Purchased a starter and need to know how to get starter? Don’t worry, I got you!

First off thank you so much for supporting our small business! You will never know how much we appreciate it! Now lets dive into how to get started!

The rule of thumb is 25g of starter to 50g of warm water and 50g of flour. Now with all things starter those are just estimates. The flour you use or the water you use can all affect exactly how much you will need but not to worry that all comes with time! If you add all the above amounts and feel like the starter is too loose, think like heavy cream consistency, then you will need to add a tiny bit of flour. A little goes a long way so add a pinch at a time. If your starter is too thick, like cookie dough consistency, then you will need to add a tiny bit of water. Like the flour, a little goes a long way. You want it in between the two consistencies(see photo above left for reference).

Now that you got the consistency down, we can move on to how to store your starter. Starters like a temp around 70 °- 80°. In the winter time i use a small seed starting mat to wrap around my starter. It wont die without one it will just be very slow to double so the mat helps keep it warm and the times about the same as it is in the summer time. Even storing it in the oven(with a large sign on the knob so you don’t accidentally cook your starter) is a good alternative.

Consistency, check! Storage, check! Now how to cover your starter. Starters need air flow. having some access to fresh air is part of colonizing a starter As some of the yeast comes from the air. So a tight lid is a no go for a starter, unless you are storing it in the fridge for long term storage. But if its on the counter you need an option to keep the air flowing nicely but the critters out. I like to use a coffee filter with a rubber band around the top for mine, shown left. Some like to put the lid of a glass container on but just not tightened which is also a nice choice. A paper towel would also work.

Now that we got all the technical stuff out of the way lets get back to your starter.

You fed it and stored it nicely, but now what? In a day or two you should see bubbles forming. That’s good! Its showing it s active! But when to feed it? You want there to be lots of bubbles. Once there are lots of bubbles, its time to feed your starter! Always discard half before you feed your starter. This is the most important step as it refreshes the acidity levels of the starer. It is crucial for success and should never be missed. You can save the portion you need to discard in the fridge with a lid on it. This is called discard and can be used in many recipes! I usually feed my starter 100g of flour and 50g of water. As stated above this all depends on the flour you use so you may need to adjust the amount but this is what works for me to maintain my starter.

But what if its been a few days and you want to start baking with your starter? You’ll need to increase the amount you feed your starter so you’ll have enough starter to bake with and have some left over to keep it going! Check out my sourdough recipe to know how much you need to feed your starter to start baking. This recipe will make 2 loafs. https://www.shannonhomestead.com/sourdough-recipe

If you have any additional questions feel free to message us on our Instagram and i’d be more than happy to assist you!

All the best, Kamrin.