I’m so excited that you want to start your own sourdough journey! Below I have detailed instructions on how to start your own sourdough starter. I’ve broken it down by days, and made it as simple as possible. If you would like to read about the benefits of sourdough, you can click here to visit my Why page to learn more.
This is a 7 day process. You CAN do this!
Let’s get started!
If you Prefer video:
What you need to get started:
½ cup unbleached wheat flour (do not use enriched, and I always recommend organic)
¼ cup filtered water
Glass mason jar
Additional ½ cup flour and ¼ cup water per day for maintaining your starter
Day 1:
Note: I started my starter in the evening, but any part of the day is fine, just pay attention to the hours.
Add ½ cup flour and ¼ cup water to your jar. Mix thoroughly with wooden spoon or rubber spatula to scrap down sides of the jar. (Avoid using metal utensils because it can react with the natural yeast and bacteria you are trying to grow) You may need to add 1T more water so the flour is completely mixed together. Cover jar with tea towel and rubber band. Leave jar on counter for 24 hours at room temperature.
*TIP: keep in a place within your home that stays warm. Ideally between 68-75 degrees. Sourdough thrives in a warm environment!
Day 2:
Today we are going to discard (completely throw away) ½ of the mixture. Sounds wasteful, but we need to give our mixture a fresh start. So throw it away and don’t think of it again. Next we are going to do what we did yesterday. Add ½ cup flour and ¼ cup water to your jar. (You shouldn’t need to add more water, but if you do, add 1 tsp at a time) Mix thoroughly and cover with towel and rubber band. Today I’d like you to mark the top of your mixture on the jar. Mark with either a rubber band around your jar, or a colored piece of tape. We’ll check your jar for any potential bubbles and growth tomorrow. Again, Rest on the counter in warm area for another 24 hours.
Day 3:
Do you see any bubbles? Has your starter climbed up the jar and grown at all? If not, no worries. You may see this tomorrow. Today we are going to discard half of the mixture again. Add ½ cup flour and ¼ cup water to your jar. Mix well. Cover with towel, mark your jar at the top of where your mixture starts. Rest in warm area for another 24 hours.
Day 4:
Hopefully you see some happy little bubbles and growth today. Discard half of your starter, and add ½ cup flour and ¼ cup water. Mix well. Cover, mark your jar, and rest for 12 hours. (NOTE: Now we are going to start feeding every 12 hours!)
Day 5:
**if you don’t see any bubbles or growth, you can try to leave your starter alone for an additional 24 hours. If you see growth, start at day 5. If you see no growth, sadly you may need to completely start over**
Feeding 1: Discard half of your starter and add ½ cup flour and ¼ cup water. Mix well. Cover. Mark your jar. Rest for 12 hours.
Feeding 2: Discard half your starter. Add ½ flour and ¼ cup water. Mix well. Cover. Mark your jar. Rest for 12 hours.
*TIP: if your starter has grown, you have enough activity to use the discard in a single pancake recipe. Below I have this quick recipe for a single pancake that will make you one delicious snack today! This way you won’t feel so wasteful with that discard, and your belly will thank you 🙂
Day 6:
Feeding 1: You may be smelling a delicious, sour, yeasty scented starter now. And hopefully you are seeing a lot of bubbles and growth happening! Get excited, you’re getting so close! This is your last day to discard half of your mixture (yay!). Add ½ cup flour and ¼ cup water. Cover. Mark your jar. Rest for 12 hours. (go ahead and make another delicious pancake with your discard)
Feeding 2: Discard half your starter for the final time! Add ½ cup flour, ¼ cup water. Mix well. Cover. Mark your jar. Rest for 12 hours.
Day 7:
Congratulations! You have made it to mature starter status! Seriously, I hope you’re celebrating, because you have an exciting future of delicious baking ahead of you!! Give your starter another feeding. No need to discard. You’re ready to bake!
Sourdough Discard Pancake:
- sourdough discard
- 1 egg
- 1 T melted coconut oil or butter
- dash vanilla
- pinch of baking soda
Mix well. Cook in coconut oil on preheated skillet or griddle. Enjoy!
TIP’s:
• When using your starter in a recipe, make sure you don’t use all of your starter up. Remember to keep some starter in the bottom of your jar to feed again and maintain. If you use it all up in a recipe, you obviously won’t have any left to keep using, and you would have to start all over. Let’s not make that mistake, ok??!! You have been warned!!
