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Home » Recipes » Cooking Tips and Basic Techniques

Simple Sourdough Starter

Published: Jun 15, 2024 by Marye

This homemade sourdough starter is one of the best you'll ever try. It becomes active without the use of commercial yeast and develops a sharp, tangy flavor that is the hallmark of good sourdough bread.
Total time for the recipe to be finished.Total Time 1 day day
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sourdough starter
A jar of sourdough starter with title text overlay for Pinterest.

Imagine making your own sourdough bread, pancakes, and biscuits with a starter that's simple to create and maintain. With this easy sourdough starter recipe, you'll have a tangy, bubbly starter ready in just a week.

Perfect for busy women who want homemade sourdough without the hassle, this recipe uses minimal ingredients and provides consistent results.

Ready to get started?

Sourdough starter in a canning jar.
Table of Contents
  • 🗝️ Key takeaways
  • 🧾 Ingredients
  • 🔪 Instructions
  • 🍴 Equipment
  • 🥫 How to store leftovers
  • Marye's Tip
  • 💭 Things to know
  • 👩‍🍳 FAQs
  • 📚 Related recipes
  • 📞 The last word
  • 📖 Recipe
  • 💬 Comments

Save this recipe by clicking on the ❤️ heart on the right-hand side of the screen or in the recipe card.

🗝️ Key takeaways

  • Welcome to your new hobby: This sourdough starter is your gateway to delicious homemade sourdough bread, pancakes, biscuits, and more. It's simple, requires minimal ingredients, and delivers that perfect tangy flavor that makes sourdough so irresistible.
  • So many uses: Use your sourdough starter to make fresh bread for breakfast, brunch, or dinner. It's perfect for weekend baking projects or when you want to impress guests with homemade goodies.
  • Be an expert: You'll discover how to cultivate a healthy sourdough starter from scratch, learn about the importance of wild yeast, and understand how to maintain and feed your starter for consistent results.

🧾 Ingredients

This is an overview of the ingredients. You'll find the full measurements and instructions in the green recipe card (printable) at the bottom of the page.

Labeled ingredients for sourdough starter.

🔪 Instructions

Sourdough starter recipes are a dime a dozen. I have tried so many versions over the years that I have lost track. Some were good, some were OK and some were just blah.

To me, sourdough needs to have a particular tang to it. A good starter has a tart, sour tang to it that's hard to explain — but once you taste it, you'll never forget it.

This is my very favorite sourdough starter. You can use it for biscuits, bread, pancakes, or anything else you use sourdough in.

sourdough starter ingredients|restlesschipotle.com

The cheesecloth allows the tiny wild yeast spores to fall into the slurry you are going to make with the water and the rye.

The rye gives the wild yeast something to eat. If you use white flour at this point, the wild yeast will not have enough to eat.

The spring water ensures that there is no chlorine to kill the good bacteria and yeast.

sourdough starter usess spring water|restlesschipotle.com

You are going to commit to this starter for a week. You can't start your sourdough starter and then go out of town, OK?

You'll need a quart jar and a screw-on ring but not a top.

Remember, you're going to use the cheesecloth so the starter gets plenty of air.

You might want to keep a small dish under the jar of starter. Mine almost always bubbles over and makes a mess.

use cheesecloth to cover the sourdough starter|restlesschipotle.com

Many sourdough starters tell you to add yeast in the beginning. If you follow the instructions carefully you won't need to add yeast to the starter, it will become active — light and bubbly — on it's own.

This is a great homeschool project — I've pulled science, history, cooking, and math out of this stuff!

active sourdough starter|restlesschipotle.com

🤫 Cook's secrets -

Don't waste the starter you throw out - the discard. Use it in pancakes, waffles, biscuits, quick breads, and all sorts of baked goods!

🍴 Equipment

  1. 1 quart size canning jar or container
  2. canning jar ring
  3. cheesecloth
  4. measuring spoons and cups

🥫 How to store leftovers

Once your starter is established, store it in the refrigerator. Feed it once a week to keep it active.

If you plan to use it regularly, keep it at room temperature and feed it daily.

Closeup of a spoon covered in sourdough starter.

Marye's Tip

There are three things that you must not change —

  • Always start with rye flour.
  • Always use non-chlorinated bottled spring water.
  • Always keep it in a warm spot with cheesecloth over the top.

💭 Things to know

  • Your starter will take about a week to become active and bubbly.
  • Be patient and consistent with feeding your starter for the best results.
  • If your starter develops a dark liquid on top, don't worry. Just stir it back in and continue feeding unless it begins to smell foul.

👩‍🍳 FAQs

Have other questions? Ask me in the comments!

