We get plenty of questions about sourdough!
We've listed the most common ones below.  

How many loaves can I make from the starter I Get?
Since a sourdough starter is a living culture, and is capable of reproducing itself over and over again, it does not matter how much starter you begin with. Even one teaspoon of starter can (eventually) be enough to make 100's of loaves in one batch.

Once you have re-activated any one of our starters, following the instructions provided closely, and you look after it over time, you will have a friend for life!
It allows you to produce magnificent sourdough loaves, forever!
So the answer is: As many loaves as you will bake for the rest of your life!

GEEZ that's NOT A LOT of starter I Received!
As mentioned before, it does not matter how much you begin with.
Each Starter You'll receive from us, is literally teeming with (dormant) yeasts and lactobacilli (the good critters). They just need a feed! Follow the instructions provided with each culture, and soon you'll be on the way baking sourdough bread, in your own kitchen, of course!

How important is temperature control?
Theoretically it is possible to activate a starter at 10-15C, however it will be a very slow progress. NEVER allow your starter to exceed 30C, as temperatures over this will rapidly slow down the yeast growth, with yeast effectively non active at around 35C

Dried Culture Activation: To give your dried starter the best chance of rejuvenating itself, it is highly recommended to do this in a constant temperature of 28-30C (see proof box below). The reason for this is that at this temperature both the yeast and lactobacilli thrive at their best.

Check our Proof Box Section.... (below)

Once you have an active culture, you can work within a variety of temperatures (15-30C)

We recommend you control the temperature if you can, when working up a sponge/starter and proofing doughs. By doing this in a 'controlled temperature' environment, you will be able to get more consistent and predictable results in between bakes. 

Dried Cultures vs Making your Own
By now we have lost count of the amount of people we talked to, who tried to make their own starter, and failed or were not all that impressed with the end results.
ANALOGY: IF you want to learn to surf, do you spend weeks making a surf board first, or do you get a board that you know should work, and hit those waves learning to tame them?

You may find it much more convenient to use a proven and tried starter, so you know you'll start with a product that actually works and can produce predictable and consistent result.

Each of the Starters available from us come with full culture activation instructions. Provided these instructions are followed closely, you should end up with a working starter within days. Once your starter is fully activated, you're ready to start making your sourdoughs.

How often do I need to feed my culture?
You can keep your fully activated starter in or out of your fridge, depending on how often you will use it. Kept out of the fridge your starter should be fed with flour and water at least once a day.
Not unless you plan to bake (almost) every day, it is better to keep your starter in the fridge. In the cool environment the culture becomes semi-dormant, and only needs feeding and replenishment every few weeks or so, or when you want to use it. 

OOPS! I haven't fed my starter for quite a while!!!
These critters are remarkably resilient, and even when left in the fridge for up to 6 months untouched, you still have a good chance to get it back in working order!
[We Do recommend to feed your starter(s) at least once a month]

Prolonged refrigerated storage will produce a usually dark layer of "hooch". This is normal. If the hooch looks clean (no moulds etc), and smells agreeable, stir it back in, otherwise discard this layer. If there is no hooch, but the top of the culture displays mould, go carefully. With one ladle, scrape the top well clean. With another try and scoop up to 50 g of clean starter, and place in another jar.

[1] Feed 50g of starter with 75g of flour and 75ml of water, and proof at 28-30C for 6 hrs.
[2] Take 50 gram from step [1] and feed 75g flour and 75ml water.
Repeat step [2] until starter can double itself.
If your culture fails to double after 4-5 cycles, and the doubling rate does not seem to improve, it may be time to "wash" your culture. More details come with our purchased cultures. 

Why do I need, and How do I make a proof box?
A proof box is a convenient method to control the temperature of your developing starter/sponge and doughs, resulting in more consistent and predictable results.
You can use a large polystyrene box (from your favorite local green grocer) or a large eski.
Hang a cord + light socket and low wattage globe (20-25W) (or a small desklamp) inside the box, and make sure it's not touching any walls or you may have a problem later! With a folded towel, control the opening of the lid, so warm air can escape. Alternatively, place the lid diagonally, varying the gap as required. Place a thermometer in the box (slightly raised so it is not sitting on the floor, or poke your meat thermometer through one of the walls). This method can control the temperature fairly accurately.

Can I use a Bread Machine to bake Sourdough?
A bread machine is primarily designed to produce bread within 2-4 hours, using ready-mixes. This does not suit the sourdough process, which takes much longer. Trying to use a breadmaker probably introduces more problems then you are trying to solve! Not unless your machine is fully programable (not many are) we suggest you use your machine to knead your initial dough (saves any mess on your hands and bench), then remove the dough from the tin, and develop and work with the dough manually. Once the dough is ready for its final rise, you can put it in your breadpan again, let it rise, and bake in your machine (if it has a bake only option)

I'm on a yeast free diet, can I eat sourdough?
Most people who have a yeast intolerance are actually intolerant to manufactured yeast, but are okay with natural yeast. A person with that kind of intolerance can usually eat sourdough bread. But check with your health professional first!. The key to good sourdough bread is to use a good sourdough starter, one which doesn’t contain any added yeast.

