I actually think sourdough starters are overrated for beginners

Last month I tried to start a sourdough starter from scratch like everyone recommends. I followed the exact instructions from a popular blog, fed it every 12 hours, kept it warm in my kitchen. After 3 weeks it still smelled like feet and barely bubbled. Meanwhile my neighbor uses instant yeast for her sandwich bread and it comes out perfect every time. People act like sourdough is the only real way to bake bread but honestly I think it's just gatekeeping. I wasted 5 pounds of flour on that starter and got maybe one decent loaf out of it. Has anyone else had better luck just sticking with commercial yeast?

2 comments

2 Comments

hill.sarah25d ago

Have you tried using a scale to measure your flour and water exactly? I mean, I totally get the frustration, I killed like three starters before one finally worked. But honestly, once you get a good one going it's way more forgiving than people make it sound. Idk, maybe you just had bad luck with the flour or water, I've heard tap water can mess them up. I've had way more consistent results with a really simple starter recipe from a forum, not a fancy blog.

grant.jade25d ago

A kitchen scale changed everything for my starter, no joke.