Sourdough doesn’t have to be complicated or fussy. With just flour, water, and a little patience, you can learn to bake in a way that feels slower, simpler, and deeply satisfying.
Sourdough was my gateway to traditional food.
That’s where it all started for me. I was just trying to learn how to make it myself because the brand my daughter and I loved disappeared from the shelves of my grocery store.
What began as an experiment to replicate a loaf of bread turned into something much bigger.
Once I learned how to keep a starter alive and bake with it, I realized that sourdough is about SO much more than just bread.
Sourdough is used to make all kinds of things from waffles to pizza crust to chocolate cake.
I know, right?!?
Chocolate Cake?
You’re welcome!
So if you’ve ever wanted to try sourdough but weren’t quite sure where to begin, you’re in the right place.
Start Here
One of the first things I did here on the blog was post a daily series on starting a sourdough starter from scratch. It only uses flour and water. That’s all. Easy peasey!
So if you’re brand spankin’ new to sourdough, begin with this step-by-step series that walks you through creating your first starter.
And you don’t even have to name your starter if you don’t want to.
But be warned…sourdough always leads to something else…
Creating a Sourdough Starter (Day-by-Day Guide)
What is Sourdough?
At its most basic, sourdough is flour and water brought to life through natural fermentation.
Wild yeast and good bacteria work together to make the dough rise, giving sourdough its sour flavor, texture, and character.
It’s the exact same way bread has been made for generations ~ waaaaayyyy before commercial yeast in little packets arrived on the scene.
It may look a little complicated from the outside, but the process itself is simple. And once you get the hang of it and get into a routine, you’ll never go back.
Once Your Starter Is Ready
After your starter is strong and happy, the real fun begins!
Sourdough is so much fun to experiment with! You can use it to replace flour and water mixtures in just about anything from biscuits to zucchini bread!
Truly, you’ll use it more than you think!
To get you started on this amazing sourdough journey, you can explore all of the Bramble Wine Cottage sourdough recipes here:
And remember, sourdough baking doesn’t require perfection. You don’t need special scales or a degree in chemistry.
You don’t need special pans or baskets for it to rise in or the perfect scoring technique. Those things are kind of fun, but totally not necessary.
A sourdough starter is very forgiving. You almost have to work at killing it. Although, they can be mostly dead sometimes and need a little TLC…
Just have some fun. Do some experiments. If it doesn’t work out the way you want it to, try again.
It will almost always be edible, even if it’s not pretty.
Blessings!