water. You can do more or less in this proportion depending on how much starter you use each week.
Alex Dawson-Smith says
Hi Vaishali,
Would you recommend putting a cover over the top each time?
I saw quite a few bubbles after day 4 (kept in a bowl with a towel over) and transferred it over to a mason jar and there seems to be far less activity today?
Additionally, I used plain white flour to start off as there was no wheat flour available (I saw on google that 1 cup of plain flour = 3/4 cup of wheat flour) is this still okay?
Thanks,
Alex
Vaishali says
Yes, keep it covered at all times, except to feed. It's okay to use white flour to start, use the same quantity as whole wheat.
Yvonne says
Hi Vaishali!
Firstly thanks so much for this recipe! I'm on day 5 of my starter and it's looking healthy, puffy with lots of bubbles and has risen quite a bit. Your recipe said to wait until day 8 but I think mine might be ready to use. It's my second time using your recipe as first time round I didn't get a lot of starter as the container I used meant that my starter dried out. I did get a lovely bake from it however. I just wanted to see when you can tell that the starter is ready to use or should I wait a couple more days?
Vaishali says
Hi Yvonne, happy to hear your starter's doing great! I do advise waiting until day 7 just because it might not be strong enough --you don't want to add it to a bread recipe only to have the bread not rise. That said, if you're willing to take the risk, you should go ahead. You can always use your sourdough in waffles, pancakes and flatbreads at this time.
Anonymous says
Sorry I meant day 7 not 8! And thanks so much! I'll give it a couple more days in that case just to be sure 🙂
Doris says
I am a "newbie" making a starter. Today is Day 3 and when I went to feed "Harley", there was a pliable leathery dome. I used a fork to mix around before feeding, but this leathery dome didn't break up. So, I took out this done with my 1/2 cup of discard. What is this "leathery dome" and should I discard it daily?
Vaishali says
Hi Doris, it's just that the starter must be drying out at the top. Use a more airtight lid to cover the starter between feedings.
Juliann says
Hello! Do you have a naan or flatbread recipe to use the day 2 discard? Or do I just bake it??
Jasleen Chadha says
Hi i started my sour dough starter with wheat in about 15 hours it is risen substantially. I am in India and it is extremely hot here, 35-37 degrees C. Would this be okay? Should i wait for 24 hrs to feed it again. Pls let me know
Vaishali says
Hi Jasleen, try adding very cold water to your starter when you feed it which should slow it down. Also try to find a cool spot in your home or just put it in the fridge after about an hour or two of feeding which should slow down the fermentation a bit and then take it out of the fridge about an hour before feeding again. Sourdough needs a temp of about 26 degrees C to do best and can ferment quite fast in warm weather, but that doesn't mean it can't be done. 🙂
Jasleen Chadha says
Hi thanks so much. Post day 2 the weather cooled a little and now im barely seeing any activity. I fed my starter twice today and fingers crossed for tomm! There are small bubbles on the top though.
Vaishali says
That sounds just right.
Rebecca says
I am out of all purpose flour. Sold out in stores and online delivery is taking weeks to arrive. I only have buckwheat flour on hand. I’m day 8 with growing the starter. Can I use the buckwheat?
Thanks
Vaishali says
Yes buckwheat is fine!
Bee says
Hi. I started making your recipe for pancakes with discarded starter yesterday and it called for making the sponge and let it sit overnight. I did that. This morning I can’t find the same recipe!!! I remember I had to add some ingredients this morning, one of which was flax eggs (9 tablespoons of flax I think). My sponge looks great but I don’t know what other ingredients to add before frying. It also said to make one big pancake in a cast iron skillet ( either use two skillets or do one at a time. I have searched exactly as I did yesterday for recipes to use discard but can’t find the same one. Can you help?
Vaishali says
Here you go. https://holycowvegan.net/vegan-sourdough-blueberry-pancakes/
Elyse says
Thanks for the recipes! So far the starter and crusty rolls have worked well for me. Is this starter 75% hydration? If so, how would I convert for a recipe that calls for 100% hydration? Also, is "unfed starter" the same thing as "discard"? Thanks again.
Elyse says
Thanks for the recipes! The starter and crusty rolls have worked well for me so far. In case I ever branch out...is this starter 75% hydration? If so, how do I calculate for a recipe that calls for 100% hydration? Also, is under starter the same thing as discard? Thanks again!
Rosa says
Hello! I didn't have any whole wheat flour so I used wholemeal, will my starter still work?
