Are you struggling with sourdough starter recipes? You’re not alone. This guide will provide you with the most detailed step-by-step sourdough instructions available on the internet.
A sourdough starter is a live, fermented mixture of flour and water used to naturally leaven bread. Sourdough baking is as much art as science. The method you'll read here for making your own sourdough starter isn't an exact match for the one you read on another site, or in a cookbook, or in your great-grandma's diary.
Why Make Keto Sourdough?
Many people enjoy sourdough bread and are also interested in the health benefits of fermented foods. For those following a keto or low-carb diet, traditional sourdough bread is not an option due to its high carbohydrate content. However, it is possible to create a keto-friendly sourdough starter and use it to make bread and other baked goods.
The Basics of Sourdough Starter
What is a Sourdough Starter?
A sourdough starter is a live culture of wild yeast and bacteria that ferments a mixture of flour and water. This fermentation process produces the tangy flavor and airy texture characteristic of sourdough bread. The starter acts as a natural leavening agent, replacing commercial yeast in traditional recipes.
The Importance of a Healthy Starter
A happy sourdough starter should be active and bubbly. The live yeast and bacteria in the starter feed off the sugars in the flour and expel CO2, forming these ‘bubbles’.
Read also: Easy Low-Carb Cheese Crackers
Day-by-Day Guide to Making a Sourdough Starter
Day 1: Initial Mixing
Combine ½ cup (2 oz/58 g) of whole wheat flour and ¼ cup +2 tablespoons (3 fl oz/ 90 ml) of water in a large sealable glass jar. Mix with a fork until smooth; the consistency will be thick and pasty. For a gluten-free starter, combine 1 cup of gluten-free flour blend with 1 ¼ cups water and stir well until all the clumps are out.
Cover loosely with a small cloth or kitchen paper, and let it rest at room temperature in a warm spot, for 24 hours.
For a keto-friendly starter using lupin flour, weigh your jar, noting down its weight in grams, then tare the scale to zero. Add 75g of lupin flour to the jar and then pour in the 200g of water. Mix well until fully incorporated.
Day 2: First Feeding
On the second day you can see a starter that is dark on top and to be honest doesn't look great. It might even have some liquid (hooch) on top of the surface. Remove and discard approximately half of your starter from the jar. Feed it with a ½ cup (2 oz/58 g) of all-purpose flour and ¼ cup +1 tablespoon (2 fl oz/60 ml) of water. Mix with a fork until smooth. The texture should resemble thick-ish batter at this point. It will not normally have any bubbles at this stage. Scrape down the starter off the sides of the jar, cover loosely, and let rest in your warm spot for another 24 hours.
For the keto lupin flour starter, after 24 hours there will be no visible change. Weigh the jar with the starter in it. Subtract the weight of the jar from the total weight of the jar with the starter in it. Take this result and divide it in half, then add back in the weight of the jar. This is the target weight you want in the jar. Dump out the starter until you get to this target weight. Now add 75g of lupin flour and 200g of de-chlorinated water. Stir well then lightly screw the top on the jar, same as before.
Read also: Keto Calorie Counting: A Detailed Guide
Days 3-6: Regular Feedings
Repeat the feeding process outlined on Day 2 (remove and discard half of the starter, and feed it with 1/2 cup (2oz/60g) of all-purpose flour and 1/4 cup +1 tablespoon (2oz/60g) of water. As the yeast begins to develop, your starter will rise, and bubbles will form on the surface and throughout the culture. During the first week of feeding put starter into a clean jar with when you see fit. Continue to cover with kitchen paper up until day 7.
Day 7: Assessing the Starter
By now, your starter should have doubled in size. You should see plenty of bubbles, both large and small. The texture will be spongy, fluffy and a bit strecthy. It should smell boozy, but not like stinky like gym socks. Your starter is now active and ready to use! If you decide not to use it at this point then continue to feed every 24 hours or cover with a lid and refrigerate it until needed and feed before using.
Please keep in mind, if your starter is not ready at this point which is quite common due to temperature issues, timing, and other factors, it is totally fine to continue the feeding process for 1-2 weeks or more. The flavor and texture will just get better with time.
