How to make a sourdough starter

At the outset, the process of making your own sourdough starter can seem daunting, an inscrutable mix of microbial science and metaphysics. But if you understand the underlying concepts and follow the right steps, you will be rewarded with an active, well-developed starter that can raise bread.

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The Best Flour for Sourdough Starters: An Investigation

There are plenty of recipes out there for sourdough starters, and there's a mountain of literature that you can read to understand how they work. Almost all of these resources try to answer one central question: Is there an optimal way to make a starter? And if so, how?

The answers aren't simple. There are many variables at play, from the type of liquid used and hydration levels to fermenting temperatures—not to mention all the uncertainty introduced by the unpredictable world of wild yeasts and bacteria that make each and every starter unique. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't try to shed some light on the matter. We decided to focus on one of the first decisions a person has to make when setting out to create their own sourdough starter: What flour should you use?

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Equipment and tips for homemade bread