How to Maintain a Small Sourdough Starter
Here are the amounts listed for feeding a small sourdough starter. This is for a 100% hydration starter.
Yield: 3 oz starter
Cost: $2
Equipment
- Wooden spoon or spatula
Materials
- 1 oz unfed sourdough starter
- 1 oz unbleached all purpose flour
- 1 oz water, room temperature
Instructions
- Weigh 1 oz unfed sourdough starter into a clean container. Discard the extra starter or save it in the refrigerator to use in a recipe.
- Add 1 oz unbleached all purpose flour and 1 oz water, room temperature and mix until combined. Set aside at room temperature.
- If you're not baking, refrigerate 3-4 hours after feeding.
- Feed refrigerated starter weekly if you're not baking. Each time you feed you will discard 2 oz and use the remaining 1 oz to complete the feeding cycle.
- When you're ready to bake with your starter, you'll need to take it out 1 day before baking and grow the starter with the following steps. Feed the starter as described in steps 1 & 2 (see note). Leave the 3 oz starter at room temperature for 6-12 hours. Feed the 3 oz of starter with 3 oz of all purpose flour and 3 oz of water. You now have 9 oz of starter. Leave it at room temperature for 4-5 hours until it doubles in volume and begins to recede and then it should be ready for baking.
- Use 8 oz in your recipe and reserve the last 1 oz to continue to feeding cycle.
Notes
If your starter has been unfed for several weeks and is sluggish, you might want to repeat the 1 oz feeding again before proceeding to the 3 oz feeding.
If your starter has been recently fed and the 3 oz of starter is still active. You can skip the 1oz feeding and go straight ahead and feed 3oz of flour and water.