My Top 5 Sourdough Cookie Recipes by Make It Dough (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to sourdough? ›

The secret to sourdough is simple: water. The more water you add to your dough will affect how open the crumb (bigger holes and softer texture) will be once it's baked.

If you have too much starter compared to the additional flour and water you're adding, your hungry starter consumes all the nutrients and then it's not as bubbly.

When your starter is reliably rising to double or triple its size and falling in the jar anywhere between 4-8 hours after you feed it (dependent on your ambient conditions and the flour you feed with) it is ready to bake with. When the starter is at the peak of its rise, it is called ripe, fed, or mature.

Think of sourdough starter as a natural leavener, and in many cases, a way to cultivate the wild yeast that exists naturally in flour and in the air, and convert it to something that you can use to make bread (or whatever else) rise.

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.

Do I have to discard my sourdough starter? 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.

If you over-ferment the dough you run the risk of the gluten structure degrading and the loaf turning into a puddle of goo before your eyes, never to be retrieved and destined for the bin.

In general, the less sourdough starter you use, the less chance you have of over fermenting your dough during the bulk ferment. This reduces the risk of sticky, unshapeable dough. As with any sourdough recipe, before you start baking bread, you want to make sure that your sourdough starter is as strong as possible.

stir your starter in between feedings - try stirring it twice in between feedings and really give it a chance to get oxygen into the mix. This will help to activate your starter without too much effort.

If your starter gets completely covered on top with bubbles but does not rise, it is healthy but may just be a wet mix. Try reducing the water in your next feeding and see if you have different results. Also, the type of flour you are using can impede the rise of your starter.

Can I use discarded sourdough starter to make more starter? ›

Absolutely! A jar of sourdough discard serves as an insurance policy against starter death. If you have some discard on hand, remove a spoonful of it and feed it fresh flour and water in a clean jar. You should have a bubbly starter ready to bake with after a couple of feedings, depending on the discard's condition.

If you don't get rid of the excess, eventually you'll have more starter than your feedings can sustain. After a few days, your daily 1/4 cup flour and water won't be enough to sustain your entire jar of starter, and your starter will be slow and sluggish, not much better than discard itself.

“My starter was doubling consistently and now it's not, what do I do?” This happens to us all at some point, your starter just seems less active than it was before or isn't rising anymore. Try giving your starter a feeding of whole wheat flour, the extra protein content in the flour will give your starter a boost.

Conclusion. Covering your dough with a plastic bag will stop it from drying out and delivers great results no matter how your fridge functions.

A sourdough starter is made up of wild yeast and bacteria working together. The bacteria is where the sour flavor is coming from! Lactic Acid Bacteria are most active in the mid 80-90 degrees F, but that speeds up the wild yeast which prefer a more mild temperature of mid 70s F.

Compared to non-fermented breads, the minerals that are found in sourdough, such as iron, may be more easily absorbed by your body as sourdough contains fewer anti-nutrient compounds. In addition to fiber, sourdough contains natural prebiotics, which are fibers that promote overall digestive health.

Maintain your sourdough starter in an ideally warm environment (75-80ºF). Feed daily or refrigerate in between feedings when doubled in size. Feed your sourdough starter, rise for a couple of hours, and put it in the refrigerator between bakes. Feed it once at room temperature before using it.

The ideal dough temperature for most breads, post-kneading, is in the 75°F to 78°F range. Water temperature: The higher the temperature of fully kneaded dough, the more likely your resulting bread will be more (rather than less) sour.