There is something extremely satisfying about making sourdough bread from sourdough starter you nurtured yourself. And believe it or not, it’s extremely easy to make your very own (and unique!) sourdough starter.
All it takes is a bit of flour, some water, a lemon, and patience. Let’s get started!
DAY 1
Combine:
- 2T whole wheat flour
- 2T warm water
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Place the mixture in a clean glass jar and cover with a loose-fitting lid. (You want gas to be able to escape but to keep stuff from falling into the mixture.) Place in a warm (72F roughly) spot.
NOTE: The amount of lemon juice and water will bring the liquid (water + juice) to a pH of 3.5 (roughly that of pineapple juice). You can substitute 2T of unsweetened pineapple juice for the water / lemon juice mixture if you prefer.
DAY 2
Stir in 2T of whole wheat flour, 2T water, and 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice to the mix from the previous day.
DAY 3
Stir in 2T of whole wheat flour, 2T water, and 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice to the mix from the previous day.
ON DAY 4 and daily, until it starts to expand and smell yeasty
Keep 2T of the mixture from the day before; toss the rest. Mix the remaining mixture with 2T of tepid to warm water and 2 or 3T of bread flour
That’s it! You now have your very own, completely unique sourdough starter!
Maintaining Your Starter
Other than making sure you keep your starter in a warm spot and feed it daily, the exact proportions aren’t critical. It’s also fine to feed it with all-purpose rather than bread flour.
You need to feed your starter DAILY. (You can also put your starter in the fridge and feed it once a week, but you’ll need to pull it out a day or two before you need it for baking, feeding it each morning so it can “wake up.”)
You’ll find you quickly have a lot more starter than you need if you simply keep adding flour and water to it. Instead, throw out all but a bit of the starter and then feed it. This will keep the quantity manageable and you won’t waste so much flour.
Specifically, here’s what I do each morning (if I’m not keeping the starter in the fridge):
- Keep 2T of starter and throw out the rest
- Stir in 2T of flour and 2T of water
- Cover loosely and keep in a warm spot
If it seems like your starter is getting too thick, add a little more water at the next feeding. Similarly, if it’s getting too thin, add a little less water at the next feeding.
Okay, But What About Sourdough Bread?!?
Chill – you’ll find my basic sourdough bread recipe here.
