Before you can use tools like a brotform, artisticallycopy an intricate scoring pattern you saw on Instagramor bake a beginner sourdough recipe, you need one thing: a sourdough starter. It’s the one non-negotiable for all naturally leavened foods. So when you’re ready to be on Team Sourdough, here are four types of places to source one.
In case you’re unfamiliar with the idea, a sourdough starter is, essentially, pretty simple: flour plus water plus time. Supported by the wild yeast and lactobacilli in the air, the flour and water become a living culture. That living culture is an entity capable of birthing some of the world’s favorite baked goods.
A Sourdough Starter, So What?
So what’s the big deal with sourdough starters? Dubbed “America’s rising pet” by the New York Timesand considered a little like love by Bon Appetit, a sourdough starter is, honestly, a pretty magical thing. Watching one grow is enough to wake up the wonder in the most cynical of souls.
Think about it: all you need to give a starter is regular flour and water. In exchange, it will grow, bubble, change and, if you bottle some up for a friend, even reproduce. A starter can outlive you. It can last for generations. That simple blend of flour and water can birth some of the best breads of your life.
So maybe it’s no wonder people take their starters seriously. They name them like pets. Search around online, and you’ll find starters with incredible pedigrees: there’s a starterlegendarily brought over on the Mayflower.On Etsy, you can findunique cultures from DerbyshireorSan Francisco.
So when you’re ready to dip your toes into the world of sourdough, a starter is Step One. You won’t need a centuries-old starter to bake amazing bread, but you will need a starter from somewhere. So where can you get one? Should you make it or buy it? Here are some ideas.
Where to Get a Sourdough Starter
Where you get your sourdough starter all depends on you. Do you feel up to the challenge of cultivating your own? Would you rather ask a friend for some, or do you want to buy a starter online? Whatever your style, there’s an easy option for you.
- Go DIY with This Recipe, from Baked: The Blog. All you need are flour, water and less than a week of time to cultivate your own starter, in your own kitchen. How? There are lots of tutorials online, but this one’s pretty handy. Go to thecollaborative Canadian cooking blog Bakedfor an easy-to-follow step-by-step five-day guide. One week from now, you could have your own homegrown starter sitting on your kitchen counter, who knows?
- Buy from a Big Bread Brand, like King Arthur Flour or Breadtopia. Over on the King Arthur Flour website, you can buy a one-ounce starter for $8.95 and have the confidence that comes from a product endorsed by almost 800 other happy customers. If you’re an Amazon Prime member (ps did you hear about the new deals for Prime members at Whole Foods?), you can order from Breadtopia for about $11 including shipping and have a cousin to the starter in my fridge. It’s not necessarily better to order from big brands, but it is credible and convenient. Bonus: the big guys typically include instructions and information to guide you in your sourdough beginning.
- Get Some from a Friend. If you know someone who bakes sourdough, chances are he or she will be glad to share starter with you. Bakers regularly discard (or make pancakes with) part of their starters, so it’s no big deal to pass some along.
- Explore the Possibilities Online. If you’re interested in a special kind of starter–one from Alaska? Italy? Finland? France?–the world is at your fingertips online. Search on Amazon to find a wide variety, from rye sourdough starters to Gold Rush starters, or browse Etsy to get inspired with idea. You can even find starters on eBay.
If you’re toying with the idea of baking sourdough and unsure of where to start, take it from someone who was scared: get a starter. While, sure, people joke that it’s a pet, the truth is it’s adaptable to your lifestyle and fairly hard to kill. I learned this invaluable tip from Heartbeet Kitchen: you don’t have to feed it every day if you don’t bake all the time. Instead, you can keep it in the fridge, revive it once a week and bake. Now, in the summertime, while it’s hotter in our homes, it’s especially easy to bring the starter back to happy bubbles, so it’s an especially great time to jump in. Trust me, the revolutionary experience of slicing into your own fresh-baked bread is worth the adventure.
disclaimer: this post contains Amazon affiliate links, through which I receive a small commission on any purchases made.
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FAQs
If you want to purchase a starter, I would recommend: Asking at your local bakery (this is a good idea because the starter will be liquid so you don't have to hydrate it, and it will be a local starter). Purchase from a reputable baking company, rather than a random Etsy seller.
Can I ask a bakery for some sourdough starter? ›
If patience (or yeast) is in short supply, you can also buy starter from reputable online sources like King Arthur Bread, a website I recommend in general for its gentle tone and flour expertise. If you have a local bakery, you could also ask them to sell you a bit.
