Top 15 Sourdough Recipes That Aren't Bread (2024)

FAQs

Am I underfeeding my sourdough starter? ›

Your starter may have a little bit of a smell if it hasn't been fed in a while, and your cooking projects will taste a little more sour to reflect that. So if you want to avoid the super sour sourdough taste, you might just need to feed it more often and not let it sit out on the counter as long.

A very strong starter will rise slowly at low temperature, but it will rise rapidly at a warm temperature. A weak starter will not rise rapidly at either cool or warm temperatures. The type of flour used in your starter and the hydration percentage can also impact how much of a rise your starter will display.

It's important to note that overfeeding can also have negative effects on a sourdough starter if done excessively or too frequently. If the starter is overfed, it can become too acidic or develop an unpleasant odor which is the result of excess food rotting in the jar.

Starvation - if you don't feed your starter for a long period of time it will develop harmful bacteria and mold. This will smell terrible and look orange, pink or fuzzy and green. Mold - mold can also occur in a well fed starter if there are mold spores on any of the equipment you've used or in the flour you're using.

It would be best if you discarded some portion of your starter each time you feed it unless you want to continue to let it grow. Eventually, you need to discard the used “food” (flour and water) that's been used to sustain your starter during the last fermentation period.

Over the years, I've found keeping the mixture warm at around 80°F (26°C), and high hydration (100% water to flour in baker's percentages) helps get things started. In addition, while not mandatory, using certain flour also helps increase the chances a starter will take hold quickly (see below).

Compared to whole wheat flour, rye flour is said to be the most nutrient- and amylase-dense option for a sourdough starter.

The best flour blend for creating a new sourdough starter is 50% whole-meal flour (whole wheat or whole rye) and 50% bread flour or all-purpose flour. I recommend a 50/50 mix of whole wheat flour and bread flour. Why do you need to use these two types of flour?

Never allow any form of metal such as a spoon or lid to come into direct contact with the stored, un-used sourdough starter as it will cause a chemical reaction that will contaminate and blacken the implement and eventually in time will kill (loose all activity) the starter and a blackish blue or pink liquid will ...

Feed with flour and water

Feed the 113g saved starter with equal parts (by weight) unbleached all-purpose flour (56g) and water (56g). Usually, you'd feed with cool or room temperature water. But since your starter has been in the fridge, warm (not hot) tap water will help get things going.

What can I do with too much sourdough? ›

Sourdough discard works well in many baked goods that don't require lively yeast—flat foods like crackers, tortillas and pancakes. Or you can use it to flavor recipes that rely on leavening from other sources, such as active dry yeast, baking soda and baking powder.

Frozen sourdough dough can last up to a month in the freezer.

Sourdough relies on a mix of wild yeast and lactic acid bacteria, rather than baker's yeast, to leaven the dough. It's richer in nutrients, less likely to spike your blood sugar, contains lower amounts of gluten, and is generally easier to digest than bread made with baker's yeast.

Sourdough bread is a rich source of vitamins and minerals. However, the same qualities that make sourdough bread so healthy can also create complications for people with certain medical conditions. Sourdough bread is particularly rich in nutrients that the body can easily absorb.