Can I use white flour instead of rye?

No, it's essential to start with rye flour as it provides the nutrients needed for the wild yeast.

What if my starter smells bad?

A sour smell is normal, but if it smells off or moldy, discard it and start over.

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    How to Store Bread & Bread Dough
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  • Sliced loaf of sourbread with crispy crust.
    Beginner's No Knead Sourdough Bread

📞 The last word

Beware! Once you start working with sourdough starter it can quickly become addictive!

If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need.

If you love this recipe please comment below and give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

📖 Recipe

sourdough starter

Sourdough Starter

4 from 1 vote
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This homemade sourdough starter is one of the best you'll ever try. It becomes active without the use of commercial yeast and develops a sharp, tangy flavor that is the hallmark of good sourdough bread.
Prep Time: 1 day day
Total Time: 1 day day
Calories:
Author:Marye Audet-White

Ingredients

Day One

  • 1 cup rye flour
  • ½ cup springwater

Days Two through Seven

  • 1 cup bread flour
  • ½ cup spring water

Instructions

Day One

  • Put the rye flour into a clean, sterile quart jar.
  • Add the water and mix until all of the flour is incorporated.
  • Place a cheesecloth square over the top and screw on the ring to hold it in place.
  • Place in a warm spot.

Days Two through Four

  • Remove ½ cup of the starter and throw he rest of it out.
  • Pour it back into the jar.
  • Add 1 cup of bread flour and ½ cup spring water and mix thoroughly.
  • Replace the cheesecloth and ring and put in a warm place.
  • By day three you should start to see some bubbles and activity.

Days Four through Seven

  • Remove ½ cup of the starter and throw the rest of it out.
  • Pour it back into the jar.
  • Add 1 cup bread flour and ½ cup spring water. Do this TWICE a day, as close to 12 hours apart as possible.
  • By day 7 your starter should have a pleasant, sour tang and double in size within 12 hours.

Maintain Your Starter

  • Always keep ½ cup starter and make your bread with the rest. You can either keep it in the refrigerator or feed it (1 cup flour and ½ cup spring water) at lease once a day. It tends to keep better if you keep it out and feed it. You don't have to throw all of that starter away - if you happen to know other bread bakers feel free to share.

Notes

Prep time is 7 days.

Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.

First published April 28, 2014. last updated June 15, 2024 for editorial improvements.

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  • A finished loaf of bread sliced on a bread board.
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About Marye

Meet Marye Audet, a wizard in the kitchen and a storyteller at heart. Marye is like your eccentric but fun aunt who knows all the secret recipes and isn't afraid to spill them.

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    4 from 1 vote

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    Love it? Give it 5 stars!




  1. Shirley Forsberg says

    July 23, 2024 at 4:52 pm

    Can Sourdough starter be substituted for yeast taking into account the elongated rising times?

    Reply
    • Marye says

      July 23, 2024 at 4:55 pm

      yes but I don't recommend it. If you substitute sour dough for yeast in a regular bread recipe you'll need to also figure in the extra liquid and flour that's in the starter and this can through your ratios way off. Best to stick with yeast for yeast breads and sour dough for sour dough recipes.

      Reply
  2. Teresa Slominski says

    March 31, 2024 at 12:21 pm

    4 stars
    Hello, do I use the rye flour only in the beginning? Throughout the rest of your instructions I see you mentioned bread flour. If I started with unbleached white flour, can I feed my starter with rye flour? Is it the rye that gives it that strong wonderful tang?

    Reply
    • Marye says

      March 31, 2024 at 12:30 pm

      Yes that is correct. Just in the very beginning.

      Reply
  3. Linda G Hensley says

    June 01, 2022 at 11:55 am

    Hi Marye. It's me again. I don't happen to have any cheesecloth right now. Can I use the metal lid with holes punched in it? What do ya think??

    Reply
    • Marye says

      June 03, 2022 at 11:44 pm

      No it needs the cheesecloth so the wild yeast can settle in.

      Reply
  4. Sandy R says

    November 11, 2021 at 11:38 am

    Hey Mary, what kind of mixer do you use and where did you get it?
    Also if you use all you starter for bread there’s not any left to keep the starter going? Did I miss something?

    Reply
    • Marye says

      November 11, 2021 at 6:41 pm

      I have 2 - a kitchen aid for desserts and a bosch universal for bread. You use just one cup. https://www.restlesschipotle.com/no-knead-sourdough-bread/

      Reply
  5. Sandy says

    November 08, 2021 at 11:17 am

    Thank you Mary I think it may be my mixer also not mixing well. . I have a kitchen axe 23 years old! You have a Bosch where do I get one?

