A Guide to Rehydrating a Dehydrated Sourdough Starter
Last Updated on July 24, 2024 by TheFarmChicken
You’ve bought a dehydrated sourdough starter (hopefully Agnes 😊), or you dehydrated your own and now you are wondering how you can get it to be bubbly and happy again. You are in just the right place! Here we are going over the process of taking dehydrated starter and bringing it back to bubbly life! Be sure to check out the “Shop this Post” at the bottom of A Guide to Rehydrating a Dehydrated Sourdough Starter. Also included in this post is the process of how to dehydrate a sourdough starter.
I waited a long time after first being interested in sourdough to start and I wish I hadn’t waited so long. It’s so tasty, rewarding and the fermentation process makes the bread easier on your digestive system. There are so many good reasons to get started with sourdough! Welcome!
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A Look Behind Sourdough Starter:
So, what is sourdough starter anyways?
Sourdough starter is a collection of wild yeast which is grown in a stable environment. Sourdough starter is used to help flavor and leaven bread as well as other baked goods. A happy starter doubles easily and has bubbles throughout.
To Buy or Make Your Own?
You can purchase my Dehydrated Sourdough Starter “Agnes” or you can learn how to make your own with Learning Sourdough with Agnes. Both are great ways to get started with sourdough but buying dehydrated sourdough starter is a much faster process…creating your own…is a more rewarding and time-consuming process. Making your own can take around a week to a couple of weeks!
If you don’t have the time to make your own sourdough starter then for sure purchase some dry starter rather than not doing sourdough at all! Sourdough is a rewarding experience in and of itself! Be sure to start your sourdough journey sooner than later!
Why would you want to have dry sourdough starter?
There are many reasons why you would want dry or dehydrated sourdough starter but here are a few of the most common:
- Simply start baking with sourdough without having to create your own sourdough starter.
- It’s a good idea to dehydrate your sourdough starter if you have made your own starter. It ensures that if something happens to the one you are using you still have some of it saved just in case. You never know when you might bake or drop your sourdough starter on accident.
- Long Term Storage: Sourdough starter that has been dehydrated and stored in an airtight container in the freezer almost stores indefinitely. The process of dehydrating a sourdough starter puts the active wild yeasts into a dormant state until rehydrated and is a great way to keep a sourdough starter long term.
- To travel easily! Have you ever gone on vacation and wanted to take your sourdough starter with you? Dehydrating your sourdough starter is a great way to bring it with you on vacation. I have gone to Florida and easily brought mine along. I made bagels while I was there!
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How to Rehydrate Dehydrated Sourdough Starter: A Step-by-Step Guide
Supplies you may need for rehydrating a sourdough starter:
- Dehydrated Sourdough Starter (You can purchase here.)
- A glass jar – a wide-mouth jar is easiest to use
- Plastic lid
- Gram Scale
- Distilled/filtered water at room temperature
- Bread flour or a quality all-purpose flour that is unbleached
How to Rehydrate Dehydrated Sourdough Starter: A Step-by-Step Guide
I am going to do this step by step so that it is easy to reference back to and hopefully easy to understand.
Note: If you have purchased dried sourdough starter from me, you will receive a card with it explaining the process to rehydrate your sourdough starter. Each pack has rough 2T or 20 grams of starter. With this amount of dry starter, you could do this process twice or share with a friend!
- Step One
- Take a clean pint-sized or similar glass jar and measure out 1 T or 10 grams of dehydrated sourdough starter and place in the jar.
- Step Two
- Add 50 grams (4T) non-chlorinated water and let sit, loosely covered, for 1 hour.
- Step Three
- Stir well and then add 50 grams (4T) of bread flour to the water and starter.
- Step Four
- Give it a good stir and let sit for 18-24 hours. Covered loosely.
- Step Five
- After the 24 hours the starter should be bubbly and doubled. (If it isn’t don’t worry…read the note below.)
- Step Six
- Discard half of the starter and then feed 50g flour and 50 grams water again. Let rise until the starter doubles again and use! Congratulations, you now have an active sourdough starter!
NOTE: If it doesn’t double in 24 hours after the first feeding this can happen, and it simply just needs to be fed a couple more times to get it nice and bubbly and active. Feed and discard half once a day until it doubles in size. When it at least doubles and is nice and bubbly your sourdough starter is ready to use! Have a little patience with it and it should be bubbly in no time!
How to Rehydrate Dehydrated Sourdough Starter: A Step-by-Step Guide
Equipment
- dehydrated sourdough starter (You can purchase or make your own.)
