For the initial rehydration, we recommend keeping it at 73-75F, so it activates quickly. This gives the very best chance of success!

Once established, the starter should be kept at warm room temperature, but a range of 68-78F will also work. It may take a bit longer to activate and to rise between feedings if kept at the cooler end, and it may be faster if kept at the warmer end.

We recommend organic or unbleached all-purpose or bread flour. If you would like to add some whole grain to it, keep it to about 10% of the total flour, and just bear in mind that adding whole grains to starter means it will need to fed more often to keep it from getting overly acidic since it will ferment faster. 

If you have good tap water with moderate hardness and with low chlorine levels then this should work fine for your starter. You can leave an open container of water out overnight to allow chlorine to evaporate as well. If you have particularly hard or soft water, try using spring water or filtered water, but it is not advised to use purified or reverse osmosis treated water.

When picking a container to keep it in, you want to make sure it is large enough to hold 150g total starter which may triple in volume. A pint sized deli container or wide mouth canning jar with lid is the perfect size. You want the container fully covered to prevent cross contamination, but not completely airtight. If using a canning jar, screw the lid down until snug, then back it off a half turn to allow CO2 gas from fermentation to escape. (WARNING - Airtight containers may explode under pressure).

If you miss a feeding, don’t panic. Just feed it as soon as you can after and it will be fine. Sourdough cultures are very resilient, and they are hard to kill once established and strong. If you do not regularly maintain it, however, it will weaken over time, and may develop mold or other problems.