Chlorinated water, does it matter?
It is generally recommended, not to use chlorinated water when working with sourdough starters. You may want to use bottled or spring water, when re-activating your dried culture, or your starter, that has been refrigerated (and not refreshed) for more than a month. [however we have never heard of a customer using chlorinated water wrecking their starter]
It can be argued that using chlorinated water to make your final dough should be fine.
Rule of thumb: if you have chlorinated water coming out of your tap, and you don't like drinking it, don't use it either when making bread. 

What is a Sponge/Poolish or Biga?
When you take your starter out of your refrigerator, you will need to re-activate (a portion of) the starter. You can either create a sponge or a biga.
A Sponge is a mixture with equal weight of flour and water (100% hydration).
A Biga is like a stiff dough (50-60% hydration),
For homebakers, we recommend using a sponge, as (we find) it is easier to work with.
However, either method can be used to create sufficient starter to produce your next batch.
Check our instructions that come with our cultures.

Is a Bulk Ferment important?
Bulk fermentation is an intermediate step after the first knead, and prior to dividing.
During this stage the dough is normally folded over itself 2 or 3 times. This will strengthen the dough for improved texture and volume. It is optional, but recommended.

What is retarding?
After you moulded your dough into its final shape, place in the fridge, loosely wrapped in plastic, so the dough will not form a skin (from drying out)
Depending how cold your fridge is, the level of development may vary from fridge to fridge.

The prolonged period of (slow) development of the dough can
[a] enhance the flavour and appearance of your loaf
[b] help customize your preparation schedule [you're probably not too keen to get out of bed at 3am to place a loaf in an oven!]
You can retard your dough at any stage of its development, (but not before you've finished your first knead) to suit your particular time frame. Dough can be retarded up to 24 hours (depending how cold your fridge is)

My Culture/Sponge is not doubling
If you see good activity, but the sponge just does not seem to be able to double itself, (but is getting there) increase the amount of flour and water you feed it by 10-20%. Alternatively add a little Diastatic Malt 10 (@ 1-1.5% of flour weight) The culture may just have run out of food with the flour you fed it. (current OZ flours are not optimal for sourdough baking, and may need some 'helpers'. If you had your culture in the fridge for some time, it will take a few rounds of re-feeding to fully rejuvenate it.) If after several attempts your culture fails to show good activity, it may be time for a 'wash' (last resort; instructions comes with your culture).

My dough is not rising as high as I would like!
There are 3 basic rules in Sourdough Baking:
[1] Start with an Active Culture
[2] Start with an Active Culture
[3] Start with an Active Culture [get the message?]
If your culture/starter can not double itself, you will have no chance of it being able to double your dough. There are a number of other reasons, but this one is often the culprit!

Do you have Classes?
We hope to start running sourdough related classes again from May.
Join our newsletter, to be informed about upcoming (sourdough) Classes.
[if you're already receiving our newsletters, make sure you update your profile]

Check here for our planned Class Details

My Sourdough is too tart / not sour enough!
Each Culture we supply inherently will be more or less 'sour'. You can however, to a certain extend, change its tartness by altering your preparation methods.

As a rule of thumb: Proof sponge/dough at lower temperatures for longer, to improve/increase sourness/taste. Another technique, called the Detmold method, has three distinct stages in starter development, where each stage concentrates on yeast development, then acitic acid, and lastly lactic acid development. (details on request)
To make a milder bread, proof sponge/dough at higher temperatures. You can also increase the amount of sponge used in your final dough, to speed things along.

How do I Prevent my final dough from spreading?
There are many reasons why dough spreads during its final rise, and the resulting loaf having a 'flattish' appearance. They are often inter-related as well, so there is no easy answer to this question.
Some things you can do to prevent this phenomenon
- Use a less hydrated dough
- Use a banneton/basket or a thick floured cloth (couche) to maintain the shape of your final dough during its final rise prior to baking
- Use a 'Bulk Proof', where dough is folded over itself to strengthen its structure.
- Final dough shaping techniques. After dividing the dough to its final weight, the dough is normally 'balled'. The dough is tucked under itself a few times to create a ball, and to create some tension at the top of this ball. [From now this should always be the top and bottom of your loaf]
For more details, look for our "Final Dough Shaping Guide" on THIS page

How do I get those nice big holes?
Generally, wetter dough (higher hydration) will produce loaves with larger holes. Wetter dough will be trickier to handle, and does not work all that well in baskets. Wetter doughs do well with a few more folds during bulk fermentation.
Also, after the first knead, handle your dough as gently as you can.
The yeast is working, and produces gasses that are trapped by the dough, producing tiny holes initially, larger ones over time. Over handling of your dough can destroy many of these.