Vaishali says
Yes, I believe wholemeal is just another type of wheat so it should be fine!
Becca says
Hi! I’m on day 7 today and realized I’ve been putting in too much water! I completely misread at one point and continued with my mistake. Been doing 1/2 cup flour and 1/2 cup water ? smells good and sour, and seems like a bit watery pancake mix but not sure how to fix my mistake now. Should I just continue on starting now with the 1/2 cup water and 6tbsp water today? Or something else since it’s due to be put in the fridge soon...
Vaishali says
It sounds like your starter is fine-- the amount of water won't make any difference to its health. The only time when the hydration of your starter will really matter is when you actually put it in a bread or other baked good recipe-- if your starter is watery, you will need to adjust the amount of moisture in the recipe down. Does that make sense?
I'd recommend using 1/2 cup flour but less water (less than 6 tbsp, maybe just 3?) for your next couple of feedings, until your starter is back to the consistency of a thick pancake batter.
Leia says
Hi Vaishali, my name is Leia...I found your Sourdough starter 5 days ago when we began making our starter. Like many, my family are stuck at home and I decided to have a project for my grandson and I to do together. I let him name our starter.. he named him "Hulk." Perfect name, I thought, for a strong, healthy starter!! I hope he lives up to his name! We are on day 5 and all seems to be going well! We are really excited to make our bread. We eat alot of sourdough bread and my question is how can I increase my starter to accommodate 2 to 4 loaves a week?
We are already feeding twice a day, it has been under 70° here so I followed your instructions to twice a day with the exact measurements in your recipe.
Also, there are small bubbles on top but does not appear to be rising. Are we still on track?
Thanks so much for your recipe and your time!! God bless you, your family and fur babies.
Leia says
Ps..when I say rising, the appearance is not really "puffy."
Vaishali says
Hi Leia, if you have bubbles it should be fine! It won't always rise. Just wait for it to get stronger. I love the name. 🙂
Peter says
OK, starter all good and ready to make bread, 1 cup starter and recommended recipe for bread please?
Vaishali says
You can find links to more sourdough breads and other baked goods in the post above or you could browse through this. The sandwich bread is my favorite. ttps://holycowvegan.net/vegan-bread-recipes/sourdough-breads/
Sarah Stevens says
Is it ok to use well water? There is no chlorine in it. Thanks for this recipe. I have tried it without discarding before but I am looking forward to another method, probably better. 🙂
Vaishali says
Hi Sarah, pure well water without any contaminants should, in fact, be wonderful for this.
Kay says
Will distilled water work? or is there a method for removing the chlorine?
Vaishali says
Yes, distilled water is what I use most of the time!
Liliana Wells says
I am confused. The first three days showed some activity in the starter. I am on day 4, lifted the covering and no bubbles. I did as you suggested and stirred it since there was a little liquid on top. It looked more liquidy than usual so I added 1/2 cup of flour but I forgot to discard as I have done on previous days. Have I ruined it and have to start over? Or the half cup of flour will absorb some of the liquid and continue to grow? Thank you again for your help.
Vaishali says
It's okay, no worries. Just continue discarding and feeding in future. So long as it doesn't look moldy or pink it should be fine. 🙂
Kim says
My starter is in day 5. Very bubbly but quite watery. Is this normal? When it comes to day 7, by looking at it now, I can’t see there being enough to make my bread. Your suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! :))
Vaishali says
The starter should comfortably yield enough for a loaf of bread that requires about a cup of starter. But if you need more, you can always proportionately increase the amount of flour and water. The hydration I use for the starter does yield a consistency that's like a thinner pancake batter, but it should not be watery.
Angela says
Hello! My Georgina is currently at day4, but it seems to get very liquidy before I feed it again.. is that normal? It has a layer of black/pink liquid at the top.. once stirred it’s still pretty liquidy. However once I feed it, it seems ok and it’s a sticky dough texture?
please help! I’m in Melbourne, so the temperature is not that warm, around 15c!
Vaishali says
Hi Angela, the liquid that collects at the top can be brownish at the beginning, but it should not be pink. Pink liquid would mean your starter has turned moldy, and you should throw it out.
Morgan Smith says
My starter is on day 6 and is smelling like buttermilk but is a normal color and has a ton of bubbles. I only used all purpose flour for the entire starter since I couldn't find wheat flour in stores. Is that normal to smell like that and if not, what would you recommend?
Vaishali says
Hi Morgan, it sounds like your starter is exactly where it should be. 🙂