Sourdough Starter Maintenance

Maintaining a Live
Sourdough Starter

Congratulations on your new Sourdough Starter! If you purchased a live starter from Virginia Sourdough, you are coming home with approximately 100 grams of Jane Dough, a starter born in 2020. Starter is a living organism and must be fed once per day or placed in a cool environment to halt activity.

Within 12 hours after purchase/workshop:

  • Discard half of the starter (approximately 50 grams) and place in a freezer safe container. Label with the date and place in your freezer. This is your ‘backup’ starter! Should anything happen to your primary starter, you can revive this one.

  • With the remaining 50 grams, feed with an equal part of flour and water. ‘Feed’ is the term used to add more flour and water to your starter to feed the wild yeast. I suggest 50g filtered water and 50g flour (all-purpose, bread, spelt, rye, whole wheat will all work great).

  • Set on your counter to use for bread baking within 4-5 hours; OR place in fridge for your starter to take a nap.

Rehydration Instructions to Revive Dehydrated Sourdough Starter

  • INGREDIENTS

    • Jane Dough dried Sourdough Starter

    • Bread Flour

    • Filtered Water *Chlorine from a city water supply could impact your starter. Ideally use filtered, spring or any bottled water.

    TOOLS

    • Kitchen Scale

    • Two Glass Jars with Sealable Lids

    • Wooden Spatula or Spoon

  • Place 5 grams dried sourdough starter in one of the glass jars.

    Add 50 grams of warm water to the jar. Stir until the dry starter is completely submerged in the water.

    Let this mixture sit for a few minutes, allowing the starter to absorb the water.

    Next, add 20 grams of flour and stir with a spatula until well combined.

    Cover loosely with a lid (slightly screwed on but not tight) and store at room temperature for 24 hours.

  • Some of the water might have separated from the mixture, this is normal.

    With both jars in front of you, transport 10 grams of starter mixture into the clean jar and discard the remaining mixture in the old jar.

    Add 25 grams of water and 25 grams of flour. Mix with a wooden spatula until well combined.

    Cover loosely with a lid and store at room temperature for 24 hours.

  • Transport 10 grams of starter mixture into the clean jar and discard the remaining mixture in the old jar.

    Add 25 grams of room temperature water and 25 grams of flour. Mix with a wooden spatula until well combined.

    Cover loosely with a lid and store at room temperature for 24 hours.

  • Transport 10 grams of starter mixture into the clean jar and discard the remaining mixture in the old jar.

    Add 25 grams of room temperature water and 25 grams of flour. Mix with a wooden spatula until well combined.

    Cover loosely with a lid and store at room temperature for 24 hours.

  • There should be small and big bubbles not only on the surface of the mixture but also visible from the sid of your jar!

    Next take 30 grams of starter mixture with 130 grams of water and 140 grams of flour. After ~8-10 hours your starter should have doubled. From this point forward, you can bake with it! Continue feeding daily for best results.

Flora

Doughboy

Voldoughmort

Frida Kahdough

Vincent Van Dough

Shenandougha

Weirdough

John Dough

Starterella

Bubbly

Carrie Breadshaw

Loafy

Doughlene

Yeast Mode

Crumbella

Flour Power

Doughina

Lulu Leaven

Muffin's Mom

Crispina

Bubbles

Doughlicious

Fermenta

Bread Pitt

Fluffernut

Starter Name Inspiration

Feeding Ratios

Feeding ratios matter to keep your sourdough starter strong (and alive). It’s best to weigh your starter, flour, and water.

The first number is the amount of starter or discard you are feeding. The second number refers to the flour. The last number is the amount of water to add. In the winter, I like to add warm water. In the summer, room temperature.

The key is to mix these three ingredients well - so that there are no dry bits of flour. I love using my wooden spurtle tool for this.

Common ratios are listed below. You don’t need to keep a lot of starter on hand! That will only produce more discard.

1:1:1 Ratio *recommended for beginners
50g starter, 50g flour, 50g water
ready to use in ~5 hours

1:2:2 Ratio
30g starter, 60g flour, 60g water
ready to use in ~6 hours

1:3:3 Ratio
20g starter, 60g flour, 60g water
ready to use in ~7 hours

1:5:5 Ratio
10g starter, 50g flour, 50g water
ready to use in ~10+ hours