    Reply
  6. S andy says

    November 08, 2021 at 9:14 am

    Good morning Mary, my starter turned out great my question is if I don’t use it every week do I still take out 1/2 a cup and feed it or can I feed all of it?
    Also I tried to make the sour dough bread twice and it didn’t rise my sponge came out great can you tell me what went wrong?

    Reply
    • Marye says

      November 08, 2021 at 9:34 am

      You need to remove half a cup always. It keeps it fresh. As far as the dough not rising - usually it's because the room is too cold OR you didn't give it long enough. Sour dough is finicky and it can take 4 hours or more for the first rise and sometimes that long for the second. Other possibilities are : water was too warm (keep it under 110F), you added too much salt, you added too much sugar...

      Reply
  7. Sandy says

    October 21, 2021 at 12:46 pm

    Thank you Mary I will do that.

    Reply
  8. Sandy says

    October 21, 2021 at 10:12 am

    Sorry Mary, it’s not a liquid consistency it’s more solid. Hope I explained it. Better.

    Reply
    • Marye says

      October 21, 2021 at 11:08 am

      Let it go and see how it does. It should still rise and it may get more liquid as time passes. It sounds like maybe you didn't lightly scoop the flour into the cup when measuring?

      Reply
  9. Gail says

    January 22, 2016 at 11:11 am

    Wow, I have made many of your recipes. I have been using Sourdough since the 80-s
    I. H ave been looking at books and videos as I a m in love with the process...I kept thinking "ASK MARY"
    I have become ill, but today is the day...you sent your usual blog info, but I am dealing with me, but passion is still sourdough.....I knew you would have - the starter for me-
    I am so excited....starting your Sourdough Starter....Today-:)

    Thank you for all you share. take care

    Reply
    • Patricia G. says

      July 23, 2016 at 11:23 pm

      I was more ill than I knew because I didn't even get to read your s.d. starter that morning; I just opened your email and was so happy to see your s.d. info with starter directions. I just knew you had one. For so long I tried to buy your Bread book on Amazon but it never went through (fate) I guess as it was too soon..I am now where I needed most to find your info. Mary, I have a burning question and will email it to you.
      I am sorry I didn't't contact you sooner for many reasons.
      Thanks for all that you share with us your readers,
      Regards,

      Reply
      • Marye Audet says

        July 24, 2016 at 7:05 pm

        🙂 thank you

  10. Marye Audet says

    October 04, 2015 at 10:19 pm

    If you are sure you used 1 cup of flour to 1/2 cup non-chlorinated spring water... and you are sure you measured the flour properly then I don't know. :/ You can use whole wheat flour for a starter if that is easier to find.

    Reply
  11. Bethany Egerton says

    June 13, 2015 at 9:18 pm

    I make bread often and have made a name amongst my friends for my french bread but I have never done sourdough even though it is truly my favorite. Coming from San Francisco I got spoiled on this stuff, but I have never been patient enough to stick with it. In reading your directions though I have one question, bare with my if this is a silly question. If, every day to only keep a half a cup of the stuff from the day before and keep doing this day after day how do you end up with enough to make bread when you need 3 cups of it to make one batch of bread and still need to keep enough for you starter? Am I missing something> As I said I have never done this before.
    Thanks
    Beckie E

    Reply
    • Marye Audet says

      June 13, 2015 at 9:43 pm

      The last day you don't throw anything out. You use it. 🙂

      Reply
    • Sandy says

      October 20, 2021 at 8:42 pm

      Hey Mary, I just started the sourdough starter I have a question is it suppose to be thick?

      Reply
      • Marye says

        October 21, 2021 at 6:42 am

        Well, thick can be hard to define. But it's kind of thick? like a batter.

  12. Tami says

    January 14, 2015 at 3:04 pm

    I never throw the extra starter out. I keep it in the refrigerator and make pancakes with it. It isn't tangy and sourdoughy yet, but it is less wasteful. 🙂

    Reply
  13. Elaine says

    August 31, 2014 at 10:46 am

    Do you feed your starter once a week 1 cup flour and 1/2 cup water or do you feed this amount once everyday on e it is established?

    Reply
    • Marye Audet says

      September 01, 2014 at 11:51 am

      Once it is established I just replenish it when I make breadd which is often, other wise I'd feed it maybe 3 times a week?

      Reply
Marye Audet-White, founder of Restless Chipotle Media

Hey Y'all, I'm Marye

Welcome to my kitchen! ☕

NY Times bestselling author. 10 cookbooks. Mom of 8 kids. Homeschooling mom for 22 years. Addicted to Hallmark Christmas Movies. Collector of old cookbooks.

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