Breads & Bakingnatashaskitchen5.0
Sourdough Starter Recipe (VIDEO)
It’s easy to make your own sourdough starter in just 6 to 7 days using just 2 ingredients - flour and water. My simple recipe is easy for beginners and advanced bakers alike. I highly recommend using a digital kitchen scale and a 3/4 quart weck jar or a quart mason jar.
👥 7 Servings⏱️ Prep & Cook: 168h👤 Natasha Kravchuk📖 natashaskitchen
🥘 Ingredients
Check off ingredients as you prepare them:
🍳 Cookware
- ●spatula
- ●bowl
📝 Preparation Steps
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Day 1 Make your Starter
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Record the weight of your jar in grams before you add anything and label the jar with your starting date for easier tracking.
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Add 100 grams (3/4 cup) whole wheat or rye flour and 100 grams (1/2 cup) water. Stir together thoroughly with a fork (it will be very thick), scrape down the sides with a spatula. Cover with a loose-fitting lid and let it rest at room temperature for ⏱️ 24 hours*. Put a rubber band around your jar to mark the growth of your starter. Label the jar with a date to track.
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Day 2: No Changes Noted
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Likely nothing is happening. You might see some tiny bubbles or it will look exactly the same. Let it rest for another ⏱️ 24 hours
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Day 3 (stage 2) Visible Growth and Bubbles in Jar
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Remove and discard half of the starter in the trash so it does not affect the plumbing. You should have 100 grams (1/2 cup) of starter left. Add 100 grams (3/4 cup) all-purpose flour and 100 grams (1/2 cup) room temp water. Stir thoroughly, scrape down the sides of the jar, cover loosely, and rest at room temperature for ⏱️ 24 hours
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Day 4 (⏱️ 72 Hours into the process): See a lot of bubbles
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Remove and discard all but 100 grams of starter. Add 100 grams (3/4 cup) all-purpose flour and 100 grams (1/2 cup) room-temperature water. Stir thoroughly, scrape down the sides of the jar, cover loosely, and rest ⏱️ 24 hours. Note: In a couple of my many tests, my starter seemed to slow down its growth on day 4 for no apparent reason. If that happens, just keep feeding it - it will turn back around.
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Day 5: Visible growth and bubbles.
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Remove and discard all but 100 grams of starter. Add 100 grams (3/4 cup) All-purpose flour and 100 grams (1/2 cup) room-temperature water. Stir thoroughly, scrape down the sides of the jar, cover loosely, and rest ⏱️ 24 hours.
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Day 6-7: Your starter may double or more
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Remove and discard all but 100 grams of starter. Add 100 grams (3/4 cup) All-purpose flour and 100 grams (1/2 cup) room-temperature water. Stir thoroughly, scrape down the sides of the jar, cover loosely, and rest until more than doubled in volume.
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Testing Your Starter
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When your starter is ready, it should peak between ⏱️ 4-6 hours and start to recede after ⏱️ 12 hours. It should smell sour and pleasant, drop a dollop of your starter into a bowl of water. If it floats, it’s healthy enough to use in recipes. If your starter isn’t ready by day 7, continue feeding it following this schedule. It may take a bit longer depending on many factors—such as the flour use and the environment.
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How to Maintain your starter
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For frequent bakers: store at room temperature. Discard and feed every ⏱️ 24 hours. To use the starter, feed and wait for the starter to reach its peak, ⏱️ 4-6 hours then remove the portion needed for the recipe.
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For casual bakers (weekly): store in the fridge. Once a week, discard and feed the starter, then let it rest at room temperature for 1 to ⏱️ 2 hours before returning it to the fridge. If baking, remove the starter from the fridge and bring to room temperature overnight. Discard and feed. When the starter reaches its peak, remove the portion needed for the recipe, then feed and refrigerate.
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