So basically, a sourdough starter is the yeast that you use for recipes. You feed it and keep it alive until you need it. There is no rule book when it comes to keeping your starter alive. I’ll give you some guidelines, but you will just have to see what works best for your starter. Also, for everything that I do, you will find someone posting on the internet that they’d never do it that way! LOL! So, if you are reading this and don’t agree with something I have written, it’s totally ok. You keep doing what you are doing and I’ll keep doing it the way that I have found works for me. :-)
You will need a kitchen scale. This doesn’t have to be anything special, any scale that measures in both ounces and grams will work. I’m pretty sure I bought mine at my local Walmart probably 15 years ago. It’s just a basic scale.
You will also need a jar to keep your starter. I like Weck jars because you can use the rubber seal to mark the side of the jar where your starter is when it is freshly fed. Weck jars also have a glass lid that doesn’t fit air tight without the seal and metal clamps. This is important since I’ve seen posts where people have had their jars break from having a lid screwed on tight. You can totally use a canning jar for your starter. People use all sorts of different jars or pots to store their starter. Choose one that you like the looks of since it’ll be hanging on your counter or in your fridge! You will also need a second jar to use for discard. I use a jar and a screw top lid. Since you don’t feed your discard a screw top lid is fine.
Let’s talk flour! My starter, Clint Yeastwood, is a boujie boy who really likes King Arthur brand unbleached all-purpose flour. He’ll do okay with other brands but I’ve noticed he does best with this brand. It is important to use unbleached flour as bleached flour has been treated with chemicals that can affect the growth of your sourdough starter.
To keep your starter alive, it needs to be fed. After a starter has been fed, it will rise up in the jar to around double where it started. It is called an active starter when it has doubled and is bubbly. Most recipes call for an active starter. It will only stay doubled and bubbly for so long which is why you will need to feed it 6-12 hours before you will be using it. If you are baking everyday, it will sit on your counter and you will need to feed it each day.
To feed your starter, mix equal parts starter, water and flour. Some people measure the weight of their jar so they can easily mix their starter in their jar each time and don’t have to dirty a bowl. This is totally up to you. Each day, around the same time, I pour 3 oz of Clint into a small bowl. (Any starter left in my jar goes into my discard jar to be stored in the fridge until I need it.) Using my scale, I measure 3 oz of unbleached all purpose flour into the bowl with Clint. Then I measure 3 oz of water into the same bowl. Mix it all up and back into my jar he goes. Some people use a fresh jar after each feeding and some people wait until the jar gets pretty crusty. This is a personal choice, you choose what works best for you.
I have read that a lot of bakers won’t use city water, or water that has been treated with chlorine. This is because the chlorine is supposed to interfere with the growth of the good sourdough bacteria. I use my city tap water for each feeding and Clint is doing just fine.
When I know I won’t be baking during the week, I feed Clint and then pop him into the fridge for the week. On Friday, I pull him out, let him come to room temperature, and then I feed him. When he has doubled and is bubbly, he is ready to use! This is also a great way to keep your starter alive when you are on vacation.
When I am baking a lot and keeping Clint on the counter I will end up with some extra starter left over after I feed him. This leftover starter is called discard. You will find lots of recipes for your discard, so it’s not a bad thing. I put it into a jar that I keep in the fridge until I am ready to use it. Sometimes it will get a clear liquid on top that is called hooch. Just stir it in and use it. You may also get hooch if you have left your starter on the counter and it hasn’t been fed in a couple days. It’s fine, just stir it in and then feed your starter as normal.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1006060197306320/
This is a Facebook group that is called “Sourdough for Beginners.” It has been a great resource for me. If you receive a starter from a friend, it is an established starter and you can ignore the posts of people who are growing their own from scratch.
Good luck with your sourdough starter!
Happy Baking!
Becky
Baking with Becky 