Is Your Starter Ready to Use?
Do the float test: Drop a teaspoon of bubbly starter in a jar of water; if it floats to the top you can use it.
It is best to use the starter when it is at its peak height (look for when it’s doubled in size, which takes roughly 3-5 hours) during the rising and falling stages of growth. To test whether it’s ready to use: mix your starter to distribute bubbles evenly then drop a spoonful of starter into a bowl of water. If it floats, it’s ready to go.
Read also: Magnesium Supplements for Keto
Feeding Your Sourdough Starter for Ongoing Care
Begin by removing and discarding about half of your starter. Replenish what’s left in the jar with fresh flour (use all unbleached purpose flour) and water. Cover loosely, and let it rise at room temperature until bubbly and double in size. Once it falls, the bubbles will become frothy and eventually disappear. Then you’ll know it’s time to feed your starter again. Feed your starter everyday if it’s stored at room temperature. Feed it 1x a week if you keep it in the fridge.
Starter Storage Options
If you bake often, store your starter at room temperature (ideally between 78°F/25°C and 82°F/26°C) feeding it once a day to keep it active. If you plan to bake only once in a while, store it in the fridge to preserve its strength and feed it once a week. When ready to bake, store it at room temperature and feed it once/twice a day for 1-3 days or until it can predictably and reliably reach its peak.
Troubleshooting
What Happens if I Miss a Feeding?
If you miss a feeding, don’t worry - your starter is not going to die. It might look ugly (and smell horrendous) but it usually just needs a few feedings to perk back up. If you haven't fed in some time you might see a dark liquid might appear on the surface and throughout the culture. It has a very stinky smell, similar to rubbing alcohol or gym socks. This liquid is called “hooch” and is an indication that your starter needs to be fed.
If dark liquid (called “hooch”) appears on your sourdough starter, don’t worry-it’s a sign your starter is hungry.
Best Gluten-Free Flour(s) for Starter
GF all-purpose flour blend, sorghum flour, teff flour, buckwheat flour, brown rice flour, or quinoa rice flour.
Temperature
Temperature controls the starter maintaining environment and the water for feeding. Use water with no chlorine/chloramine. However, too hot temperature could kill the yeast.A note about room temperature: the colder the environment, the more slowly your starter will grow. If the normal temperature in your home is below 68°F, we suggest finding a smaller, warmer spot to develop your starter. For instance, try setting the starter atop your water heater, refrigerator, or another appliance that might generate ambient heat.
One of our readers offers the following thoughts about the duration of everyday feeding, which we think is great advice: "Conditions vary so widely that 7 days can be far too little. I've learned the key is to watch for a dramatic and consistent rise in the jar - at least doubling between 1 and 4 hours after feeding. This could be 7 days or less after you begin, or it could be three weeks (for me it was 12 to 14 days).
Smell and Appearance
A starter should generally smell sweet and slightly sour, it should look light in color as well. A good starter should smell sweet, but slightly sour/boozy due to the fermentation.
Covering
The best cover for a sourdough starter allows it to breathe while protecting it from contaminants and drying out, as well as avoids risk of presure buildup. Use a tight lid to prevent drying out.
Keto Sourdough: A Detailed Guide
I am really into fermented foods these days, and all the health benefits that come with them. I'll even have sourdough bread on my carb-up days. I enjoy it so much I made it my mission to come up with a keto-friendly fermented sourdough bread recipe. I have figured out the starter and have successfully used it to make a decent keto-friendly, gluten-free sourdough pizza crust. I've also used my sourdough discard in a variety of recipes for baked goods, like my keto sourdough starter crackers. In the meantime, my lupin flour sourdough starter is a lock, and has stayed alive and healthy for over 4 months now, and they say that only get better with age. If you would like to give it a shot, I'll go through the process of creating your own starter.
By the way, there is a tradition of naming your sourdough starter. Turn your digital scale on and set units to grams. Weigh your jar, noting down its weight in grams, then tare the scale to zero, meaning your scale will show 0g rather than the weight of the jar. Add 75g of lupin flour to the jar and then pour in the 200g of water. Mix well until fully incorporated. The mixture will be thick.
