If you’ve ever dreamed of baking your own sourdough bread, it all starts with a strong, healthy starter and I'm here to guide you through it step-by-step!
After a few years away from sourdough, I decided in 2025 it was time to bring back homemade sourdough bread and I decided to make my starter from scratch so I could share it with you all.
And trust me it's much easier than it sounds!
What is a sourdough starter?
A sourdough starter is a simple mixture of flour and water that captures wild yeast and good bacteria from the environment. Over time, it grows, bubbles, and becomes the natural yeast you need to bake beautiful sourdough bread.
Don't skip ahead with days, follow day by day.
Day 1: How to Start Your Sourdough Starter
You only need these simple things to get started:
And just as an FYI if you start with one flour but find it isn't right you can change it, you do not need to throw away your starter. If your starter isn't working at any stage send me a DM here @_ashleysplace_ , email or use the contact form on this site. I've helped hundreds of you save your starter.
You will need to Start:
- 🥖 A glass jar with a lid I started with a 500g but moved to a 1.5L Jar (don't stress too much though if its too small or big you can easily switch jars)
- 🥖 50g of high protein flour (I recommend 1/2 white high protein and 1/2 high protein wholemeal)
- 🥖 50ml of water (filtered or pre-boiled and cooled)
- I highly recommend using scales not cups for this. Cup sizes around the world are different and scales give you the best measurement. They don't need to be expensive.
How to make your starter:
- Weigh out the flour and water I like to add my flour first then water so that I can easily take the flour out if it's too much.
- Mix them together in your jar until fully combined using a spoon or spatula.
- Pop the lid on, but don’t seal it tight! Just sit it on top to allow some airflow. If you get little bugs etc in your house you can use a cheesecloth to cover it completely. We want the air in to help the yeast grow
- Place your jar somewhere warm.
(Near a sunny window but not in the direct hot sunlight in Summer, close to the kitchen if you're cooking is great or next to your kettle etc)
And that’s it for Day 1!
We’ll leave it to rest for 24 hours before feeding it tomorrow.
Day 2: Feeding Your Starter for the First Time
After sitting overnight, it’s time to give our starter its first feed.
This helps encourage the wild yeast and bacteria to grow and build strength.
For Day 2, here’s what to do:
We are NOT discarding (removing) any of the starter yet, we’re simply adding more flour and water to build it up.
Add to your jar:
- 🥖 50ml of filtered or cooled pre-boiled water
- 🥖 50g of flour (same flour as Day 1 I do 25g White & 25g Wholemeal)
Instructions:
- Pour the flour & water into your jar with your starter from yesterday.
- Stir it really well to fully combine everything
- Sit the lid lightly back on top, again, not sealed.
- Leave your jar in a warm spot for another 24 hours.
That's it for Day 2! 🥰
We’ll check back in tomorrow to see how it’s growing and give it its next feed.
Day 3: First Discard and Feed
It's time to feed our started and it is the first time we will be doing a discard. Which simply means throwing out or removing some of the starter we have and then feeding is adding in more flour and water. Eventually we can use the discard but to start it's not the best.
Here’s what to do today:
You will need:
- 🥖 100g of flour (use the same type you have been using)
- 🥖 100ml of filtered or cooled boiled water
- 🥖 100g of your starter
Instructions:
- Measure 100g of starter out first and discard the rest, we just throw this away as it isn't ready yet to be used for anything
- Add in your 100g of flour and 100ml of water to the 100g of starter and give it a really good mix around
- Lightly place the lid back on the jar (still not tightly closed).
- Leave it in a warm spot for another 24 hours or overnight at least
Notes for today:
-
If you feel it's starting to smell a tad sour that is totally normal, starter is a live culture so definitely can have a smell
If you are unsure of anything just DM me anytime @_ashleysplace_
Day 4: Building Strength in Your Starter
Today it’s time to do another discard and feed which we will continue to do
Here’s what to do today:
You will need:
- 🥖 100g of flour (you don't need to change flours stick to what you are using)
- 🥖 100ml of filtered or cooled boiled water
Instructions:
- You are going to weigh out 150g of your starter and discard this 150g and keep whatever is left in your jar. So throw away 150g and keep the remainder
- Then measure out and add 100g of Flour and 100ml of Water and add to your left over starter and mix really well
- Lightly place the lid back on the jar (still not tightly closed).