Do I need steam when baking?
To get a crispier crust your can spray your dough with water prior to putting it in the oven. However this spray will probably disappear within seconds, when it hits the hot oven.
To create a crisp crust, we do the following:
Preheat your oven to 220-230C (or even higher!!)
To create plenty of steam during the first 10 minutes of baking, place an old skillet or cast iron pan in your oven when you turn it on. After you placed the dough into the oven, pour about ½ cup of hot water on the hot skillet. This will produce plenty of steam.  Repeat after 2 mins if required.

Vent your oven after ~10 mins [open door for 5-10 secs], as by now a crust will have started to form, and access moisture can be detrimental to the final crust. Reduce temperature to 190-200C

Baskets/Bannetons
You can use tightly woven basket or banneton or our New Plastic Proofing Baskets to retain the shape of rising dough, and create interesting patterns on the final loaf. If used without a cloth, make sure your dough is not too wet. Generously cover your basket(s) with flour (rice flour or rye flour work best) and place your final dough upside down into the basket, let rise, or retard for later baking.
 
Can I use your starter(s) with wholemeal and/or rye flour?
All our starters are grown in white bakers flour. To train a starter on different flours, I normally do the following:
1st step : reactivate your refrigerated starter, making a sponge, using 100% white flour.
2nd step: take some sponge from step 1, add 2/3rd white flour, 1/3rd w'meal/rye flour from your recipe. (use a bit more water) Repeat until the sponge can double it self.
3rd step: take some starter from step 2, use 1/3rd white flour, 2/3rd w'meal/rye flour from your recipe. (increase water further) Repeat until the sponge can double it self.
Final Step: take some starter from step 3 and feed with 100% w'meal/rye.
 (Wholemeal and Rye flour needs up to 15% more water, compared to white flour).

Do I need Salt? What does it do (apart from taste)?
Salt (apart from a taste enhancer) is also a yeast inhibitor and dough tightener. Without salt in your dough, the dough will be slacker to handle, and your final loaf will have less volume. Without salt, yeast has a tendency to become very active. Adding salt will temper this behaviour.
Salt also helps create a stronger gluten network, improving volume in your loaves. Without salt your loaves typically will have a very tight small crumb.

If your culture/sponge doubles itself too quickly, slow down the yeast development by adding 0.5- 1 % salt (on flour weight), so the lactobacilli have a chance to develop that magic taste too!

What is the best way to store my bread?
Sourdough breads can keep their qualities over many days. Most loaves (particularly rye and wholemeal loaves) can improve in flavour over time.
After your loaf is cooled [or straight after removing from oven for softer crust], wrap in a tea towel for the first 12-24 hours. Keep in a cool place (but not the fridge). Afterwards (if you still got any left!) keep in a plastic bag to minimize excessive hardening of the crust. Because of the acidic environment in the loaf, mould will rarely form.
(when stored in a plastic bag, this can increase the chance of mould after 3-4 days in warm environments. )
You can freeze your completely cooled loaves, provided they are wrapped airtight.
To refresh a (defrosted) loaf prior to consumption: Preheat oven to 150C and heat loaf for approx 5-10min.

How do I get that reddish bubbly look on the crust?
The easiest way to achieve this is to retard your dough.
After you moulded your dough into its final shape, place in the fridge for at least 6 hours up to 24, loosely wrapped in plastic, so the dough will not form a skin (from drying out)
The prolonged period of (slow) development of the dough will dry the skin (slightly). The additional sugars formed around the skin during this process result in the reddish.brown colour and the blisters. 

Useful Links
There are a number of forums and websites dedicated to sourdough, and many others that touch on the subject. In particular, forums can sometimes be a case of "the blind" leading "the blind" and are often confusing for Novices, with too many varying opinions on how "things" should be done. Below you'll find some links we feel can give you some genuine information on making your own Sourdoughs.

For Sourdough Novices, it is recommended to follow the instructions provided with our Cultures first, before experimenting with other methods mentioned in links below, or others you may have found. (or you WILL end up with a serious case of too much information!)

danlepard.com A site put together by Bakers, for Bakers. Their forum is frequented by well known bakers identities, including Dan himself, who often chips in to lift a veil or two.
sourdoughhome.com Mike Avery, an affable US sourdough baker, put together this site with heaps of practical information.
Thefreshloaf.com US based bakers forum, with a sourdough section. Worth a look!
Sourdough FAQ  May answer some of your initial and other questions; a nice reference  

Don't forget, we're only an email away if you have any questions about working with the starter[s] you bought from us, or any other questions about sourdough.

Some Advice you're giving me differs from what I learned/heard/read elsewhere
There is no one right way of producing good sourdough bread. There are however plenty wrong ways of going about it! The advice we give you works for us, and many of our customers.

That is not to say that different methods may produce better/different results for you.

Many proficient and professional Sourdough Bakers learn all the time, by trying and adjusting to new methods and techniques.

Welcome to Your Sourdough Journey. We hope You will Enjoy It!