Welcome to the My Rustic Roots sourdough family! 🤎

You're just a few days away from having a thriving sourdough starter that you can use to make homemade bread, rolls, pizza crust, focaccia, and countless other sourdough recipes.

Your My Rustic Roots Sourdough Starter contains a living sourdough culture that has been carefully freeze-dried to preserve it until you're ready to begin baking.

Activating your starter is simple.

Over the next several days, you'll add flour and water, keep your starter warm, and allow the living microorganisms in the sourdough culture to become active again.

Every kitchen is different. Temperature, flour, water, and feeding schedules can all affect how quickly a starter becomes active.

The most important things are warmth, consistency, and patience.

Let's get started!

What You'll Need

Before opening your starter packet, gather:

• Your entire packet of My Rustic Roots Sourdough Starter
• Unbleached all-purpose flour or bread flour
• Room-temperature filtered water
• A clean glass jar, ideally 16 ounces or larger
• A spoon or spatula
• A kitchen scale, if available
• A loose-fitting lid or breathable cover

What Flour Should I Use?

We recommend using unbleached all-purpose flour or bread flour to activate and maintain your sourdough starter.

Do not use bleached flour.

Different brands and types of flour absorb water differently, so your starter may be slightly thicker or thinner than another baker's starter.

That's completely normal.

The goal is a thick, stirrable paste.

Sourdough Starter Measuring Guide

For the most consistent results, we recommend using a kitchen scale and measuring your flour and water in grams.

Weight measurements are more accurate because flour can settle or become packed into measuring cups.

If you don't have a kitchen scale, use the approximate measurements below.

Please note: Cup and tablespoon measurements for flour are approximate. Different types and brands of flour vary in density.

When measuring flour without a kitchen scale, lightly spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level the top. Do not pack the flour into the measuring cup.

Day 1 – Mix and Begin

Pour the entire packet of My Rustic Roots Sourdough Starter into a clean jar.

Add:

Unbleached Flour

60 g → 2.1 oz → approximately ½ cup → 8 tablespoons

Room-Temperature Filtered Water

60 g → 2.1 oz → ¼ cup → 4 tablespoons

Stir thoroughly until the starter, flour, and water are completely combined.

Your mixture should resemble a thick, stirrable paste.

Scrape down the sides of the jar and cover loosely.

Place your starter in a warm location and allow it to rest for 24 hours.

Day 2 – Feed Again

After 24 hours, feed your starter again.

Do not discard any starter yet.

Add directly to the jar:

Unbleached Flour

90 g → 3.2 oz → approximately ¾ cup → 12 tablespoons

Room-Temperature Filtered Water

90 g → 3.2 oz → ⅜ cup → 6 tablespoons

Stir thoroughly.

Cover loosely and return your starter to a warm location.

Allow it to rest for another 24 hours.

During this time, you may begin noticing bubbles, a change in aroma, or some rising.

These are good signs.

Your sourdough culture is waking up and beginning to ferment.

Day 3 – Begin Discarding and Feeding

After another 24 hours, stir your starter.

Keep 60 g of starter in your jar and discard the remaining starter.

If you don't have a kitchen scale, measuring the starter itself can be less precise because the volume changes depending on how many bubbles are present.

For this step, weighing the starter is strongly recommended.

To the 60 g of starter, add:

Unbleached Flour

60 g → 2.1 oz → approximately ½ cup → 8 tablespoons

Room-Temperature Filtered Water

60 g → 2.1 oz → ¼ cup → 4 tablespoons

Mix thoroughly.

Cover loosely and return your starter to a warm location.

Allow it to ferment for another 24 hours.

Day 4 and Beyond – Continue Feeding

Continue feeding your starter every 24 hours.

Each day:

1. Stir your starter and keep 60 g of starter. Discard the rest.
2. Add 60 g unbleached flour.
3. Add 60 g room-temperature filtered water.
4. Stir thoroughly.
5. Cover loosely and keep your starter warm.
6. Repeat every 24 hours until your starter is consistently active.

How Do I Know When My Sourdough Starter Is Ready to Bake With?

Your starter is becoming established when you notice:

• Bubbles throughout the starter
• A pleasant fermented or slightly tangy aroma
• Visible rising after feeding
• A predictable rise-and-fall pattern
• Increasing activity after each feeding

A strong, established sourdough starter should eventually rise predictably after feeding.

