Sourdough bread has been around for centuries, but it has become a bit of a lost art in modern society. When the subject of sourdough comes up in conversation, people are often shocked that I, a busy mom of 5 young children, can keep a starter alive. The truth is that sourdough doesn’t have to be complicated, and it doesn’t have to take much of your time. When I began my sourdough adventure, I only had experience with baking bread with commercial yeast. After reading about the benefits of a true sourdough bread, I decided to try my hand at it.
To begin, you simply take a bowl that will allow room for your growing starter. Mix 1/2 cup of flour and 1/3 cup of filtered (non-chlorinated) water. Leave this bowl on the counter at room temperature. “Feed” your starter flour and water twice a day until you begin to see bubbles and growth. You will need to discard about half of your starter each time you feed because if you don’t, you will have to feed it more and more each time. You will know your starter is ready when it doubles in size after a feeding. It will have a pleasant sour yeasty smell. If your starter has a very strong, sour smell, it will need to be fed more frequently. Another thing to note: if your flour is whole grain, it will ferment more quickly, requiring more frequent feedings.
After you have established an active, healthy starter, put it into the refrigerator. I have found this to be a very important step! Let your starter live in the refrigerator, taking it out only when you plan to bake. This allows it to “rest.” If it is left on the counter, it will ravenously eat through the feedings and continue to grow larger. This results in the need to discard starter, which I think is wasteful. My starter lives in my refrigerator at all times, and if I need to bake, I set it on the counter for a couple of hours, or until it begins to bubble and expand. I use what I need from my starter and replenish what I used with a feeding. After I use it and feed it, I put it back in the refrigerator. Note: I only feed my starter when I use it to bake.
I have gone on vacation several times, ignoring my starter as it sits in the refrigerator for 10 days – 2 weeks. After this, a good feeding and some counter time revives my starter. I truly believe that anyone can incorporate sourdough into their lives, and I believe it is much easier than most people think! You can do this!
Basic Sourdough Starter instructions:
In a large bowl, mix:
1/2 cup of flour
1/3 cup of water
Feed this mixture to your starter two times a day for about a week, or until it is bubbly and it doubles in size after a feeding. Discard a portion of the starter each time you feed. This is the only time I encouraged discarding! When it is bubbly and doubles in size, it is ready. Use it to bake, or put it in the refrigerator!