My sourdough starter from a friend versus my own from scratch

I tried two ways to get a sourdough starter going. A friend gave me a bit of his mature starter, which was about 6 months old. At the same time, I tried making my own from just flour and water. The one from my friend was ready to bake with in just 2 days. My own took over a week and a half to get strong, and my first loaf with it was flat and dense. The friend's starter made a loaf that rose high and had big holes. I think the key was that his starter had a strong, balanced mix of yeast and bacteria already. My new one took time to build that up. It was a clear win for using an established starter. Has anyone else had a big difference in results like this?

2 comments

2 Comments

harper_wells11d ago

Yeah, that's totally normal. A mature starter is a whole ecosystem that just needs food. Starting from scratch is like trying to grow a forest from a single seed. The friend's starter had all the right microbes already working together. Your new one had to fight off bad stuff and find a balance, which is why it took so long and gave you a flat loaf. I always tell people to get a starter from someone if they can. It saves a ton of time and frustration.

verar6311d ago

Watched my neighbor try the same thing last spring. She got a bit of starter from a bakery and her own jar of flour and water mix. The bakery starter made a good loaf in three days, but her from-scratch one just sat there like glue for over a week, and even then it made a brick.