SOURDOUGH INFO & FAQ’S
HOW TO REHYDRATE YOUR SOURDOUGH STARTER
Supplies Needed
1 package of Dehydrated Sourdough Starter, Starrsey
All purpose flour
Lukewarm water, filtered or tap water
A glass jar
A spoon or small spatula
A scale
Instructions
Day 1—
In a glass jar, combine your Sourdough Starter, Starrsey with 20g of lukewarm water. Allow the dry sourdough starter and water to sit for 30 minutes to 1 hour covered until it is softened. Then, mix in 20g of all purpose flour. Use a spoon or a small spatula to mix well. Cover the jar loosely and allow it to sit in a moderately warm location for 24 hours.
Day 2—
Repeat the feeding process with 40g of lukewarm water and 40g of all purpose flour. Mix well. Cover the jar and allow to sit for another 24 hours. If you live in a warm climate, you will notice your sourdough starter will develop fermentation bubbles on the sides and will double in size after this feeding (within 8 hours or less!). This is a good sign as it is waking up!
Day 3—
If your starter did rise the day before, you will notice it has now fallen. If not, it just requires more feeding. Repeat the feeding process again with 80g of lukewarm water and 80g of all purpose flour. Hopefully by now, your starter is actively bubbling, rising and falling after this feeding.
Day 4—
Now it is time to increase the volume to bake with your starter. Transfer it to a larger jar if necessary, and then add 160g of all purpose flour and 160g of lukewarm water. Mix well, cover and set aside. Once it reaches peak activity (doubled in size and passes the float test- flip card for instructions on float test), take out what you need for baking, and leave some starter to feed and keep your starter going.
CARING FOR YOUR SOURDOUGH STARTER
Regular Feeding
The common feeding ratio for Starrsey now that it is active is a 1:1:1 Ratio. This ratio means using equal parts of flour, water, and starter by weight. For example, if you have 100 grams of a starter, you would feed it with 100 grams of flour and 100 grams of water. It’s very simple. The feeding frequency depends on if you choose to keep your starter at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
Room Temperature—
Maintaining a starter at room temperature requires feeding once a day. I would only recommend this for serious bakers who are using their starter many times per week.
Refrigerate—
Maintaining your starter in the fridge requires feedings once a week. Simply take it out of the fridge, feed it and then allow it to feed for a few hours then put it back into the fridge. Take your sourdough starter out in the morning or the night before you’re planning to bake with it.
TROUBLESHOOTING TIPS
Sourdough Starter Isn’t Rising
Many factors play a part in a starter not rising. If you’re feeding it a ratio of 1:1:1 and it won’t rise, discard half and try again. If it still won’t rise after one feeding but there is bubbles still forming, continue to discard and feed for another 3-5 days and it should get back to peak activity again.
Sourdough Starter Has A Dark Liquid On Top
This is perfectly normal. This dark layer of liquid on top is called “Hooch”. It means your sourdough starter is hungry and needs to be fed. When this happens, remove the layer of liquid and feed your starter as per normal.
Sourdough Starter Has Black Fuzzy Spots In It (AKA Mould)
Discard your starter entirely if it is showing signs of mould. There is no way to come back from this, unfortunately.
SOURDOUGH TIPS
To do a float test to check if your starter is ready to bake with, place some active starter (when it reaches peak activity ie doubled in size) into a bowl of water. If it floats, it’s ready to bake with. If it sinks, it isn’t ready.
An active sourdough starter that has doubled in size will eventually fall back down. This is normal as it’s losing its strength. It only peaks for a couple of hours. Bake with it at peak height.
jhIf you need or choose to discard some of your starter before feeding, you can use the discard to bake with. There are plenty of recipes online that include sourdough discard. Better yet, create a new starter and gift it to a friend. Nothing needs to go to waste.
SOURDOUGH FAQ’S
How is my sourdough starter shipped?
You would have received an email with your tracking information. If you can’t find it, please check your junk/spam folder before contacting us at hello@thetialu.store
Please click here and enter your tracking number to view your tracking with Australia Post.
When will you send my order?
Online orders are sent out Monday-Friday, our team does not work weekends or public holidays. We dispatch orders before 12PM the same business day. Orders made after 12PM will be shipped the next business day. During busy times such as sale periods, new collection launches and Christmas expect up to 4-7 business days delay on dispatch time (you will be notified if there is a delay on dispatch). Please note that shipping time frames do not include dispatch time. Express orders are prioritised and will always be sent out first.
Can I return/exchange my sourdough starter?
If an item is extremely popular we may decide to run a pre-order. Sometimes customers do return or exchange their items so please always click the ‘notify me’ button on sold out items in case they become available.
What is a pre-order?
Occasionally some items may be available as a ‘pre-order’. This means that the stock hasn’t arrived yet. It allows customers to secure their pieces before the stock arrives to our warehouse. Pre-order items will always be marked as such and an estimated arrival date will be given in the product description. Please note, if you purchase other items with your pre-order item, they will be shipped together when the pre-order arrives.
Shipping costs & duties/import taxes
We ship all our sourdough starter orders for FREE world wide.
How do I contact you?
For customer service enquires please email hello@thetialu.store