How To Feed and Maintain a Sourdough Starter
Learn how to make, feed, and maintain a sourdough starter with just a few easy steps [and what to do when you need a break]
Equipment
- 2 glass storage containers (needs to hold at least 3 cups) with loose fitting lid
Ingredients
- 1 cup water warm, filtered
- ½ cup rye flour
- ½ cup flour unbleached, all-purpose
- additional flour and water for future feedings
Instructions
Make the sourdough starter
- Combine the flour and warm filtered water in a glass container and stir to combine.
- Add a loose fitting lid.
- Allow the starter to sit in a warm location for 12 hours and then begin feeding the starter.
Feed the sourdough starter
- In another clean glass jar add ¼ cup of the sourdough starter, ½ cup unbleached all-purpose flour, and ¼ cup warm filtered water.
- Stir well and add a loose fitting lid and sit in a warm location for 12 hours.
- Feed the starter every 12 hours (using the method just described in the step above) for 5 days, or until the starter becomes active, bubbly, and rises. At this point you can decrease feedings to 1 time per day.
- If you are unable to feed the starter daily, or just need a break then place the sourdough starter into the refrigerator so it will go dormant.
- When you are ready to resume baking, then remove the starter from the refrigerator and resume the same feeding schedule as described above (twice a day until the starter becomes very active and bubbly and then decreasing to one time per day).