Beware the sourdough starter fake out

We think of baking as a wholesome hobby, but certain threats stalk our kitchens. Our Test Kitchen is terrified of cake cleaching. Soggy bottoms haunt our nightmares. And in our bread baking, nothing is more dispiriting (and mystifying) that the sourdough starter fake out.

Um, so what is the sourdough starter fake out?

The sourdough starter fake out can occur when you’re making a brand-new starter from scratch or if you’re reviving a dormant one. In both cases, you start by giving your starter regular feedings of flour and water until it’s reliably active. Directions typically tell you to feed a starter consistently, once or twice a day, until it doubles or triples in volume 6 to 8 hours after feeding — that is when it is healthy and active enough to start making bread. If you’re making a new starter, this can often take up to a week.    

Sometimes, however, you'll find that after the first few days, your culture is way ahead of schedule, doubling in volume and seeming very active in very little time. It must be ready!, you think. Then, suddenly, it stops.

Photography by Mark Weinberg; food styling by Kaitlin Wayne

Is it dead? No. The rising you see in those first days is caused by a sudden rush of activity as all the wild yeasts and bacteria in the mix start to feed voraciously. This burst of activity may make you think your starter is healthy and ready to go (and its subsequent screeching halt may trick you into thinking it’s immediately dead). In actuality, however, this is just a brief feeding frenzy. As your culture begins to ripen, it becomes more acidic, and a whole complex battle takes place, as microbes throw different molecules at one another, meant to kill their competitors and leave more food for themselves. A portion of these microorganisms just can’t hang on. As they die off, the culture takes on the sudden appearance of inactivity. That’s what makes it seem dead when it’s really just fine.

But with more time and regular feeding, a robust yeast colony will become established (only the strong survive!), which is when you’ll begin to see predictable rising and falling again after each feeding, along with bubbles. At this point, your starter is ready to bake — which means you can make Rustic Sourdough Bread, Sourdough Focaccia, Chocolate Sourdough Babka, and more. So if your culture rises dramatically and then seems to fall dormant, don’t be discouraged: It's just a sign that your starter needs more time. 

Cover photo by Rick Holbook; food styling by Yekaterina Boytsova.