For best baking results, use your starter when it is active, bubbly, and near its peak.

What Temperature Is Best for Activating My Starter?

Temperature can make a significant difference in how quickly your starter becomes active.

For best results, keep your starter around 75–80°F.

If your kitchen is cooler, activation may take longer.

Good locations can include on top of the refrigerator, near—but not directly against—a warm appliance, inside a turned-off oven with the light on, or inside a temperature-controlled proofing box or starter warmer.

If using your oven light, check the temperature first. Some oven lights can make the inside of the oven surprisingly warm.

Avoid excessive heat.

High temperatures can damage the living microorganisms in your starter.

What If My Starter Is Very Thick?

A thick starter is normal.

Different types and brands of flour absorb different amounts of water.

Your starter should resemble a thick batter or paste that can still be thoroughly stirred.

If the mixture is so dry that you cannot stir it or fully combine the ingredients, add additional filtered water 1 tablespoon at a time until you reach a thick, stirrable consistency.

Avoid adding large amounts of additional water all at once.

What If My Starter Isn't Doubling?

Don't give up on your starter too quickly.

Freeze-dried sourdough starter can take several days to fully wake up and establish a predictable fermentation cycle.

Look for small signs of fermentation:

• Tiny bubbles
• Changes in aroma
• Slight expansion
• A lighter, airier texture
• Increasing activity after each feeding

Continue feeding consistently and keep your starter warm.

The culture should become stronger and more predictable with regular feeding.

When Can I Start Using My Starter for Baking?

For the best results, wait until your starter is consistently active and predictably rising after feeding.

A starter that rises and then begins to fall is showing you that it has completed a fermentation cycle.

Try to use your starter for baking at or near its peak activity.

If your starter is still sluggish or taking more than 24 hours to show activity, continue feeding and give it more time to become established.

When Can I Put My Starter in the Refrigerator?

Keep your newly activated starter at room temperature until it is consistently active and predictable.

Once your starter is reliably rising after feeding, you can transition it to refrigerator storage.

If you bake frequently, you can keep your starter at room temperature and feed it regularly.

If you bake occasionally, storing your starter in the refrigerator can make maintenance easier.

How to Maintain Your Starter in the Refrigerator

Feed your starter and allow fermentation activity to begin before placing it in the refrigerator.

For routine maintenance, feed your refrigerated starter approximately once a week.

When you're ready to bake:

Remove your starter from the refrigerator.

Keep 60 g of starter and discard the remainder.

Feed with:

• 60 g unbleached flour
• 60 g room-temperature filtered water

Keep the starter at room temperature until it becomes active.

Depending on how long your starter has been refrigerated, it may take more than one feeding to return to full activity.

Can I Make My Sourdough Starter More Sour?

Yes.

Once your starter is fully established, you can develop a stronger sourdough flavor by allowing your dough—not necessarily your starter—to ferment longer.

For a deeper, more developed sourdough flavor, place your shaped dough in the refrigerator for a cold ferment of up to 3 days before baking.

The longer refrigerated fermentation allows additional organic acids and flavor compounds to develop.

Important Sourdough Starter Reminders

Always use a clean jar and clean utensils.

Keep your starter loosely covered so fermentation gases can escape.

Use room-temperature filtered water whenever possible.

Never use hot water to feed your starter.

Use unbleached flour for feeding.

Never use a starter that develops fuzzy mold or unusual pink, orange, or red discoloration.

If your starter fails to activate after following the instructions and troubleshooting recommendations, please contact us. We're happy to help and can provide a replacement bag when needed.

For additional sourdough tips, recipes, and troubleshooting help, visit our customer help and recipe blog:

My Rustic Roots Sourdough Help & Recipes

My Rustic Roots Baker's Tip

Consistency matters more than perfection.

Your sourdough starter may not look exactly like another baker's starter.

Different flours, kitchen temperatures, water sources, and feeding routines can all affect how a starter looks and behaves.

Keep your starter warm, feed it consistently, and give the living culture time to become established.

Before long, you'll have an active sourdough starter ready to use for homemade bread, pizza crust, rolls, focaccia, and all your favorite sourdough recipes.

Happy baking! 🤎

The team at My Rustic Roots