We have all seen the Meme, First she asks to start sourdough, than it’s a chicken or two, then a cow, and boom you have a full on conspiracy theory touting, bombshelter having nut job on your hands.

It’s funny that this is actually where my mind first went when my wife said she needed a special jar to get my sourdough starter going. Why would we make our own bread when I can go get it for $1.79 at Walmart and not worry about starters, humidity, and oven temperatures? Well after a little studying and a lot of information being laid in front of us we decided that we would need to start making our own bread from now on and this is the day we began that journey into healthier eating.

The recipe is easy to follow and there are many you can look up on the internet. The one we followed to start our sourdough starter is as follows:

1 cup (113 grams) whole wheat or rye flour
1/2 cup (113 grams) water

Day 1:

Combine 1 cup of whole wheat or rye flour with ½ cup of water thoroughly in the non-reactive container. Leave the container out at room temperature for 24 hours. Cover the container with cheesecloth and a rubber band, or opt for a jar with a lid that is designed for air circulation without drying out the starter.

Day 2 & 3:

Discard half the starter (about 113 grams or ½ cup of the mixture). You’ll be discarding quite a bit of starter over the next few days, which you can either reuse to make pancakes or compost. To the remaining starter, add 1 cup all-purpose flour and ½ cup water. Combine and let sit at room temperature for 24 hours.

Day 5:

You should notice some bubbles and will want to start feeding your starter every 12 hours now. Continue feeding by weighing out 113 grams starter, discarding the remainder, and feeding with 113 grams all-purpose flour and 113 grams water. Mix, cover, and let rest for 12 hours before repeating again.

Day 6:

Repeat the same 1:1:1 ratio of starter, flour and water feeding every 12 hours. By the end of Day 5, you may have an active sourdough starter. A sourdough starter is ready to use when you see lots of bubbles on the surface and the mixture has doubled in volume. An active sourdough starter will also smell a little bit fruity or tangy.

If your starter hasn’t doubled in volume and is not bubbly, repeat the process of discarding and feeding every 12 hours until it does. The process often takes up to a week, so continue feeding for a few extra days if it hasn’t doubled yet — patience is key here.

Just so it is out there this is the jar my wife got for Christmas to use as a sourdough starter jar.

https://a.co/d/5XDAPHj