Best Sourdough Starter Recipe
Easy 2-ingredient sourdough starter from scratch for baking sourdough and other baked goods when you don't have yeast at home. Here's how to make homemade yeast!BE SURE TO SCROLL UP IN THE POST TO READ IMPORTANT TIPS ABOUT SOURDOUGH STARTERS!
Equipment
- clean glass jars with lids
- 2 rubber bands optional
Ingredients
- all-purpose flour
- filtered tap water or bottled water
Instructions
DAY 1: CREATING THE SOURDOUGH STARTER
- In a glass jar, combine 1/2 cup flour and 1/3 filtered or bottled water.
- Stir until there are no lumps left.
- Cover the jar with a loose fitting lid that allows the starter to "breathe." You can also use a paper towel with rubber band around the top.
- Set the jar in a cool spot and do not disturb for 24 hours. This is your "starter."
DAY 2
- On Day 2, remove the lid and gently stir the starter.
- Replace the loose fitting lid and place back in a cool spot for 24 hours.
DAY 3: OVERVIEW
- On the morning of Day 3, you should start to see some activity in your starter. You may see tiny bubbles forming on top and you may even notice that your starter has risen some.
- This is the day you will start "feeding" your starter. This process involves taking some of the current starter, discarding the rest, and also includes a "maintenance feeding" at night.
DAY 3 MORNING: FEED THE STARTER
- In a clean jar, add 3 Tablespoons of the sourdough starter (discard the rest), 1/2 cup flour, 1/3 cup filtered water or bottled water.
- Gently stir until well combined. Cover with loose fitting lid. Let sit for 12 hours in a cool, dry spot until you maintain it in the evening.
DAY 3 EVENING: MAINTAIN THE STARTER
- To the current starter, add 2 Tablespoons flour and 1 1/2 teaspoons filtered or bottled water.
- Gently stir until well combined. Cover with loose fitting lid. Let sit for 12 hours in a cool, dry spot.
DAY 4-6: FEED & MAINTAIN MORNING & EVENING
- Repeat the steps from Day 3, do the feeding and maintaining each morning and evening, 12 hours apart. IMPORTANT: Each morning, be sure to use a new jar and place 3 TABLESPOONS of the starter (discard the rest of the starter) before doing the steps.
- In the evening, you will maintain it by adding the 2 TABLESPOONS of flour and 1 1/2 teaspoons of water.
- Keep an eye on your yeast daily! You want to see it get very bubbly. It will also need to double in size to be a strong yeast for bread. (See our tip for keeping track of the size in the NOTES section.)
- During this time, you may see your yeast rise and then fall again. That means it's not strong enough yet, so you'll need to keep doing the feeding and maintaining cycle. Your yeast may be ready sooner than 7 days or maybe take a little longer than 7 days. Your first time may take a little trial and error.
DAY 7: MORNING
- In a clean jar, add 3 TABLESPOONS starter from the other jar (discard the rest), 1/2 Cup flour, 1/3 Cup filtered or bottled water.
- Stir until well combined and cover with loose-fitting lid. Let sit for 4 hours.
- Fill a tall glass of water 3/4 way full with bottled water and set aside to come to room temperature. You will use this water in the next step (4 hours later).
DAY 7 - 4 HOURS LATER: TEST YOUR STARTER
- It's time to test your starter to see if it's ready to use for baking. Take a spoonful of starter and place it into a glass of room temperature water. If the starter floats, it's ready to use for baking like in your favorite sourdough bread recipe or other sourdough recipes.
- If the starter doesn't float, it is not ready to use for baking. Continue with the evening maintenance schedule and repeat DAY 7 instructions on DAY 8 until the starter is ready.
KEEPING FRESH SOURDOUGH STARTER
- If you want to have fresh sourdough starter to use regularly, save some of your starter in another jar before using it for baking. Keep it in the refrigerator and maintain it by doing a sourdough feeding once a week.
Notes
EASY WAY TO KEEP TRACK IF YOUR YEAST IS RISING: On the outside of the jar, place 2 rubber bands at the line where the flour and water mixture settles. (This will help you see how much your starter has grown or doubled.) Placing rubber bands around the jar even with the level of the final starter will help you see how much your starter is rising or doubling! Move the second rubber band up as it rises. The first rubber band will show you where the sourdough starter started. The second one will show you the current level that you can move daily, if you wish.
*Nutrition information is approximate. If you have special dietary needs, please calculate your own nutrition.
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