My sourdough starter. I had named him Stinky but I thought th
at so disrespectful so I renamed him Fred. Here is Fred in all his glory. Isn’t he lovely?
Fred and I have had a most unusual relationship during the last week. He usually just sits around doing absolutely nothing while I hand feed him every night. Typical, wouldn’t you say? Ah, to be Fred in the Peterson household!
It is that time of the year for me to get Fred going again – all in time for winter baking, I hope. Making sourdough rolls, bread, even English Muffins is not difficult. It sounds daunting, I know, but it’s not. My mother used to make the most heavenly sour dough rolls for family holidays. I try to recreate them and am almost there (look for a future Sour Dough Dinner Roll recipe).
To be sure you have sour dough starter to make your baked goods this winter, follow the instructions below. I’ll be making some items using the starter throughout the coming months. Just remember, if you aren’t using your starter, store it in the refrigerator. Feed once a week with equal parts water and flour and let sit out the night before you use it in a recipe.
Day 1: Make the Initial Starter
4 ounces (3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons) all-purpose flour
4 ounces (1/2 cup) water
Weigh the flour and water, and combine them in the container. Stir vigorously until combined into a smooth batter. It will look like a sticky, thick dough. Scrape down the sides and loosely cover the container with plastic wrap or the lid (left ajar).
Put the container somewhere with a consistent room temperature of 70°F to 75°F (like the top of the refrigerator) and let sit for 24 hours.
Day 2: Feed the Starter
4 ounces (3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons) all-purpose flour
4 ounces (1/2 cup) water
Take down your starter and give it a look. You may see a few small bubbles here and there. This is good! The bubbles mean that wild yeast have started making themselves at home in your starter. They will eat the sugars in the flour and release carbon dioxide (the bubbles) and alcohol. They will also increase the acidity of the mixture, which helps fend off any bad bacteria’s. At this point, the starter should smell fresh, mildly sweet, and yeasty.
If you don’t see any bubbles yet, don’t panic — depending on the conditions in your kitchen, the average room temperature, and other factors, your starter might just be slow to get going.
Weigh the flour and water for today, and combine them in the container. Stir vigorously until combined into a smooth batter. It will look like a sticky, thick dough. Scrape down the sides and loosely cover the container with plastic wrap or the lid (left ajar). Put the container somewhere with a consistent room temperature of 70°F to 75°F (like the top of the refrigerator) and let sit for 24 hours.
Day 3: Feed the Starter
4 ounces (3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons) all-purpose flour
4 ounces (1/2 cup) water
Check your starter. By now, the surface of your starter should look dotted with bubbles and your starter should look visibly larger in volume. If you stir the starter, it will still feel thick and batter-like, but you’ll hear bubbles popping. It should also start smelling a little sour and musty.
Again, if your starter doesn’t look quite like mine in the photo, don’t worry. Give it a few more days. My starter happened to be particularly vigorous!
Weigh the flour and water for today, and combine them in the container. Stir vigorously until combined into a smooth batter. It will look like a sticky, thick dough. Scrape down the sides and loosely cover the container with plastic wrap or the lid (left ajar). Put the container somewhere with a consistent room temperature of 70°F to 75°F (like the top of the refrigerator) and let sit for 24 hours.
Day 4: Feed the Starter
4 ounces (3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons) all-purpose flour
4 ounces (1/2 cup) water
Check your starter. By now, the starter should be looking very bubbly with large and small bubbles, and it will have doubled in volume. If you stir the starter, it will feel looser than yesterday and honeycombed with bubbles. It should also be smelling quite sour and pungent. You can taste a little too! It should taste sour and somewhat vinegary.
When I made my starter here, I didn’t notice much visual change from Day 3 to Day 4, but could tell things had progressed by the looseness of the starter and the sourness of the aroma.
Weigh the flour and water for today, and combine them in the container. Stir vigorously until combined into a smooth batter. It will look like a sticky, thick dough. Scrape down the sides and loosely cover the container with plastic wrap or the lid (left ajar). Put the container somewhere with a consistent room temperature of 70°F to 75°F (like the top of the refrigerator) and let sit for 24 hours.
Day 5: Starter is Ready to Use
Check your starter. It should have doubled in bulk since yesterday. By now, the starter should also be looking very bubbly — even frothy. If you stir the starter, it will feel looser than yesterday and be completely webbed with bubbles. It should also be smelling quite sour and pungent. You can taste a little too! It should taste even more sour and vinegary.
If everything is looking, smelling, and tasting good, you can consider your starter ripe and ready to use! If your starter is lagging behind a bit, continue on with the Day 5 and Beyond instructions.
Day 5 and Beyond: Maintaining Your Starter
4 ounces (3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons) all-purpose flour
4 ounces (1/2 cup) water
Once your starter is ripe (or even if it’s not quite ripe yet), you no longer need to bulk it up. To maintain the starter, discard (or use) about half of the starter and then “feed” it with new flour and water: weigh the flour and water, and combine them in the container with the starter. Stir vigorously until combined into a smooth batter.
If you’re using the starter within the next few days, leave it out on the counter and continue discarding half and “feeding” it daily. If it will be longer before you use your starter, cover it tightly and place it in the fridge. Remember to take it out and feed it at least once a week — I also usually let the starter sit out overnight to give the yeast time to recuperate before putting it back in the fridge.
How to Reduce the Amount of Starter:
Maybe you don’t need all the starter we’ve made here on an ongoing basis. That’s fine! Discard half the starter as usual, but feed it with half the amount of flour and water. Continue until you have whatever amount of starter works for your baking habits.
