Sourdough Starter
I had some active sourdough starter on hand and decided to try freeze drying it
The idea was to preserve the starter even if my current batch died from neglect
To that end, I spread some of the starter across a freeze drying tray and then freeze dried the contents
I then sealed the starter in small packets, allowing me to culture more starter as needed
What follows are the instructions for beginning a new batch of sourdough starter
Gather together the following
One-quart canning jar
Coffee filter or paper towel to cover jar, and elastic band to secure cover
Wooden or plastic spoon
All purpose flour
Water
1 packet sourdough starter culture
Activating the Starter
Put 2 oz by volume of water/60 grams into jar.
Sprinkle freeze-dried starter culture over water and let rest for several minutes
Add 2 oz by volume/35 grams of flour and stir in
Cover the jar with a coffee filter or paper towel and hold in place with a rubber band
Let the mixture rest for 24 hours at room temperature and out of direct sunlight, stirring occasionally
After 24 hours, stir in 1 oz of flour/18 grams and enough water to maintain original consistency
Continue adding 1 oz/18 grams of flour and water, always maintaining the original consistency
After several days, the starter will begin to form bubbles
Continue adding flour and water daily until you have the desired amount of sourdough starter
When baking bread, the starting point is to add 50 grams of starter to 500 grams of flour, a 1:10 ratio
The more starter you use, the faster your dough will ferment and the less sour the loaf
Always replace the starter removed for baking with an equal amount of flour and water mixture
Feed the starter with flour and water every day or two in order to keep it active
You can refrigerate the starter to lengthen the time between feedings to once per week
To resume use, remove starter from the refrigerator and feed it. It may take several days to once again become fully activated I had some active sourdough starter on hand and decided to try freeze drying it
The idea was to preserve the starter even if my current batch died from neglect
To that end, I spread some of the starter across a freeze drying tray and then freeze dried the contents
I then sealed the starter in small packets, allowing me to culture more starter as needed
What follows are the instructions for beginning a new batch of sourdough starter
Gather together the following
One-quart canning jar
Coffee filter or paper towel to cover jar, and elastic band to secure cover
Wooden or plastic spoon
All purpose flour
Water
1 packet sourdough starter culture
Activating the Starter
Put 2 oz by volume of water/60 grams into jar.
Sprinkle freeze-dried starter culture over water and let rest for several minutes
Add 2 oz by volume/35 grams of flour and stir in
Cover the jar with a coffee filter or paper towel and hold in place with a rubber band
Let the mixture rest for 24 hours at room temperature and out of direct sunlight, stirring occasionally
After 24 hours, stir in 1 oz of flour/18 grams and enough water to maintain original consistency
Continue adding 1 oz/18 grams of flour and water, always maintaining the original consistency
After several days, the starter will begin to form bubbles
Continue adding flour and water daily until you have the desired amount of sourdough starter
When baking bread, the starting point is to add 50 grams of starter to 500 grams of flour, a 1:10 ratio
The more starter you use, the faster your dough will ferment and the less sour the loaf
Always replace the starter removed for baking with an equal amount of flour and water mixture
Feed the starter with flour and water every day or two in order to keep it active
You can refrigerate the starter to lengthen the time between feedings to once per week
To resume use, remove starter from the refrigerator and feed it. It may take several days to once again become fully activated
Read the Sourdough Starter Recipe
Read Rehydrating Freeze-dried Sourdough Recipes
Return to the Fullbean Recipes Main Page
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