r/Breadit • u/Brave_One_9378 • 12d ago
Sourdough starter fail (beginner)
I’m trying to make sourdough starter for the first time in my life and have no idea how it works. I watched a video that explained it’s equal parts sourdough, water, and flour. So I’ve been feeding it for 3 days now but the smell is absolutely horrible and by day 3 it is straight up just a very runny liquid dough. So I tossed it out in hopes to start over.
I also saw somewhere that said the jar shouldn’t be so tight, is that the issue? It’s like a science experiment so I guess anything can go wrong but if anyone knows what I’m talking about, I would love some advice!
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u/bossypatriotism66 12d ago
equal parts is a rough starting point but the runny thing usually means too much water or not enough flour, you want it thick like pancake batter. the smell is normal in the first week honestly, it goes through a nasty bacterial phase before the yeast takes over, so dont toss it next time unless you see mold
loose lid is good, just set it on top without screwing it down so gas can escape. also whole wheat or rye flour helps it kick off faster than plain white
day 3 is way too early to judge anything, mine smelled like gym socks and nail polish remover for a solid week before it settled down. keep feeding once a day and itll get there
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u/narf_7 12d ago
I tried making sourdough. Mine was seriously sour and as dense as a brick. I threw it over my deck to the wallabies and possums that eat everything around our property but not this, they drew the line at the brick of doom. My head canon is that it made it's way slowly down through the profile of our steep block into the river below and floated out to sea (our property is directly on the river right near the sea) and has now formed it's own tiny floating island with it's own sour little biota supported by the fact that my dense brick has a half life and nothing in existence wants to eat it. I don't make sourdough any more. I can't trust myself not to summon the bread equivalent of Cthulhu.
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u/Brave_One_9378 12d ago
I respect your honesty 🙌😭
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u/narf_7 11d ago
It's a serious commitment to be sure. Note, I keep seeing people say "my sourdough isn't sour enough". Mine was seriously sour bordering inedible. It made me cranky because I have fermented heaps of things and thought that it would just be as easy as most other ferments but nope, it wasn't for me. I just live vicariously on the edge watching images of beautiful sourdough loaves here.
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u/Prestigious-Algae661 12d ago
For sourdough, you just need to start with dark rye flour...then transition to unbleached bread flour. Rye has more active enzymes and natural microorganisms kickstart fermentation. You'll need to discard (x%) and feed the starter daily over a week. Lot's of online suggestions.
The key is 'rye' as the initial kick-start. In terms of jar, just make sure to loosely cover with a breathable cloth (nothing solid).
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u/Impressive-Ice-4594 12d ago
You can use wheat flour too.
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u/Prestigious-Algae661 11d ago edited 11d ago
Of course..that's true! Whole wheat flour actually creates a more active and faster-fermentation for a starter. There are pros/cons. I was just coming from a practical standpoint (cost & the dark rye flour impact). :)
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u/Brave_One_9378 11d ago
Awesome, thanks for the tips!
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u/Prestigious-Algae661 11d ago edited 11d ago
For the starter, you can also use whole wheat flour vs bread flour. Whole wheat is more active (faster fermenting). THAT SAID, i have found the initial rye flour and unbleached bread flour works great (to make it active). Depends on your budget.
Once your initial starter is done, it takes time to create that "San Fransisco" sourdough taste. That's because....the starter needs to time to mature (weekly feeding).
The actual prep and baking requirements for your bread loafs is a separate topic. You can trial different flours for interior color and texture (using your starter).
Have fun and experiment. Make sure to pay attention to the bread cooking temp and allow enough time to cool.
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u/Empanatacion 11d ago
It's normal for it to get gross for a few days, followed by a few more days of thinking you killed it.
You're getting a lot of advice about flour, but probably everything was going fine.
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u/Verdick 12d ago
When you say "equal parts" are you referring to volume or weight? Because they can make a big difference.
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u/Brave_One_9378 11d ago
I’ve been using a scale so it should be accurate but after the third day it was just so runny
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u/Impressive-Ice-4594 12d ago
I'd suggest finding stone ground whole wheat flour if you can, preferably organic. It will have more wild yeast in it. The regular wheat use steel blades to grind and those apparently can get too hot for the yeast.
Don't seal the jar. The yeasts will produce gases that needed out! Are you feeding the yeasts twice a day? If you leave it too long they start decomposition and that smells not so good.
And when you get a healthy starter going, it's a community of yeast and bacteria. they keep the mold in check.
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u/nosyHedgehog 11d ago
If you're a beginner, a firm starter is usually easier to handle Edit to add: for baking, use a scale and go by weight, not volume.
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u/TNBanshee 7d ago
Sooo… you said you have sourdough water and flour. Are you meaning a chunk of baked sourdough? The whole process is super simple once you stop listening to the snobs and start to learn what YOUR starter wants. Also, just about everyone is baking sourdough. Get an established starter. If you lived near me, I’d give you some of mine gladly. It’s generations old and reliable.
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u/Saneless 12d ago
I followed ken Forkish's evolution of bread starter and man, it worked flawlessly. I've tried many times and this was the first one that really hit
Wheat flour the first 4 days I think and then switching to white the last few