•Moving forward, you may feed your starter the same way you have been. But I highly recommend purchasing a kitchen scale. Sourdough thrives with precision from here on out. And most recipes call for measurements in grams. I feed my starter equal parts flour and water (for the record, that’s 100% hydration) a typical feeding for my starter is 50 grams flour, 50 grams water. Below I linked two scales that I highly recommend. I have both scales, and both perform the same.
•I also recommend moving your starter into a half gallon mason jar, or a larger bowl. This allows your starter to grow without having to worry about overflow from your jar. And when a recipe calls for a whole cup of active starter, a half gallon jar is plenty to build up and still leave some starter in the bottom to maintain.
•When recipes say “active starter” this means that your starter has been fed at least 3 feedings, and is active and bubbly enough to bake with.
•When recipes say “unfed” starter, this is starter that has not been recently fed, or just pulled from the fridge. You can not bake bread with unfed starter. Your starter needs to be active.
You have your own starter, now what?
Option 1: Keep your starter in the fridge until you’re ready to bake. But DO NOT put your starter in the fridge right after you feed it. Give it time to ferment and break down the flour for a few hours before adding to the fridge. The fridge puts your starter on “hold”. You may remove your starter a few days prior to when you want to bake. You will feed equal parts flour and water every 12 hours. I recommend at least 3 feedings before attempting to bake with your starter. This ensures an active starter that will be strong enough to rise your bread. Promise me that you will not put your starter in the fridge, and leave it there so long it gets shuffled to the back and it feels like a chore to take it back out and start again. Remember it takes a minute or two to feed morning and evening, it’s so SIMPLE! So promise yourself you will not let this happen!
Option 2: Keep your starter on the counter and feed it every 12 hours. This option allows you to bake on demand and when you need. However, since you will continue to feed it twice a day, you will have a lot of active starter that you need to use. It can add up quickly. This is the option I use because I bake with my starter almost daily. I have converted all my conventional yeast recipes into sourdough, so it’s not hard to use my starter daily. I maintain feedings with 50 grams flour, 50 grams water. I pay attention to what recipe I want to make next. If it requires a full cup of starter, I may feed my starter 100 grams flour and 100 grams water. That way I have some starter still left over.
I hope this gives you a detailed overview of moving forward. I’m here to help and answer any questions you have.
If you begin your journey, I would love to hear and cheer you on!
Stay tuned because I have many many delicious sourdough recipes coming that your whole family will love.
Pin for Later:
Links:
The following are affiliate links to my amazon shop.
Sourdough Starter from Cultures for Health : if you’re impatient and prefer to purchase your own Sourdough Starter
Kitchen Scale : (Less expensive option, I still use and love)
Kitchen Scale : (This is my newest scale and love it too)
Best place to buy a gallon size mason jar? Wide mouth? Extra wide mouth?
Walmart has great prices on mason jars. But I actually found the BEST jar for sourdough at IKEA a few weeks ago. It’s 7.5 inches tall with a 5 inch opening at the top. You can choose from a variety of lids to go with it. It’s probably around a gallon size jar. But that large mouth opening is key for reaching in with a cup and scooping sourdough out. Highly recommend!
Do you ever change jars? I’m getting a little worried about the condition of this starter jar.
Yes, you can change your jar anytime. Some change it weekly, I change mine every few weeks and it’s fine. Just gets a little crusty after a while.
On what day can I give the discard to a friend to start their own starter? Do they just pick up where I left off if say I give them the discard on day 3?
I don’t recommend sharing a starter until it’s mature. I’d wait a few more days until it starts to grow and become active. Then you can share it 🙂
Hi,
I reached my 7th day and my starter was mature and I discarded and fed it 1/2 flour and 1/4 of water will it still work?
Yay, congrats on a mature starter! From here on out you can feed it using equal measurements flour and water with a kitchen scale. And you are ready to start baking!
Hello, I’ve successfully made sour dough starter, I placed it in the fridge for 7 days
I pulled it out and feed it 2times,, it really smells sour, is it supposed to?
Thanks Jody
Hi! Love that you made a starter! It can smell sour after coming out of the fridge. I recommend discarding half or even 3/4 of it and giving it a big feeding and it will come back strong and not smell AS sour.
In the video you use 1/2 cup of flour and 1/4 cup of water, but when I read the directions it says to use equal parts flour and water, so I’m a little confused.
Hi Kim. When starting your sourdough starter and BEFORE it’s “mature status” I say to feed it 1/2 cup flour and 1/4 cup water. Then after it’s mature you will feed it equal parts flour and water with a scale. If you’d prefer, you may use a scale starting on day one and measure out equal parts flour and water each day and continue with the blogs directions with discards. Hope this is more clear for you.
