Anyone anywhere can grow a sourdough starter just by mixing and allowing flour and water to naturally ferment. It is that simple and it works everywhere here on Earth.
And see that tod is #SourdoughBreadDay, why not consider growing your own. All you have to do is add filtered water to flour every day for a week, stir, and wait for nature’s magic. Since whole grains, the air in our environment, and even our hands all contribute wild yeast and lactobacilli (LAB) that work together to create a natural product that makes bread rise, those same things will help you grow an active starter.
I have collected a few different starters that I now keep in the freezer as a backup. This includes one from Abigails Oven that I have maintained for three years. But with the #StopTheSpread order from our Governor, I thought, “Why not grow my own start?”
What follows is a report of how it went:
“Anyone can create and maintain a sourdough starter. It’s not difficult. A healthy long-lasting starter is maintained by a regular feeding schedule of flour and water. The feedings may occur from a couple of times a day to once a week.”
—Carroll, Pellegrinelli, Carroll in Starter Sourdough
Seven Day Starter Countdown
Day 1
When establishing the starter, weigh the flour and water in ounces to get a more accurate measurement than in cups (volume)—Carroll, Pellegrinelli, Carroll in Starter Sourdough
To begin I sterilized a large canning jar, ground some wheat and rye berries, and put ⅓ cup (32 g) into the jar. Then I added ¼ cup (32 g) of filtered room temperature water (the chlorine in tap water can inhibit wild yeast and LAB from growing well). I mixed it all together and set it on the counter with a loosely fitting cover.
Day 2
There wasn’t much going on yet. In fact, the flour and water had separated, but I fed it again. This time with ⅓ cup (32 g) of unbleached bread flour and another ¼ cup (32 g) filtered water. I mixed it all together and set it on the counter with a loosely fitting cover again.
Day 4
The starter looked nearly ready with more than a few bubbles showing, it had nearly doubled in volume, and it smelled like my other counter starter. I removed half the contents and used it in some English muffins I am making, which rose just fine. Then I mixed ⅓ cup of unbleached bread flour and ¼ cup filtered water back into the start, covered it loosely with the lid, and placed it on the kitchen counter again.
Day 5
Today the starter looked frothy, which means it had consumed most of its food, risen, and fallen back on itself. I fed it right away again, but with one cup (125 g) of bread flour and ¾ cup of filtered water to build my volume.
It looks like this new “pet” is alive, but it still is a baby and may need feeding a small amount of water and flour every 4–6 hours. However, I know it’s not ready to go in the fridge. Yet, the float test showed that this is nearly viable.
“For the float test, drop a small amount of starter into a glass of room-temperature water. If it floats, the starter passed the test! If it sinks, you either need to let the starter sit longer to develop more bubbles, or feed it again and let it sit until it passes the float test (usually 6–12 hours).”
—Erica at Pioneer Woman
Day 6
Today I repeated the smaller, regular feeding (⅓ cup [32 g] flour and ¼ cup [32 g] water) but this little “baby” is really growing well now and is looking ready to use as a counter start.
For sure I can make pancakes with my discard, which I did today. They were, by the way, great.
Also note that I am using glass canning jars to grow my start and store my discard. They work well, but avoid metal lids.
Day 7
Today I am pouring off all but one cup of starter to use in a recipe later which means for the first time, my bread is really all mine, from start(er) to finish. But the starter is not really fully mature yet, even though I am getting bread and other sourdough baked goods from it.
After 2 weeks total, I fed the starter one last time and put it in the fridge for long-term storage. [But] you want to wait to store a starter in the fridge until it’s well established.”
Erica at Pioneer Woman
Sadly I read this after I put mine in the fridge, but I have saved some “old dough” from the loaf I just made. I added some water to hydrate it 100% (50/50 four and water). I will keep this on the counter for another seven days using it as a counter start for bread and such. After that, I will let it rest in the fridge.
Tell us how yours is doing in the comment section below, and now I have got to go and work on those English muffins for Sourdough Saturday.
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