Before you dive into your sourdough starter, there are a few important factors to take into consideration.
The only two ingredients really needed for a sourdough starter, or natural yeast include flour and water. The type of flour and water that are used to make your starter is vital.
There are 3 principles I've pinpointed that make a successful starter:
Principle #1: CHLORINE WATER
Wild yeast cannot grow when fed water with chlorine. If you do not have your own well, or live in town, you most likely have water that contains chlorine. This means that you either need to filter your water, or buy pre-filtered water. (I purchase single gallons of distilled water specially for my starters/sourdough recipes.)
Principle #2: BLEACHED FLOUR
Your sourdough starter will also struggle if it is fed bleached flour. If you want an all-purpose starter, and you only own bleached flour, I suggest completely switching over to unbleached all-purpose. Wouldn’t it be upsetting if you accidentally fed your starter with bleached and killed it after all your hard work?! This is not hard, as they are usually priced similarly. I now buy the Winco Unbleached All-Purpose Flour. It is exactly the same price as the Bleached All-Purpose Flour.
How To Choose Your Flour
As long as the flour you’re using has gluten content, it is usable for sourdough. This includes unbleached all-purpose, bread flour, whole wheat flour, rye flour, spelt flour, and I’m sure a million other different types. For a sourdough starter especially, I would use flour that you always have on hand as you need to feed your starter at least once a week. It is also important to note that different brands of flour, even if it is the same type, can affect your starter or even kill it. Starters like consistency, which is why it’s necessary to feed them the same brand of flour.
Changing Flours In a Starter
I have one thing to say about this: do NOT feed your starter a completely different type of flour than what it’s used to in one feeding!! This will most likely shock the starter and kill it!! Starters CAN be converted into other types of flour over time. For example, If you begin a starter with all-purpose and would like to switch it to whole wheat, this can slowly be done by adding part all-purpose, part whole wheat for multiple feedings until you eventually convert to all-parts whole wheat. (This process can take about 4-7 days of daily feedings). For breads, any type of flour can be explored and paired with any type of starter.
Principle #3: BREATHABLE CONTAINER
The only necessary characteristic for a starter container includes a jar, plastic container, or tupperware that is NOT airtight. Sealing an airtight jar with a freshly fed sourdough starter is like creating a wild yeast bomb. The natural yeast gasses can’t release and the container is very likely to explode if the container is not breathable. I have been using some tall wide mouthed glass containers (tall and wide mouthed is preferable because you can really see your starter grow up) from Weck Jars. They are simple to convert to a breathable container so I don’t have to worry about screwing on the cap too tight. You do need to have a lid or your starter will dry out.
Now that we've gone over the 3 main principles, here's a couple more helpful tips to make an effective starter.
KITCHEN SCALE
With the sourdough craze going around, I’ve seen many different ways to feed starters. It is common in America to feed starters measuring out flour/water in measuring cups. However, this cannot give an accurate hydration level because measuring cups can hold different amounts depending on how you measure. Personally, I like to know my exact hydration percent. This means that I need to use a kitchen scale to measure in grams exactly how much water and flour I feed my starter. If you don’t care about knowing your hydration level, then by all means measure with cups but I just prefer accurate results. Also, most sourdough recipes are measured out in grams so it wouldn’t hurt to invest in a little kitchen scale. (Mine is like $15 from target and I’ve had it for almost a year, used daily with no problems.)
TEMPERATURE/LOCATION
How a starter is stored can greatly affect its performance. A starter should not be stored in direct sunlight. However, natural yeast needs warmth to grow. When I am feeding mine to be used, I keep it on my counter near my oven but not too close. My kitchen temperature is usually around 71 degrees Fahrenheit. The time of year can also affect a starter. In the summer my starter would sometimes shoot up and peak in 3 hours. Now that it is becoming colder outside, my starter is taking about 6-8 hours to peak.
Okay guys, let's get this party started! If you'd like more visuals, please visit my instagram @fair.bakes for tutorial videos and explanation.
STARTING YOUR STARTER
Now that you know the prerequisites of making a sourdough starter, let's talk process. Making a starter from scratch can take anywhere from 7-21 days. You probably won’t be able to bake bread with your starter until about 10-14 days after you start your starter. This first part is all about patience. Once you have your flour, purified water, and breathable container all ready, it’s time to begin. Many starter tutorials say to jumpstart your starter with whole wheat or rye. I did not do that with my starters. My whole wheat starter became usable on day 7 while my all-purpose starter really started growing on day 10. Whole grains increase fermentation which makes a starter grow faster in the beginning. Now as I feed both my whole wheat and all-purpose starter there is not much difference in how fast they peak.
Day 1:
Place your jar on a scale and tare it to zero. Add 60 grams of non-chlorinated water and tare. Then add 60 grams of your chosen flour. Mix together until fully combined. Cover the top of the jar with a coffee filter or a paper towel and keep in place with a rubber band around the top. You can also put a rubber band around the jar to mark where your starter is to see if it grows any. Let sit for 24 hours.
Day 2:
Check the starter mixture to see if any bubbles have formed or if the mixture has risen at all. There may be some “hooch” visible (liquid in pockets or on the top. This is okay.) Do not add or mix anything into the starter. Let sit for another 24 hours untouched.
Day 3:
Regardless of if there is any “action” going on inside your jar (bubbles, rising, ect.) it is time to feed the starter. Discard about half of the starter, then add 60 grams of water into the remaining starter and mix thoroughly. Once well combined, add 60 grams of flour and mix until well combined. Move rubber band to mark the top of the fed starter. Let sit for 24 hours.
Day 4:
After 24 hours, discard half of the starter and feed again, repeating the steps from day 3. The starter may look bubbly and doubled, but do not let that fool you. If it smells sour (which it will probably smell TERRIBLE) then it is not ready to be used for bread, and probably won’t be until at least days 8-10. If there are dried out clumps on the top or any hooch (juices) scrape them off or poor them out before feeding. This will help the starter be less sour once the bacteria balances out.
Day 5:
Repeat Day 3-4 steps, discarding half and feeding your starter. Continue looking for bubbles, upward growth, and a yeasty smell. If you’re unsure of the smell, trust me you will know. It will be a night and day difference.
Day 6:
Continue discarding and feeding, repeating the same steps from the previous days. Take into consideration that the normal time for a starter to double after feeding is anywhere from 3-8 HOURS. So, if your starter is ready and you feed it at 8am, it could double anytime between 11am-4pm (maybe longer depending on time of year.) If possible, be looking for growth in that time period because as soon as the starter peaks, it will begin deflating and you will miss seeing the growth. Look at the sides of the jar, seeing if any residue remains of a doubled starter or starter growth as it may have already grown and deflated in the 24 hours since its feeding.
Day 7:
By day 7, there is a possibility that the starter may be ready to use. If it is doubled in size, bubbly, and smelling yeasty and fresh then you could try a discard recipe like waffles or crepes just to start out. If the plan is to make a full on loaf of bread, I would wait and feed the starter for days 8-10 just to ensure that the yeasty smell and the bubbling growth really is present and ready to be baked with.
Day 8:
If your starter has continued smelling yeasty and fresh, bubbling and at least doubling in size since the feeding, then you are ready to bake!!
If you're not sure what to do with your starter once you have activated it, please see my post How to Store Your Starter
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