I am not sure if the glass kat is to be tightly covered or have a loose cover or cloth ?
Lightly covered. I just lay plastic wrap over the top. I keep mine on the counter, if you put yours in the fridge you should cover it tightly.
Can this be made with all purpose flour?
Yes, organic all purpose flour is what I used to make mine
Hello!
Question, have you ever used a bread machine to make your sourdough bread?!
Thank you!
No, I never have. Sourdough operates a little differently, therefore I don’t fine a bread machine necessary. There may be some recipes out there for you if you’d like to try. I actually got rid of my bread machine once I made the switch to sourdough. Never gone back!
My starter is on day 7 but it’s not full of bubbles. There are some and small growth. What do I do
Give it 24 hours between the next feeding. It may need some time still. And keep in the warmest place in your house
I what do you mean by on day 5 and 6 when you say feeding 1 and feeding 2?
I used whole wheat flour like the recipe states- I’ve gone through the 7 days and got some rising mostly on day 2 and very minimal the remaining days, just bubbles. It doesn’t smell sour or has passed the water test. Is it no good?
Hi! The recipe states unbleached wheat flour. Whole wheat is different. While you can used whole wheat, you just need to adjust the water ratio and add more because whole wheat absorbs more water. You have Two options: First, If you’re determined and you still see bubbles you can switch flours at this point and try using an unbleached bread flour (King Arther is great because it yields some barley flour which is great for a starter) Continue feeding/discarding twice per day. And try using a scale in grams for accurate measurements. Discard 80% each time (yes 80%) and The amount of flour in grams added, is the amount in water you will add too. Continue this until you see a bubbly growing starter. Option two: Completely start over. This is common so don’t be discouraged. You have more of an understanding second time around so it should work for you! Hope you find this helpful 🙂
Love this! This is the first place I could find that the steps were clear to understand and really easy to follow. Great job explaining this and thank you!
Yay! So glad to hear.
Hi! I followed your instructions, I had bubbles and growth and I did the float test On day 7 and it sunk 🙁 I fed it and going to see how it is tmw and try it again but do I have to start over?
Thank you!
Sourdough starters can take a few more days to peek. Keep discarding and feeding a few more days. As long as there are bubbles and its growing that’s good! Don’t start over. Keep going and try again in a few more days
HI I have a few bubbles on the sides but a lot of bubbles on top. Is it still good?
sounds perfect–keep going!
Can I use unbleached bread flour or does it have to be all-purpose?
Yes, you can use bread flour!
Hey! Quick question for clarification: so after my starter has reached mature status, I don’t have to discard any of it, right?
Thank you for all of the tips, I’m so excited to make some sourdough bread!
Correct–no need for discarding after it’s mature. Congratulations and happy baking!
Hi! I am going to attempt this starter. My issue is that my work schedule very odd, and I homeschool 2 littles along with different activities they participate in during the week. Maintaining a strict 12/24 hour feeding schedule may prove difficult. If I happen to be within an hour or two of that window, will that be ok?
Absolutely! You can allow several hour windows on each side. It’s not strict to exact timing at all! Give it a go–no better time than the present to start 🙂
If you store the starter in the fridge for a few days, when you take it out do you need to wait until it is room temperature to start feeding it prior to baking?
You do not, just feed as normal. It will all come to room temp fairly quickly after its fed.
Hi! I’m on day 4 and my starter is doing great! However, it is very sticky and quite a challenge to get any out in order to discard. Is this normal? I guess I expected it to be more like a thick liquid than so sticky. Thanks for your help. I can’t wait to try baking!
yes, it should be thick and sticky. Sounds like you’re doing it right, especially if you’re seeing growth!
Can you freeze mature sour dough starter?
Yes, but you have to dehydrate it first.
I’m so excited. I just made my first starter and it looks great. I’m on day 7 and just fed my starter. How long do I have to wait to bake after feeding?
Yay~congrats! Depends on the temp of your home but usually around 4-6 hours your starter should peak and you can use it to bake with. Happy Baking!
Hello! I was wondering how long you should wait to use your active starter after feeding?