- a glass jar – a wide-mouth jar is easiest to use
- a lid
- gram scale or measuring spoons
Ingredients
- distilled/filtered water at room temperature
- bread flour or a quality all-purpose flour that is unbleached
Instructions
How to Rehydrate Dehydrated Sourdough Starter: A Step-by-Step Guide
- I am going to do this step by step so that it is easy to reference back to and hopefully easy to understand.
- Note: If you have purchased dried sourdough starter from me, you will receive a card with it explaining the process to rehydrate your sourdough starter. Each pack has rough 2T or 20 grams of starter. With this amount of dry starter, you could do this process twice or share with a friend!
Step One
- Take a clean pint-sized or similar glass jar and measure out 1 T or 10 grams of dehydrated sourdough starter and place in the jar.
Step Two
- Add 50 grams (4T) non-chlorinated water and let sit, loosely covered, for 1 hour.
Step Three
- Stir well and then add 50 grams (4T) of bread flour to the water and starter.
Step Four
- Give it a good stir and let sit for 18-24 hours. Covered loosely.
Step Five
- After the 24 hours the starter should be bubbly and doubled. (If it isn’t don’t worry…read the note below.)
Step Six
- Discard half of the starter and then feed 50g flour and 50 grams water again. Let rise until the starter doubles again and use! Congratulations, you now have an active sourdough starter!
Notes
Things to Try for Quicker Success and Best Results:
- You can place your starter in a warm spot after being fed. This helps give the starter a boost. Try the oven with just the light on or a room that is 74-78 degrees. Starters love a little warmer than room temperature so placing it in a warm location can really help it grow!
- If you are having a little trouble getting your dehydrated sourdough starter to grow, try feeding 25 grams whole wheat flour and 25g bread flour. The whole wheat flour helps give the starter a little boost.
Things NOT to do:
- Don’t set your sourdough starter in direct sunlight. Doing this may kill the wild yeasts in your sourdough starter.
- Don’t use too much bleach to clean your house/kitchen. This will make it hard for your starter to grow without any of the good bacteria in the room to grow the yeasts.
- Give up too quickly. Sometimes it can take a few feedings. You are doing the right things! Keep going.
- Don’t use tap water…it has chlorine in it. I use distilled with my starter but filtered water should also work.
- Don’t hesitate to reach out to me either in the comment section or on my Instagram. I would love to answer any questions you may have, and trouble shoot with you!
- Don’t skip the step of letting the water and dried starter sit in the jar for an hour. This helps the starter activate faster and more effectively. It’s important.
Using a Rubber band
A rubber band can be a lot of help in determining if your starter has grown. Simply put the rubber band around the jar at the level it is after you feed it. Then when you come back to see how it has grown you can easily see its growth! I still use a rubber band to help track my sourdough starter.
Now What?
You have successfully rehydrated “Agnes” or your sourdough starter. Now what? Well now you can learn all about maintaining it and using it in your baking! The exciting part! What will you bake first!
Frequently Asked Questions:
This can vary depending on each house but as a general rule you should be able to use the sourdough starter withing 3 days of starting the rehydration process.
With a little flour, water and effort your starter can last a lifetime and more.
How do you dehydrate a sourdough starter?
If you already have an active sourdough starter and you are wanting to dehydrate it to store for later use and in case something happens to your current one, follow these instructions:
- Feed your sourdough starter. Once doubled and bubbly take a piece of parchment paper, place it on a baking sheet and spread a very thin layer of sourdough starter on the paper. The thinner it is the easier and faster it will dry.
- Let dry in a non humid room lightly covered for 24-72 hours.
- After it has dried completely, crumble it up or blend it with a blender or food processor and store in a zip top bag or airtight container, such as a mason jar sealed with a lid like these. Place in a cool dark place or the freezer.
Other Helpful Resources to Learn about Sourdough Starter:
- What is Sourdough Discard?
- How to Use a Sourdough Starter: A Complete Guide
- Learning Sourdough with Agnes
Great Recipes for the Sourdough Baker Beginner:
- TheFarmChicken Sourdough Artisan Bread Recipe
- Sourdough Tortillas
- Sourdough Sandwich Bread: A Recipe from the Farm
- Sourdough English Muffins
Sourdough Starter Discard Recipes to Try:
- Sourdough Discard Chewy Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
- A Complete List of TheFarmChicken Sourdough Recipes
You made it to the bottom! And hopefully not without an increase in your confidence in rehydrating your sourdough starter! Be sure to reach out below if you have questions or concerns. I’d love to help you out! Homemade sourdough bread is hard to beat. Enjoy! Be sure to check out some recipes and thank you for stopping by TheFarmChicken! I hope you found this post, A Guide to Rehydrating a Dehydrated Sourdough Starter helpful!
Sincerely,
Mariah | TheFarmChicken
And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:13
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