JUST FOR STARTERS..

Before you begin baking sourdough, you need a starter. The sourdough starter is essentially a combination of flour and water that has been colonised by wild yeasts and lactic acid bacteria.

Can I make my own starter?

You can but it takes a little time (from three days to two weeks depending on the flour and the temperature of your room). It’s easier to begin baking with a thriving starter that is already producing great loaves for somebody else. If you have a baking friend, ask them to give you a small amount of their starter or you can buy an established one online (sourdough.co.uk).

How often do I need to refresh my sourdough starter?

Once a week, and always the day before you make a leaven. If you’re away for longer than a week it is definitely possible to revive it, you just need to refresh more regularly for a week or so when you’re back (or ask a friendly neighbour to look after it for you. Sadly, there’s no such thing as a sourdough starter kennel yet).

Can I use any kind of flour?

It’s best to use organic flour made from grain that hasn’t been treated with fungicides, herbicides or artificial fertilisers – basically, you don’t want these agrochemicals in your starter.

Starter Library (yes, really)

The Puratos Sourdough Library in Belgium currently holds 84 different strains of sourdough starter (Vanessa Kimbell has one here). It was set up to ensure the survival of different strains by keeping them safe while analysing their composition and preserving their biodiversity.