Sourdough bread has a thick, chewy crust and soft, airy interior. It is comforting, savory and so easy to make using only using flour, salt, and water.
Sourdough bread is naturally leavened bread made without commercial yeast. The wild yeast in a sourdough starter is what makes the bread rise. A sourdough starter is made by mixing flour and water together in a jar. Wild yeast from the surrounding environment feeds off of the flour, causing the number of yeast to multiply within the mixture. With regular feedings, the starter becomes stronger and stronger and can eventually be used to bake sourdough bread. Starters can be used for decades or even a century with the oldest documented sourdough starter being 122 years old.
The process of building a new sourdough starter from scratch takes anywhere from 7-14 days and the number of days it requires will depend on variables such as temperature and flour. But, once you’ve developed a mature and healthy starter, maintaining it is easy!
Sourdough is the oldest form of leavened bread and was used at least as early as ancient Egypt. It was probably discovered by accident when bread dough was left out and good microorganisms – wild yeast – drifted into the mix.
Follow Rev Stevan (Wison Heights United Vancouver) as he takes us through a step by step Summer Spirit walk through of baking delicious sourdough bread from starter to loaf using the same ingredients and basic method that has been used for thousands of years!
If you are interested in joining a ‘sourdough starter’ workshop please let us know via the CONTACT US button.