- Leave it in a warm spot for another 24 hours or overnight at least
Notes for today:
-
You can also add a rubber band around your jar where your starter is sitting once you have fed it so that you can see how much it is growing
- Reminder you do not have to use wholemeal flour, you can use a good quality high protein white, or 50/50 white and wholemeal which is what I recommend.
Day 5: Let's keep feeding to grow strength
Today it’s time to keep feeding our Starter, we want to build a strong starter before we move on to making bread
Here’s what to do today:
You will need:
- 🥖 150g of flour Wholemeal or Good Quality Flour (stick to the same type if possible)
- 🥖 150g of filtered or cooled boiled water
Instructions:
- You are going to weigh out 200g of your starter and discard this 200g and keep whatever is left in your jar. So throw away 200g and keep the remainder
- Then measure out and add 150g of Flour and 150ml of Water and add to your left over starter and mix really well
- Lightly place the lid back on the jar (still not tightly closed).
- Leave it in a warm spot for another 24 hours or overnight at least
Notes for today:
-
You may notice depending on the temperature of your house that some days your starter grows quicker than others, for me day 4-5 was a slower growth because it had been raining and colder here in Sydney. But you can start to try to make crackers with your discard as they do not need a bubbly starter, recipe is here. The bread we need to build a bit more strength
Day 6: Strengthening Your Starter
We are getting so close to our Sourdough Starter being ready! Just a little bit longer
For me day 6 personally it was a day of I need to trust in this process that it is going to work, I didn't have crazy growth and the weather has cooled here a bit this week so it is taking a bit longer for mine. Which is totally normal and starter/sourdough is very subjective to the flour you use, the temperature, your water etc. So if you are like me keep going. And as always DM me if you need help.
Here’s what to do today:
You will need:
- 🥖 200g of flour (stick to the same type)
- 🥖 200ml of filtered or cooled boiled water
Instructions:
- You are going to weigh out 250g of your starter and discard this 250g and keep whatever is left in your jar. So throw away 250g and keep the remainder
- Then measure out and add 200g of Flour and 200ml of Water and add to your left over starter and mix really well
- Lightly place the lid back on the jar (still not tightly closed).
- Leave it in a warm spot for another 24 hours or overnight
Notes for today:
-
Your starter should be getting quite bubbly now and growing well. Depending on how your starter is going if you have lots of bubbles and it is really active then you can start to bake from day 7 onwards. For me I am going to use a few extra days to get it to a good strong position.
Day 7: Is your starter ready to start baking with
We are getting to the end of our Sourdough building journey and today is the day that is your starter maybe ready to to start baking with. I say maybe because this is the part that really depends on how your personal starter is looking.
If it is really active and bubbly you can start using it to bake. But if like mine you think it needs a few extra days because you want to build some more bubbles and more strength then you can continue to discard and feed.
But this is also the part in the sourdough starter journey that we go to a 1:1:1 method from now on, meaning if you discard half your sourdough and you have 50g left then you will keep that 50g of Starter add 50g of Flour and 50g of water.
You do this method every time you feed your starter. It doesn't matter how much of the starter is left 20g, 50, 110g etc you always use that weight to then work out the weight of flour and water to add.
You don't need to do huge feeds everyday, you don't need to do 200g of flour etc, you can keep it smaller. I do 50g each day usually which works for a recipe where I need 100g of starter as it will be enough. But if I need a bigger amount I will feed it maybe 100g.
You need to do this process of feeding 1:1:1 each day your sourdough is out on the bench.
If you don't want to feed it daily and only bake maybe once or 2 times a week or less you can leave it in the fridge and then take it out, feed it & leave it on the counter the night before you want to use it. It doesn't have to stay out.
Today because I want to do a few extra days of feeding I am going to do 100g of starter to 100g of water and flour. You can follow mine with 100g or do what works for you with your starter
Here’s what to do today:
You will need:
- 🥖 100g of flour (stick to the same type))
- 🥖 100ml of filtered or cooled boiled water
Instructions:
- You are going to weigh out 100g of starter and discard the rest, so today we want to keep 100g of starter and put back into your jar.
