If you ever tried baking bread, chances are you have also considered or tried making sourdough bread. If you have failed, don’t give up. Making the sourdough bread is something any one can master. I promise you, it is well worth mastering.
But if you are new to bread baking, you should know that making sourdough bread is an ancient way to make bread. It was done for centuries, long before we found how to grow strains of commercial yeast. You also need to keep in mind that the sourdough take much longer to rise that the dough made with commercial yest. In a way it forces you (even for a short period of time when you making the bread) to align yourself and be in harmony with nature.
In the past I have tried a few times making my sourdough starter, and have failed a few times. I also tried to “boost” my starter with pinch of commercial yest. Sourdough snobs will look down on you if you do it, but if you think your starter takes way too long to “take off”, you can use a pinch of commercial yest to boosted. I believe it all depends on the climate, it can take anywhere from 48 hours to several days for your sourdough starter to form. Where we live, it usually takes about 48 hours for my starter to form and be ready to use.
What will you need to make the sourdough starter?
Not much really. You need container, one cup of warm water and one cup of flour (I use all purpose unbleached flour). That’s it! Where is the yeast, even the wild one, you ask? Well it is all around us! It is also found in abundance the flour. When you mix warm water and flour and set in a warm place all the magic comes to life!
For a container I recommend using a wide-mouthed glass jar. The one I am using is about one gallon jar with about 6.5 inches wide mouth. I love it because the mouth is wide enough for 1 cup measuring cup to go through, which makes is very easy to feed your starter.
As far as flour is concerned, I found all purpose unbleached flour to work the best. Some people use whole wheat flour to make the starter. While I bake whole wheat breads, I don’t find it necessary to use it to make my sourdough starter. In fact I prefer using all purpose unbleached flour for my starter.
It is important not to use the tap water as it contains chlorine and can kill the yest. If you have to use the tap water, let it sit overnight for the chlorine to escape. Bottled water works fine. I am using water that has been filtered with ZeroWater purifying system.
To make your starter mix one coup of warm water with one cup of flour. Mix well to form a batter (pictured bellow) and set your container (loosely covered) on the counter and let the nature work.
In 24 hours your starter will be ready to be fed. Subscribe to our blog (the form is located in the top part of the sidebar), to see what happens next. I am documenting the process as I am making my starter from the scratch. Pleas join me. I promise, you will not regret it! No other breads taste as good as the one made using sourdough starter. Don’t hesitate to ask questions or share your bread making experience in the comments bellow.