How do I get sourdough starter? ›
Despite all the mysticism and lore about creating the concoction, a sourdough starter is merely a naturally fermenting mixture of flour and water. Add water to dry flour, let it sit on the counter for a few days, and you'll see nature weave life into a once lifeless lump: bubbles will appear and the mixture will rise.
How do I know what sourdough starter I need? ›
There is no single best ratio, but I've found a ratio of 1:5:5 fed twice daily at 12-hour intervals to produce a sourdough starter that's strong and healthy. This ratio corresponds to 20% ripe starter carryover, 100% water, and 100% flour (a mix of whole grain rye and white flour) at each feeding.
Can I just buy sourdough starter? ›
That said, if you are going to source your starter from somebody else, it's probably best to approach a friend or a baker whom you consider a friend when asking for a glob of their precious starter. If you're anti-social, you can also buy sourdough starter from King Arthur Flour and have it shipped to your door.
Is grocery store sourdough real sourdough? ›
Supermarket sourdough is often sourfaux – here's how to make the real thing. Mass-produced sourdough has been found to be adulterated with everything from vinegar to commercial yeast. Why not bake your own?
Is it cheaper to buy or make sourdough? ›
Is It Cheaper To Make Your Own Sourdough? Yes it's cheaper to make your own sourdough at home, as oppose to buying it from a bakery.
How many days do you feed sourdough starter before baking? ›
Just take it out and feed it at least 2 times (I like to do over 2 days) to ramp it back up before using it. If keeping in the fridge, I like to feed it at least once ever two weeks.
What is the best flour for sourdough starter? ›
The best flour blend for creating a new sourdough starter is 50% whole-meal flour (whole wheat or whole rye) and 50% bread flour or all-purpose flour. I recommend a 50/50 mix of whole wheat flour and bread flour.
How to make 100% sourdough starter? ›
A 100% hydration sourdough starter is a culture which is kept and fed with water and flour at equal weights. Like for instance 5 oz water to 5 oz flour. A 166% hydration starter is fed with equal volume of flour and water, which most typically is one cup of water (8.3 oz) and one cup of flour (5 oz).
If you're an experienced baker and are familiar with working with a cold sourdough starter that has been kept in the refrigerator for a long time and you've had success, then it's totally OK to use your starter straight from the refrigerator.
Why do you discard half the sourdough starter? ›
If you don't get rid of the excess, eventually you'll have more starter than your feedings can sustain. After a few days, your daily 1/4 cup flour and water won't be enough to sustain your entire jar of starter, and your starter will be slow and sluggish, not much better than discard itself.
Do you have to discard sourdough starter every time you feed it? ›
If you are keeping your sourdough starter on the counter, you could leave it for a few hours and then you'd need to feed it again ready to make your next batch. Whether you use your starter in your bread making or you discard your starter in other ways - you MUST discard to keep your starter healthy and thriving.
What is the healthiest flour for sourdough bread? ›
Compared to whole wheat flour, rye flour is said to be the most nutrient- and amylase-dense option for a sourdough starter. Overall, it has a lower gluten protein content than wheat flour, which means it produces slack, sticky, and dense doughs.
How to tell if sourdough starter is bad? ›
Typical signs of food spoilage and mold include pink, orange, or green colors, white fuzzy spots, or sometimes areas that are darker with white areas on top. If you see any of these signs, I would recommend throwing your starter away and creating a new one.
Do bakeries use starters? ›
Some bakeries do still keep a real sourdough starter on hand, however, you may find that the price you pay for their bread is much more at a bakery, and still quite a bit at a grocery store.
How do bakers keep their sourdough starters alive? ›
Ideally, you will get into a weekly rhythm of taking your starter out of the fridge, feeding it, baking a loaf of bread, then popping it back into the fridge until the following week. This way, you can be sure you're always keeping it alive.
Is Panera sourdough made with starter? ›
While our business has expanded well beyond St. Louis since then, that same sourdough starter is still used in our iconic sourdough bread and the craft of baking bread fresh each day remains at the heart of Panera Bread.
What do bakers have to do for sourdough starter every day? ›
Leaving it out on the counter, it will need to be fed equal parts water and flour every 12-24 hours. Warmer homes or frequent baking will require more frequent feeding (around every 12 hours), while colder homes every 24 hours. Storing your sourdough starter in the fridge will require feeding around once a week.
