Guide to creating and maintaining a sourdough starter
With proper maintenance and a little attention, a sourdough starter can last indefinitely and produce countless healthy and tasty loaves of bread.
Sourdough starter is a culture containing a stable mixture of wild yeasts and lactic acid bacteria. The most common species are Lactobacillus, Leuconostoc, and Weissella, in addition to yeasts such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Candida. It is maintained indefinitely by feeding it with fresh flour and water, a process called refreshing, and it is what initiates the fermentation of the bread dough, giving the bread its rise and flavor.
It only takes a few days to create a new sourdough starter. Keeping the mixture at around 26°C (80°F) and with high hydration (100% water to flour) helps it ferment quickly. Using some wholemeal rye flour speeds up the process, and all-purpose white flour or high-protein bread flour will also work.
When feeding, part of the mixture is discarded and fresh flour and water are added. If fed twice a day, at 12-hour intervals, a 1:5:5 ratio produces a strong and healthy sourdough starter: 20% remaining mature starter, 100% water, and 100% flour (a mixture of wholemeal rye and white flour). A small amount must be discarded each time; otherwise, the mixture becomes too thick and excessively acidic. To feed it once a day, leave less starter in the jar.
A sourdough starter is mature when it has fermented for several hours and is ready to use. Typical signs include a rise, bubbles on the surface and sides, a tangy aroma, and a looser consistency. In a firm starter, the top dome begins to collapse and crack. A starter that hasn't been fed for a while is essentially considered discarded.
If you're going to stop baking, your sourdough starter can be stored in the refrigerator for up to one to three weeks, dried out for months, or completely dehydrated and preserved for years in an airtight container. For a short vacation, up to three weeks, the refrigerator is the best option. To revive it, take it out and let it come to room temperature, feed it twice a day for two days, and after that time, it should be strong and ready to bake. Leftover starter can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two weeks and used in pancakes, waffles, or banana bread.