- Then measure out and add 100g of Flour and 100ml of Water and add to your left over starter and mix really well
- Lightly place the lid back on the jar (still not tightly closed).
- Leave it in a warm spot for another 24 hours or overnight
Notes for today:
-
My starter is getting more bubbly but I want it to be super active before I start baking with it I will likely start this on day 10.
- If you are ready to bake here is my recipe
Day 8-10: Bonus Days: Extra Feeding if Needed
Your Sourdough starter should be getting ready to us to make bread, but if by day 7/8 it seems to not be super bubbly yet then I would suggest feeding it for a few extra days instead just to make sure it is really strong.
The thing about Sourdough and it's starter is that is really is individual how it behaves and what you need to do with it. You could have 2 houses right next door to each other but one is more drafting than the other making it more cold inside. One could use a heater in winter, one could use a fire.
There is so many factors that come into making sourdough and a starter so don't always look at someone else's and think yours is not good. The more you work with it the more you will be able to understand how your starter works and what you need to do for your own starter.
Here’s what you need to follow here on out:
You will need to follow the 1:1:1 ration to feed your starter, even after day 10, from here on out you will follow this feeding method.
You want to remove some sourdough depending if you are making something or simply just feeding. For example we have 50g of starter left:
- 🥖 50g of your current starter
- 🥖 50g of flour (stick to the same type)
- 🥖 50ml of filtered or cooled boiled water
Instructions:
- We have kept 500g of starter and kept this in our Jar
- Then measure out and add 50g of Flour and 50ml of Water and add to your left over starter and mix really well
- Lightly place the lid back on the jar (still not tightly closed).
- Leave it in a warm spot overnight
Notes for today:
This is it for our Sourdough Starter Journey. Once your starter has gotten lots of great bubbles it is ready to use and you can make your very own homemade sourdough bread.
Quick Tips for Sourdough Starter Success:
-
A warm environment speeds up fermentation, around 22°C–26°C is ideal.
-
Use a clean jar or container, cleanliness matters otherwise it can grow the wrong kind of bacteria and spoil, so clean containers and spoons etc.
-
Don’t worry if you don’t see much activity yet it’s completely normal.
- Don't throw your discard down the sink incase it hardens.
- Sometimes Starters don't always work, there is a lot of variables like temperature, the flour used, the water, the moisture in the air etc. Don't be discourage if you think it isn't working we can always start again and if you need any help send us a message I am always happy to try and help
- Once you have fed your starter wash your spoons and tools right away as they can get very stuck and hard very quickly
FAQ's
-
Is it normal for my sourdough to smell?
- Yes completely normal for it to smell as it is a live culture so it will have a sour type smell, everyone's sense of smell is different so to one it may be super strong while someone else can only smell it slightly but this is normal
- Yes completely normal for it to smell as it is a live culture so it will have a sour type smell, everyone's sense of smell is different so to one it may be super strong while someone else can only smell it slightly but this is normal
- Is there no discard on day 2?
- No on day 2 we are simply adding to our sourdough starter where as from day 3 onwards we will be doing a discard from here on out for the life of our sourdough
-
How long does it take before we can make bread?
- To get started we need about 7-10 days to get the starter strong so we can make bread with it, once it is strong we can then use it each day if we like
-
Can I keep it in the fridge?
- Yes eventually you can do, people who are maybe only making 1-2 loaves a week or less like to keep it in the fridge because then you don't need to feed it each day and only need to feed it when you are ready to use it. Where as if you make quite a few you will likely keep it out and feed it daily.
- But this is also great if you go away you can keep it in the fridge. Don't put it in the fridge though during this process only once we have made our starter
-
Do I leave it overnight or 24 hours?
- I personally leave mine the full 24 hours at the start to really give it a good chance to grow but we are also in Autumn here in Australia and the days go from warmer to cold so I need to give it that extra time to grow. If it is warmer where you are overnight can be ok to feed it. I usually will feed it the same time each day.
Be sure to tag me @_ashleysplace_ if you're joining in, I would love to see your progress!