Sourdough Starter and Basic 3 (or 4) Ingredient Sourdough Bread Recipe - Practical Stewardship (2024)

FAQs

What are the three ingredients in real sourdough bread? ›

Basic sourdough has only three ingredients: flour, water and salt. As a fermented food, it requires a good starter, which is also made from flour and water. In theory, with so few ingredients and a basic recipe, you should be able to turn out a reasonable loaf every time.

Over the years, I've found keeping the mixture warm at around 80°F (26°C), and high hydration (100% water to flour in baker's percentages) helps get things started. In addition, while not mandatory, using certain flour also helps increase the chances a starter will take hold quickly (see below).

Typical feeding ratios are 1:2:2 or 1:3:3 (old sourdough: fresh flour: water). However, even extreme ratios like 1:50:50 would still work. In that case, the freshly fed sourdough would just require more or much more time to grow and reach its peak, as judged by the maximum volume increase in the jar (at least doubled).

A 1:2:2 feeding ratio would consist of one part existing starter, two parts flour and two parts water. For example, if you have 30g of existing starter, you would feed it 60g of flour and 60g of flour. The most common feeding ratios for daily maintenance are 1:1:1 or 1:2:2.

Other natural ingredients can be added but genuine sourdough bread making does not involve the use of baker's yeast, chemical raising agents, so-called processing aids or other additives.

The signature sourdough flavor comes from a combination of lactic and acetic acids, created as the dough rises and ferments.

By creating a sourdough starter, you are nurturing a colony of bacteria. Those bacteria have an ideal temperature to thrive in – that's between 20 and 24 Centrigrade, 70 and 75 Farenheit. The closer you can keep your sourdough starter to this temperature, the quicker and easier building it up will be.

Compared to whole wheat flour, rye flour is said to be the most nutrient- and amylase-dense option for a sourdough starter. Overall, it has a lower gluten protein content than wheat flour, which means it produces slack, sticky, and dense doughs.

Most commonly, the issue here has to do with temperature (which is very important). If your sourdough starter is kept at a low temp, even 70°F (21°C), it will slow fermentation activity and appear to be sluggish, taking longer to rise and progress through the typical signs of fermentation. The solution: keep it warm.

The more starter you use, the faster your dough will ferment - resulting in a less sour loaf. Of course the amount of starter is actually a ratio in relation to the flour - so 50g of starter to 500g of flour will ferment at a much slower rate than 200g of starter to 500g of flour.

Do you have to discard sourdough starter every time you feed it? ›

It would be best if you discarded some portion of your starter each time you feed it unless you want to continue to let it grow. Eventually, you need to discard the used “food” (flour and water) that's been used to sustain your starter during the last fermentation period.

*If making sourdough is new for you, do not be discouraged if you starter takes longer to get active than mine – stick with it, it will happen! *Tap water is usually fine, if you are not sure, use boiled and cooled water, you can use it at room temperature or cool; do not use distilled water.

How often do you change or clean your sourdough starter container? Use the same jar daily and keep it as clean as possible. During a feeding, discard part of your starter per usual and then scrape down as much residual starter as possible, reincorporating it back into the mixture.

DAY 2: Give the starter a stir to help incorporate a little air. Cover the jar and let it rest for another 24 hours in a warm spot. DAYS 3-7: Every 24 hours, discard all but 2 tablespoons of the starter and feed it with ½ cup fresh flour and ¼ cup water.

Premature discarding and overfeeding will weaken your starter and elongate the process. Don't discard and re-feed a weak starter before it shows increasing bubble activity or height from the previous feeding. If you don't see more bubbles or a faster rise each day, skip a feeding, and give it more time.

Sourdough relies on a mix of wild yeast and lactic acid bacteria, rather than baker's yeast, to leaven the dough. It's richer in nutrients, less likely to spike your blood sugar, contains lower amounts of gluten, and is generally easier to digest than bread made with baker's yeast.

Sourdough baking requires minimal equipment and simple ingredients – flour, salt, and water – but invites practice. Purism is a part of the appeal.

Can I Buy True Sourdough Bread. Some bakeries allow for the rising time needed to make true sourdough bread. Because of the time it takes, prices will be significantly higher than homemade.

Customers can find square and round loaves for sale online and in-store. For consumers concerned about artificial ingredients in food, Aldi's sourdough is a solid choice. Per the label, this bread consists of just three main ingredients, which are salt, water, and flour.