Sourdough Starter Making Tutorial
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What is a Sourdough Starter? What is it for?
A sourdough starter, or levain, is a fermented mix of flour and water that grows wild yeast and bacteria. It helps naturally leaven bread, making it more flavorful, digestible, and nutritious. Sourdough can replace commercial yeast in most bread recipes, from crusty loaves to soft sandwich bread and pastries.
To make sourdough from scratch, you'll need:
- Purified water (no chlorine)
- Whole wheat flour
- Ayerphalo® Sourdough Starter Jar Kit
- Digital scale
Easy Steps to Create Your Sourdough Starter
Creating a sourdough starter typically takes about 5-7 days. It's very simple and requires only 1-3 minutes of work per day. For consistency, feed your sourdough starter with water and flour at approximately the same time every day. The biggest factor affecting your starter's activity is room temperature; the ideal range is 72-82°F (22-28°C). For clarity, please refer to our walkthrough video and the step-by-step sourdough making tutorial in the included recipe book.
DAY 1:
1. Mix 100g of purified water (no chlorine) with 100g of whole wheat flour in your Ayerphalo® Sourdough Starter Jar.
2. Put on the cloth cover and place it away from direct sunlight.
3. Mark the feeding time and height of the mixture with the elastic band.
DAY 2:
1. Discard half of the mixture.
2. Add 100g of water and 100g of whole wheat flour to the remaining mixture.
3. Put on the cloth cover, place away from direct sunlight, and mark the time and height with the band.
4. Tiny bubbles may appear on the surface, indicating fermentation. If you don't see bubbles, don’t worry, just stick to the plan.
DAYS 3-7:
1. Each day, discard half of the mixture and feed with 100g of water and 100g of whole wheat flour.
2. Put on the cloth cover, place away from direct sunlight, and mark the time and height with the band.
3. Starting on Day 4, feed the starter twice a day, approximately 12 hours apart.
Note:
Signs of success in making a sourdough starter include if the sourdough starter doubles in size and develops many air holes 4-8 hours after feeding, starting on Day 7. When these signs are evident, your starter is ready for baking. For visual reference, you can view pictures of specific daily variations in the included recipe book to help you judge your progress.
How to Maintain Your Sourdough Starter
Once your sourdough starter is made, maintaining it depends on how often you bake.
Daily or Every Other Day Baking:
Keep the starter at room temperature, away from direct light.
Feed it once a day to keep it active and ready for baking.
Infrequent Baking:
Replace the cloth cover with the silicone lid and place the starter in the refrigerator about 2 hours after feeding.At low temperatures, the starter will become less active and go to sleep.Feed it every 3-5 days to keep it active.
For more frequently asked questions and answers about sourdough, check out pages 9 through 10 of the included recipe book.
If you have any questions about sourdough starter making, maintenance, or baking, feel free to REACH OUT. Our professional team will solve your problem immediately.