My How To Make A Sourdough Starter From Scratch Recipe is an easy guide to help you create a sourdough starter that will make the most incredible, flavorful, and well-risen sourdough bread and baked goods, just like my favorite Crusty Sourdough or Sandwich Bread. This recipe has simple step-by-step instructions for making a sourdough starter, a sourdough starter feeding schedule, and how to feed and store your starter to easily maintain a healthy, active, starter that’s very beginner-friendly!
What is a sourdough starter?
It begins with making a culture of water and flour, and capturing wild yeasts and bacteria in the flour, but also in the air and even on our hands. Once the yeast is captured it starts to ferment spontaneously.
Once the starter has begun fermenting, then you can feed the live culture so that it begins to rise and fall predictably.
What you’ll love about this recipe:
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For this recipe you’ll need
- 2 large glass jars: Weck Jars, Mason Jars, or pickle jars work well
- A loose-fitting lid (to allow fermentation gases to escape)
- A wooden spoon or spurtle to stir the starter and scrape down the sides of the jar.
- A digital kitchen scale – I’ve used this one for years and love it.
- Optional: Grain mill: https://nutrimill.com/HEALTHYELIZABETH Use code: HEALTHYELIZABETH20 For $20 off your order at Nutrimill.com
Ingredient list
To get started making this recipe, you’ll want to gather these ingredients:
- Filtered, unchlorinated, room temperature water
- 100% whole wheat flour or 100% rye flour
- Unbleached all-purpose flour, must be unbleached or unbleached bread flour
Here’s How To Make A Sourdough Starter From Scratch
Step by Step Instructions for How To Make A Sourdough Starter From Scratch Recipe
To make a sourdough starter that is active, bubbly, and ready to bake with, can take anywhere from 5- 10 days depending on your environment.
Sourdough Starter Schedule
Day 1 – Start the culture: 50g whole wheat flour, 50g unbleached, all-purpose flour, 150g room temperature water.
Day 2 & 3 Feedings: Discard any liquid (hooch) on the top of the starter culture. In a clean glass jar add 70g sourdough starter, 50g whole wheat flour, 50g unbleached, all-purpose flour, and 115g room temperature water.
Day 4 & 5 Feedings : Discard any liquid (hooch) on the top of the starter culture. In a clean glass jar add 70g sourdough starter, 50g whole wheat flour, 50g unbleached, all-purpose flour, and 100g room temperature water.
Day 6 Feeding: Discard any liquid (hooch) on the top of the starter culture. In a clean glass jar add 50g sourdough starter, 50g whole wheat flour, 50g unbleached, all-purpose flour, and 100g room temperature water.
Day 7 – Regular Maintenance Feeding: Discard any liquid (hooch) on the top of the starter culture. In a clean glass jar add 35g sourdough starter, 140g unbleached, all-purpose flour, and 140g room temperature water.
Once your starter is active you will only need to perform this feeding once a week to keep your starter healthy.
Testing your starter with the “float test“
To ensure that your starter is active and ready to be used, fill a jar with water then drop a spoonful of your fed and fermented starter. If your starter floats, its ready for baking. Success!
If it does not float, wait 12 hours, then feed your starter again, let it ferment for 4-8 hours until doubled in size. Then perform the float test again.
Ready To Make The Best Loaf of Sourdough You’ve Ever Had? Watch my easy recipe guide to making foolproof sourdough bread
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How To Make A Sourdough Starter (From Scratch Recipe)
Equipment
- 2 large glass jars: Weck Jars, Mason Jars, or pickle jars work well
- loose-fitting lid (to allow fermentation gases to escape)
- wooden spoon or spurtle to stir the starter and scrape down the sides of the jar.
- digital kitchen scale – I've used this one for years and love it.
Ingredients
- Filtered, unchlorinated, room temperature water
- 100% whole wheat flour or 100% rye flour
- Unbleached all-purpose flour, must be unbleached
Instructions
Day 1: Start the culture
- 50g whole wheat flour, 50g unbleached, all-purpose flour, 150g room temperature water.
Day 2 & 3 Feedings:
- Discard any liquid (hooch) on the top of the starter culture. In a clean glass jar add 70g sourdough starter, 50g whole wheat flour, 50g unbleached, all-purpose flour, and 115g room temperature water.
