Barb at King Arthur

January 11, 2024 at 10:49am

In reply to by Pat M (not verified)

Hi Pat, I'm sorry to hear that you're having trouble getting your starter up and running. If you read through the comments section, you'll see that this is not an uncommon phenomenon, and the good news is that patience almost always wins out when it comes to sourdough starters. It's especially promising that your starter is rising and bubbling, so I wouldn't give up on it yet! One approach is simply to maintain a smaller starter, at least until your starter begins doubling consistently. Once your starter begins rising reliably, it's easy enough to build your starter back up to the normal maintenance amount when you're ready to start baking with it. Our smaller starter recipe fits nicely in an 8-ounce canning jar and requires only 20g flour per feeding, so you'll waste a lot less flour. I would return to twice daily feedings, and if you want to include a little whole wheat flour along with your AP flour, that might give your starter an added boost, but it's not absolutely necessary. As long as your home isn't super cold, your starter should do fine at normal room temperature (68-70°F), but if you have a slightly warmer spot (75-78°F), this might be helpful during the creation process. I'm always reluctant to recommend the oven with the light on, as that can creep up to 100°F, which is a little too warm. Once your starter is doubling routinely after a feeding and has a pleasant aroma, then you should be good to go. I hope this helps! Let us know how it goes. 

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