Rehydrating your starter (Recipe included)
Sourdough bread has been a hot topic for the last few years, and for good reason! Often touted as a healthier alternative to regular store-bought white bread, sourdough owes its good reputation to a process called fermentation. Fermented foods leverage the biological processes of beneficial bacteria to increase the bio-availability of nutrients in our foods - essentially reducing the amount of work the body must do to extract vitamins and other beneficial compounds from the things we eat. More and more, science is learning and understanding the importance of a healthy gut biome on all types of wellness, and fermented foods are a relatively easy and often delicious way we can support our own digestive systems. Fermentation has been a part of human society for centuries, and some even believe the fermentation process itself helped us on our path to sentience! (I highly recommend Merlin Sheldrake’s Entangled Life if that sentence piqued your interest.)
Whether you are an experienced fermenter, a sourdough enthusiast looking to cut costs, or just someone who wants to try baking bread, sourdough baking can be a fun and rewarding skill to add to your arsenal. Tending to your starter is an easy way to stay connected to and intentional about your food, no matter what size space you are in or what your situation looks like. I love to think of my starter as a friend who helps me bake endless loaves of tasty and nutritious bread for the people in my life, and I always feel a sense of pride when someone asks if I’ll be bringing bread to the function.
One way my sourdough starter keeps on giving is by allowing me to offer dried starter for others who are interested in learning this age old skill. Dried starter in my shop is sold in 35 gram pouches; one pouch is enough for multiple starters using the instructions below, so I encourage you to save some for a backup or share with friends and family! At the bottom, I’ve also included my favorite sourdough sandwich bread recipe. I hope you enjoy, and please share photos of your beautiful sourdough loaves!
Rehydrating Your Starter
You will need:
Dried starter
Filtered or purified water
Unbleached flour (All Purpose or Bread Flour)
Directions:
Day 1: In a bowl, soak 1 ½ tsp dried starter in 1 Tbsp warm filtered water for a few minutes to soften. Stir in 1 Tbsp unbleached all-purpose or bread flour. Cover and let sit at room temperature for 24 hours.
Day 2: Stir in 1 Tbsp of flour and 2 tsp of water and let sit, covered, for another 24 hours.
Day 3: Stir in 1 Tbsp of flour and just 1 tsp of water. Within 12-24 hours you should see bubbling from fermentation. Note that ambient temperature will impact fermentation; starter will be more active in a warm environment. Transfer your activated starter to a jar with plenty of empty space.
To feed: Stir in 1/3 cup flour and 1/4 cup of water. Mark the level on the jar with a rubber band. Within about 12 hours, you should have a lively, spongy starter.
Feed daily if kept at room temperature, weekly if stored in fridge. To use active starter in recipes, feed several hours before you intend to bake. Use when starter has doubled in size (typically 2-4 hours after feeding.)
Sourdough Sandwich Bread Recipe
Ingredients:
400g all purpose flour
200g filtered water
100g active starter
20g honey
20g olive oil
8g salt
Directions:
Combine all ingredients into a bowl and knead until soft, smooth dough forms.
Cover & let rest 1 hour.
Do 1 set of stretch and folds, rest 1 hour (repeat 2 times)
Stretch dough onto floured counter to rectangular shape
Roll into cylinder and place in greased bread pan
Cover & let double in size
Place in fridge for 2-3 hours
Preheat oven to 375F. While oven is preheating, allow dough to rest on counter.
Bake for ~40 min or until golden brown (Optional: Brush bread with butter or olive oil after removing)
Let the bread cool before serving
