Sourdough Starter – Why? How?

We have commercial yeast available ($4.99 for a 32oz pack at Costco.com). Why do we want sourdough?

Google sourdough benefits, you’ll get all kinds of answers. Below are the most important ones to me:

• Sourdough bread seems less likely to spike your blood sugar levels — means weight control!!! Why? Google “blood sugar levels and weight loss”.
• Sourdough bread is more nutritious — contains higher levels of folate and antioxidants; contains lower levels of phytates (Phytates bind to minerals so your body absorb less minerals)
• Sourdough bread is better for gluten-sensitivity — some protein gluten is broken down into amino acids before you consume it. I have mild sensitivities to gluten (headaches and joint pain) so this is important to me.

Sourdough breads start with sourdough starter. Where to get sourdough starter? How to feed and maintain it?

Get sourdough starter from a friend or local bakery if they maintain sourdough starter. If you can’t find it locally, click here to get it free online. Just send a postage pre-paid envelope to get free dried form sourdough starter.

Once you get the sourdough starter, find a glass jar to be it’s permanent home (I use a 16oz jar with plastic cap). Follow the tutorials from breadtopia.com to revive and manage the starter.

Here are a couple of projects for you to try.

• Sourdough pancakes: I kind of followed this sourdough pancake tutorial but removed salt, sugar (top with honey instead of adding sugar), baking powder and all purpose flour (I want to use 100% sourdough starter to maximize the benefit). 1 cup sourdough starter, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 egg, 1 tablespoon unsalted butter melted, a little bit milk if your sourdough starter is too thick. Mix together and make pancakes.
• Dutch oven sourdough bread.
• Steamed buns. Same steps and effort to make buns. Just use sourdough starter instead of yeast to proof the dough. Right before making the buns, for every pound of flour, add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda and knead the dough for 5 minutes.