It depends on the temp of your home and the ratio to which you’re feeding your starter. But it usually takes between 4-6 hours, again, unless it’s a big feeding in which case it would take longer and maybe closer to 9 or 10 hours. You can always try the float test to see if it’s ready to bake. Simply place a small spoonful of starter into a cup of water and if it floats, then it’s active and ready to bake. Hope this is helpful
I’m on day 4 and all is well. If I plan to make bread after the starter is mature, do I need to be feeding with more than the 1/2 cup flour & 1/4 cup water? I want to be able to do o use it and still have some left to feed & and use. I looked a a lot of step-by-step directions, but yours was explained the best & the easiest to follow. Thank you!
Hi! Yes, you can increase the feeding to a cup of flour which equals about 150g flour. Then feed it equal parts in grams with water. I recommend using a kitchen scale to get more accurate measurements after you have gotten to mature status. You could even use a kitchen scale now in the last half of your “how to make a starter” journey. Each day the directions tell you to feed your starter 1/2 cup flour and 1/4 cup water, you can use a scale and feed it equal parts flour and water in grams instead. You don’t have to, especially if what you’re doing is working. Just giving another option that would work too because moving forward after you have gained maturity, you will use a kitchen scale to begin baking. I hope this is helpful.
Just wondering if you have a tutorial on making a loaf of sourdough bread?
I’m new to this and it’s day 6 of making my starter. It’s not increasing in volume but is bubbly. Is that ok? How much flour & water ratio should I be using to feed if I plan to make bread soon?
If your jar is large in size, that could be why you aren’t able to measure growth well. You can always discard 50-80% then give it a large feeding of 100-150grams flour and water. You should see growth then. Typically a bread recipe requires between 50-200 grams starter. So when you feed your starter just do the math and feed your starter a similar feeding in grams as the recipe calls for. Then you will be sure you have enough left over as well for another feeding.
I can be found on instagram @SimpleisGourmet and have a few videos posted to my highlights on how I make my bread.
Thank you so much! This is day 7 but I won’t be home to feed tonight or tomorrow morning. I’m hoping my starter is ok. My husband is a minister and we travel, so it’s hard to plan a perfect time!
When you throw away half, do you measure it or just eyeball it?
Eyeball it. Close to half will be just fine.
I just want to say this was the easiest and most detailed recipe to follow. Your step by step plan each day was so easy and understanding for a new beginner like me. I made my first successful starter using your recipe. So thank you! I highly recommend to everyone that wants to start baking.
WOW! Thank you so much Angela! I’m so happy to hear this–you’re so sweet. And yay for a successful starter! Welcome to your sourdough journey! Happy baking!!
Hello! Just reached mature stage on my starter. However, on day three I noticed great growth, almost doubling in size. Then the remainder of the days the starter still grew, but just slightly. I am wondering if this is okay or if I need to start over? Thanks!
Keep going! No need to start over. It’s just the eb and flow of a beginner starter. You can give it a higher portion feeding of flour and water and you may see more growth.
After the 7 days and you feed it do you still take 1/2 out or just feed it?you feed it twice or once after the 7 days?
Keep taking 1/2 out, but don’t throw it away. Use it in sourdough discard recipes. If you leave your starter on the counter you need to feed it twice a day.
I started a sourdough starter over a month ago and all is well. I put it in the frig last night and notice it dropped, is this normal? Also, do I put a tight lid over it in the frig? I have had the starter drop after it rose on the counter before, is this normal and if not what do I do to remedy it? Thank you for your great instructions.
Yes it will drop in the fridge. Totally normal. Tightly cover when it’s in the fridge and then pull it out and feed as normal and it will rise and bounce right back.
I am on day 4 of my starter. It is progressing nicely, however, the top hardens during the night. Is this normal?
Try covering it with a lid instead, this should prevent it from drying out
I’m going to start with your instructions today – I used to make bread in a bread machine but my sourdough was never sour enough- I am hoping this time, with just basics, it will be better. Thanks
Betty
Hi I have tried multiple times to do a starter and failed. Thanks to you I have finally got am active started. May I ask how you have converted recipes over to sour dough?
Yay, this is wonderful news! I’m excited for you too! Welcome to the wonderful world of sourdough. I have lots of sourdough recipes on my website that are simple and easy to follow. I hope you give them a try 🙂
I have started the sour dough starter journey and forgot to discard half a n the fourth day. I just fed 1/2 c flour and 1/4 c water. Do I need the start over?
Disregard my question. I started over. Thank you for the step by step recipe. I can’t wait to use your sour dough recipes.
If you forget next time, or anyone else reading with this same question, don’t worry about it. Just keep going 🙂
I like this video, but unclear why we are throwing away the discard the first few days