Day 4 & 5 Feedings:
- Discard any liquid (hooch) on the top of the starter culture. In a clean glass jar add 70g sourdough starter, 50g whole wheat flour, 50g unbleached, all-purpose flour, and 100g room temperature water.
Day 6:
- Discard any liquid (hooch) on the top of the starter culture. In a clean glass jar add 50g sourdough starter, 50g whole wheat flour, 50g unbleached, all-purpose flour, and 100g room temperature water.
Day 7 Regular Maintenance Feeding:
- Discard any liquid (hooch) on the top of the starter culture. In a clean glass jar add 35g sourdough starter, 140g unbleached, all-purpose flour, and 140g room-temperature water. Once your starter is active you will only need to perform this feeding once a week to keep your starter healthy.
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Hello Elizabeth! When you maintain your starter after 7 days, do you place in the fridge or leave it out?
Hey there Sarah! Yes I keep mine in the fridge for up to a week and then take it out and feed it.
Hi Elizabeth,
When you have been through your seven days, and you aren’t ready to make bread yet because it falls on a weekday and you don’t have the time, can you just stick it in the fridge until the weekend when you have time?
Elizabeth!
I love the sandwich bread and rolls recipes. Took the bread to my church pot luck and it was a big hit.
I bought a scale ⚖ for measuring and it is easier than I thought it would be.
Hello 🙂
Can you feed your starter right from the fridge or do you need to let it sit on the counter for a while first?
When you’re ready to bake and your starter is refrigerated, I assume you take it out of the fridge, feed the starter and let it grow for a few hours?
Hello
I want to thank you for such a great video and great directions. I attempted to make a sourdough starter using two other popular sites I found and something about them just didn’t seem right. I was not getting good results at all and the mix seemed too watery or too tight. The container was a mess and I wasn’t sure the smell was right. Then I ran across your sight and right away things were different. I really appreciate measuring the ingredients by weight so there is no guess work; I like that you pour what you need into a clean jar each time and add from there; and I like the instruction about pouring off the “hooch” as other sites did not mention that at all (it was one of the things I worried about with the other starters). I truly think if someone is new to sourdough, this is the very place they should start. I’m so thankful for your great instruction. I can’t wait to start baking.
Elizabeth, I am on day 6 and it is not “rising and falling yet”. It did double on day 3 or 4 but it hasn’t doubled since. Do I continue to the Day & Maintenance feeding until it does this?
I emptied my starter jar today to make bread so do I just put it into the fridge without feeding it till next week? I made your soft sandwich bread, and a little piece was going to fly out, so I took my hand to stop it, and I got caught between the dough hook and the edge if the bowl. I have a huge bruise, but the bread turned out good! I have the bread dough on the counter can I put them now in the fridge till tmrw? Please let me know! Thank you!
Hey Karen, so sorry you got bruised – I’ve been there too!I like to feed my starter and then put it in the fridge for the week so it has something to live off of. You can place the dough in the fridge for about 12 hours without it changing much.And if after its been in the fridge, if it hasn’t risen, you can just leave it on the counter for a couple hours.Once it’s no longer cold, it should puff up nicely. Hope that helps! 🙂
Thank you for sharing your knowledge!! This was so helpful!
Question for you- I got to say 6 and my starter did almost double and was very bubbly…. But then on day 7, it didn’t rise much at all… I thought it could be the switch to 100% AP flour, so I went back to 50g of whole wheat and 50g of AP flour and it doubled again and looks great!
So I’m wondering, should I just switch to AP flour and give it time to get used to it and perk up? Or should I keep feeding it a mix?
Thanks so much!!!
Hi Therese and Elizabeth,
I’m in that same boat today. Not sure what to do on my day 8, as it didn’t grow at all from day 7. How did it go for you? Do you have any recommendation?
Thank you!
Hi there, sometimes it will take a few more days which is normal, however, I’ve noticed that which flour you use makes a huge difference. Every time I feed my starter with Bob’s red mill organic, unbleached all-purpose, it doesn’t rise at all! I would recommend trying a new flour in a few days if it doesn’t start to grow reliably.
All the best,
Elizabeth
Hey Elizabeth! I am on day 2, what do I do with the rest of the sourdough starter that’s not used from the original day 1 jar since we only use 70grams of it?