Feeding Your Sourdough Starter

It can be confusing and technical to figure out how to take care of your sourdough starter so I’m here to make it as simple as possible!

I leave my starter on my counter because I use it more than once a week so I feed it every day, If you want to use it just once a week leave it in the fridge and feed it once a week.

For a 9 hour rise (this is what I usually do): This method is one I do when I want to feed my starter at night and then start baking in the morning.

30 grams of discard

125 (150 for slower rise) grams of unbleached flour

125 (150 for slower rise) grams of water

Mix that together well and leave in a jar or container with a lid. You want a big container because it will rise so much! Try and keep in a warm place to help it rise well.

For a 4 hour rise (I use this when I’m not baking the next day so I do a small feeding as to not waste lots of starter):

This method is one using ratios instead of measurements so it’s really easy to figure out

1 part discard

1 part unbleached flour

1 part water

Mix that together well and leave in a jar or container with a lid. Try and keep in a warm place to help it rise well.

For keeping it in the fridge: This is if you only want to use your starter about once a week.

This one can be slightly confusing so try it a few times to figure out what works for you.

To feed this before it goes into the fridge, follow this recipe:

14 grams discard

14 grams flour

14 grams water

Mix well and leave in a jar with a lid and stick it in the fridge.

Then when you want to make bread with it, take it out of the fridge. There might be liquid on the top, this is called hooch. For a more sour loaf, dump all the liquid into the bowl you’re feeding your starter for bread in. For a slightly sour loaf, stir that liquid into the cold starter. For a not sour loaf, dump all that liquid in the sink.

Then you are going to take 30 grams of your cold starter and follow the 9 hour rise recipe and use that starter to make bread, leaving it out of the fridge. Then with the rest of the starter, follow the above recipe and stick it back in the fridge.