Comments on: How to Store a Sourdough Starter

By: Diana

Diana — Fri, 26 Jan 2024 18:03:31 +0000

In reply to Bob.

I do. My starter was gifted as shards – but instead of dried, they were frozen (or dried and stored in the freezer?). So I smear on parchment laid in a quarter sheet, pop in freezer, “shard” into a jar when frozen. Keep in freezer.

By: Bob

Bob — Mon, 15 Jan 2024 13:12:55 +0000

can you freeze a starter at all

By: LDF

LDF — Sun, 12 Nov 2023 22:11:05 +0000

I’ve kept my starter in a sealed glass container in the fridge for about two years, untouched. Should I pitch it or do you think it’s worth trying to rev it up again?

By: Rowland

Rowland — Thu, 16 Mar 2023 10:53:48 +0000

@maurizioleo:disqus @maurizioleo:disqus After nearly a year of making bread from the starter I made using the recipe on this site, I needed a break! Our family got tired of it too. So I tried the four method of storing, only to find it had gone bad over the the few weeks in the jar.

Then I tried the shard method over the ensuing months. Not only once but several times. As an IT sorta guy, I wanted a backup in case something went sideways. Periodically, I’d shard the discard – faithfully putting the date on the jar or baggie so I’d know when it was made, then putting in a dark, closet. I never tried to restart it. Doubt crept in.

The family got tired of my bread, I got tired of all the work, and I made one last attempt to keep it over the long haul with the shard method. Laid it out on the sheet with spatula, put it into closet for a week, then removed the contents to a baggie with the date “11/24/2022”.

Which leads me to St. Patrick’s Day last year, I made the much beloved soda bread, corned beef, cabbage and potatoes. Love it all except the bread. While it came out as expected, the taste was bland and uninteresting to me. So I thought I’d give the restore a try to see if I could make it work. I thought “It’s one week until St Patrick’s day. I should be able to get starter working in time to bake…”

Since I had many older backups, I decided to try and restore the latest two in case one didn’t work and maybe one would. I really couldn’t lose the time of starting over with another backup.

They both came roaring back – back to the point they overflowed the jars they were in (I use the light in the oven for a warm, consistent environment. There was a large pool of starter material in the bottom!

Fingers crossed – we’ll have my sourdough with all that great food!

Thanks for all you do @maurizioleo:disqus !

By: SyracuseNP

SyracuseNP — Sat, 11 Feb 2023 19:43:42 +0000

In reply to Maurizio Leo. What about placing food grade dessicant packets in the drying process to keep out humidity? They're cheap and reusable!

By: sofia

sofia — Sat, 21 Jan 2023 13:19:10 +0000

I’ve just opened my sourdough starter after being in the fridge for 2 weeks and it smells terrible, very very bad. It also has kind of like a shell on the top (Blueish). Is that normal? Should I throw it away?

By: Maurizio Leo

Maurizio Leo — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 11:45:32 +0000

In reply to Charlotte Greve.

Ahh bummer, so sorry to hear that, Charlotte. It definitely should not have white fluffy mold on it. I would not use that dried starter.

There must have been moisture in the jar 🙁

By: Maurizio Leo

Maurizio Leo — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 11:44:59 +0000

In reply to Becky Leavitt. Sorry for the ambiguity. I'd go with 2-3 tablespoons.

By: Becky Leavitt

Becky Leavitt — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 10:48:21 +0000

You said a large dollop twice in this article. Approximately how much is a large dollop?

By: Charlotte Greve

Charlotte Greve — Mon, 05 Dec 2022 09:03:41 +0000

Hi Maurizio! I did the dry crumble method and left it for 3 weeks in an airtight jar, now it’s covered in white fluffy mold – best to restart or is that normal?