Rehydrating Your Sourdough Starter
Let’s Bring Your Starter Back to Life
I’ll walk you through it.
You’ll need a few simple things: your dehydrated starter, a kitchen scale, flour, water, and containers with lids. Unbleached all-purpose or bread flour works beautifully for this step. I usually rotate between a few organic unbleached flours depending on what is available, because they perform very similarly in a starter. I often use Azure Standard, Central Milling, or Costco’s organic unbleached all-purpose. Also, make sure to use filtered water.
Day 1
Place 5 grams of your dried starter into a clean container. Save the remaining 5 grams in an airtight container for another time.
Add 25 grams of warm water. Give it a little stir so all of the flakes are wet. They will not dissolve right away, and that is perfectly fine. They need time to absorb the water and soften.
After about 1 hour, add 20 grams of flour and mix well until everything is combined. Set the lid gently on top instead of sealing it. As your starter begins to wake up, it will release gas, and we want that pressure to be able to escape.
Let it rest at room temperature for 24 hours.
Day 2
After a full day, move 10 grams of your rehydrated starter into a new clean container and discard what remains.
Feed those 10 grams with 25 grams of water and 25 grams of flour. Stir until you no longer see dry spots, then rest the lid loosely on top again.
Back to the counter it goes for another 24 hours.
Day 3
By now, you may begin noticing a little activity. Some starters show more, some show less. Both are normal.
Repeat what you did yesterday. Place 10 grams of your starter into a clean container, discard the rest, then add 25 grams of flour and 25 grams of water. Mix thoroughly and cover loosely.
Let it rest another day.
Day 4
This is when many starters really start to look alive, and it can be exciting to see. You are getting close.
Again, place 10 grams of your starter into a clean container and feed it with 25 grams of flour and 25 grams of water. Stir well, cover lightly, and return it to its warm spot.
Over the next several hours, often within about twelve, you will likely notice stronger activity than before.
Day 5
If your starter is rising reliably and doubling after you feed it, you are ready to start baking.
From here, you can move into a regular maintenance routine that fits how often you plan to bake.