After 24 hours there will be no visible change. Weigh the jar with the starter in it. Now for the math. Subtract the weight of the jar from the total weight of the jar with the starter in it. Take this result and divide it in half, then add back in the weight of the jar. This is the target weight you want in the jar. Dump out the starter until you get to this target weight. Now add 75g of lupin flour and 200g of de-chlorinated water. Stir well then lightly screw the top on the jar, same as before. (*Note: You can use sourdough discard in other recipes to reduce waste.
This process is called a feeding. You need to feed your sourdough starter daily for at least 7-10 days in order for it to grow and mature. Every day during the maturation period you will repeat the feeding process detailed above. As the days go by it will slowly start to smell sweeter and more vinegary, like sourdough. Once your sourdough is mature, you no longer have to discard any because it will be mature, and you can bake with it. But the sourdough still needs to be feed, and you have two options. You can leave it at room temperature, but you will have to continue with the daily feedings and that can get expensive if you don't bake bread daily. The other option, what I do, is to store your sourdough starter in the fridge. To do this, you simply take out what you need for whatever recipe you're making, and then feed it with 75g of lupin flour and 200g of water. Since lupin flour is fairly expensive, once my starter reached maturity, I tried using a combination of it and oat fibre (50g lupin flour and 25g oat fibre) to help cut down the cost of feedings.
Keto Sourdough Bread Recipe
This version of "sourdough" is quick and unlike typical sourdough, it doesn't require days of culturing. By using vinegar and buttermilk, I've recreated that typical sourdough taste we all love.
Each ingredient in these sourdough keto baguettes has a specific purpose, working together to create a delicious, low-carb bread that mimics the texture and taste of traditional sourdough.
Ingredients
Dry ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cup almond flour (150 g/ 5.3 oz)
- 2/3 cup psyllium husks - will be powdered, will make about 1/3 cup psyllium husk powder (40 g/ 1.4 oz)
- 1/2 cup coconut flour (60 g/ 2.1 oz)
- 1/2 packed cup flax meal (75 g/ 2.6 oz)
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp sea salt
Wet ingredients:
- 6 large egg whites
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk or kefir (180 g/ 6.5 oz) - or coconut milk kefir for dairy-free
- 1/4 cup white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar (60 ml/ 2 fl oz)
- 1 cup lukewarm water (240 ml/ 8 fl oz)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 °C/ 355 °F (fan assisted), or 200 °C/ 400 °F (conventional).
- Use a kitchen scale to measure all the ingredients carefully.
- Add the egg mixture and process well using a mixer until the dough is thick. Do not over-process the dough.
- Using a spoon, make 8 regular or 16 mini baguettes and place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper or a non-stick mat. They will rise, so make sure to leave some space between them.
- Place in the oven and cook for 10 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, let the tray cool down and place the baguettes on a rack to cool down to room temperature. Enjoy just like regular baguettes!
Tips for Keto Sourdough Baguettes
- Psyllium Husks: Used for its ability to absorb moisture and create a chewy texture, similar to traditional bread. Always use powdered psyllium husks. Whole husks can lead to a coarse texture. Powder them yourself using a coffee grinder or food processor for the best results. Also note that psyllium absorbs lots of water.
- Egg Whites: Use mostly egg whites to ensure the bread rises properly. Too many egg yolks can make the bread dense. For the same reason, use low-fat (not full-fat) buttermilk.
Common Issues and Solutions
Uneven Texture with Large Air Pockets:
- Cause: Using lukewarm water can slow down the raising effect of baking soda, leading to air pockets. Also, over-mixing can contribute to an uneven texture with large air pockets with dense parts.
- Solution: Ensure your water is the right temperature and avoid over-processing the dough.
Dense, Flat and Heavy:
- Cause: The wrong type of psyllium powder.
- Solution: Always powder whole psyllium husks yourself to avoid overly fine powder. Use a coffee grinder or a food processor to powder them first.
Baguettes are prone to burning:
- Solution: Make sure you use the correct temperature and time. This will also depend on the oven and altitude. If your baguettes are prone to burning, lower the temperature slightly and extend the baking time.