Why buy Sourdough Starter?

Starting your own sourdough starter and keeping it alive can sometimes be challenging. Whether you're a pro baker or a novice having a strong sourdough starter from day one makes baking much easier.

We feed our starter daily so when you buy sourdough starter, from us, can trust that you will have a very lively and strong sourdough starter to start baking with.

Questions about Buying Sourdough Starter and Looking After your Sourdough starter

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you post fresh sourdough starter?

We post your sourdough starter at 40% hydration. This means that the starter has a high flour to water ratio and is really a small piece of dough when shipped. It's packaged in a glass jar and then recyclable material to protect it whilst posting. We only post our our sourdough starters Mondays - Thursdays to ensure that your starter can get to you within 48 hours (latest) we aim for 24.

How to store your new sourdough starter?

Fresh Sourdough Starter:

For long term storage of sourdough starter we recommend that you keep your starter in the fridge (we keep ours at +4 to +7 degrees celcius). This slows down the yeast and bacteria activity which means that it gives you more flexibility and time in terms of how often you need to feed it.

Once you are ready to bake, take out how much you need from the fridge and feed. Leave your sourdough starter on the counter overnight and then use once you are ready.

Dry Sourdough Starter:

Keep this is a cool dry place until you are ready to use. We don't recommend a fridge since it can be quite humid.

When you are ready to bake (the night before) feed your starter and leave it to rise overnight on the counter.

How do I look after my sourdough starter?

We include your first feed/ refresh ingredients (flour that matches your chosen sourdough) in the package.

You will also find instructions for your first feed and levain and longer term instructions for keeping your sourdough starter healthy.

Check out our blog 'How to care for your sourdough starter' for the details.

Can you freeze sourdough starter?

Whilst techinically you can freeze sourdough starter and then revive it, we don't recommend it.

We have tested several times with our own fresh sourdough starters and have had mixed results in terms of bringing the sourdough starter back to life.

If you want to preserve your starter, lets say you aren't using it right now we recommend mixing a small portion of your starter with a lot of flour until it makes little crumbs (we do this in a food processor). Store this in a airtight jar or bag in the fridge until you are ready to use it again.

Can I only bake Rye or Spelt bread with the Rye or Spelt sourdough starters?

No, you can bake any sourdough recipes with our starters. People simply prefer certain starters because of the taste associated with Rye and Spelt. Rye is also naturally low in gluten so might be a more attractive option to those who are avoiding it.

What if my Sourdough Starter is dead when it arrives?

It is highly unlikely that your sourdough starter will be 'dead' if you receive it and feed it within 72 hours of it leaving us. It may be a little slow, so if you are seeing that your starter has not doubled after the first feed, continue feeding it once every 12 hours. It should be back to peak within a day or two.

Why buy sourdough starter from GetSourdough?

We are sourdough nerds here at GetSourdough. We ensure that we use the best quality ingredients because flavor comes first. We hand mix and pack each sourdough starter with care to ensure that it gets to you in the best condition possible. For us that means that your sroudough starter is healthy and active and can be used in as little as a few hours.

Our aim is for this to be your last sourdough starter, so we include in depth instructions with each of our sourdough starters. If you have any questions we are here to help and even point you to some of our favorite content creators if needed.

We regularly bake with our own sourdough starter to ensure that it still performs how we would expect. All the baked goods and sourdough starters you see on the website are the real images of the sourdough starters we sell or the baked goods we have made with our sourdough starters.

What if I want a refund?

Drop us an email at care@sourdough.co.uk and we can get your refund processed.

Sourdough Starters Quality Check Process

1. Double Volume test - after feeding our sourdough starter it should double in volume within 12 hours at room temp and 48hours in the fridge.

2. Honey Comb Test - after feeding we gently spoon the top layer of the starter and check if it has a 'honey comb' texture under the top layer. You can see this in the video below.

3. Bake test - several times a week we bake with our starter and keep track of the 'bulk fermentation' times and lactic acid levels. We adjust our feeding according to what we see when we bake.

  • Bake Sooner

    Starting a sourdough starter from scratch can really delay your baking. If you want to start baking sooner, buying a sourdough starter could be the option for you.

  • Stronger Dough

    Our sourdough starters are refreshed daily so they have a strong and healthy yeast population. This means your loaves will raise higher and prove faster.

  • Less Commitment

    A baby sourdough starter can be quite needy. Whether you want to bake something as a one-off or you just don't want to baby sit your sourdough starter, buying can be a great option.

Baking with our Organic Sourdough starters

Organic Sourdough Bread
sourdough bread crumb
sourdough bread