Want to know the secret to really delicious gluten free bread? It all starts with a good gluten free sourdough starter!
Why use a gluten free sourdough starter?
Gluten free bread suffers from one big issue… the lack of gluten! Gluten provides structure that is usually replaced in gluten free breads with starches and additives. However, starches and additives aren’t very tasty.
Baking with sourdough improves the taste and texture of gluten free bread by:
- Breaking down whole grain flours so that they become lighter and stickier.
- Providing a delicious nutty flavour that comes from using wholegrain flours rather than bland white flours.
- Adding the complex sourdough flavour.
Fun Sourdough Facts:
- The flavour and properties of your sourdough starter are based on the local strains of yeast and bacteria. This variability in yeast influences the flavour and leavening time, which is why every region of the world will produce a very different type of bread. Some areas have famous strains (Montreal, San Francisco) but most regions should be able to make a decent sourdough starter. However, poor air quality might result in a bad tasting, or under active culture. If you have a hepa air filter in your home then it might be difficult to catch a sourdough culture. In that case, I recommend making a quick sourdough starter.
- It only takes about 24 hours for a store-bought culture to be taken over by local yeast and bacteria, so that is not a good solution for poor air-quality. However, buying
(affiliate link) a sourdough culture is a good way to avoid taking 5 days to achieve an active culture. - Gluten free sourdough culture has the tendency to get a pink or blue hue based on the type of flour and yeasts and molds in your home. While it’s not a good thing… it’s not bad unless it smells bad. The colour should go away as your starter becomes more active. Don’t use a bad smelling or moldy starter… if it’s gone bad, then you have to throw it away and start over. (Note: for some reason my buckwheat sourdough always turns a bit pink-ish, but other flours don’t.)
(affiliate link) a sourdough culture is a good way to avoid taking 5 days to achieve an active culture.Sourdough Feeding:
- I only make bread about once a month, so I usually just start my gluten free starter from scratch every time. It only takes me a few days to catch a vigorous starter because my house is full of the yeasts and bacteria needed for sourdough.
- If you are baking bread more regularly, you may want to keep your sourdough starter going. If you keep your starter out on the counter then it will need a daily feeding. Feed it half of its volume in water and flour. For example: if you have 1 cup of starter, then you will need to feed it 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of flour daily.
- If you store your starter in the refrigerator then it will need feeding every 5 days.
Gluten Free Sourdough Starter
Learn how to make a healthy gluten free sourdough starter in your own home! It’s the secret to amazing gluten free bread, improving both the taste and the texture. Use your favourite flour: rice, oat or buckwheat.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Sourdough
- Cuisine: Gluten free
Scale
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup whole grain gluten free flour (see notes)
- 1/4 cup filtered water (do not use chlorinated tap water)
Instructions
- Start by adding equal parts of water and flour into a glass container. This could be 1 tbsp of flour and water, or 1 cup of flour and water. It really depends on how much starter you need.
- Mix the flour and water together with a fork. Cover the container with a tea towel and leave it to ferment at room temperature (your kitchen counter is perfect).
- Stir with a fork twice a day until it is actively bubbling. This usually takes 3-5 days.
- If you want to keep the starter going for continuous baking, see the section above about feeding your starter.
Notes
- Buckwheat and teff flours are great at catching a sourdough starter. It only takes about 2 days to get a good vigorous starter with buckwheat or teff flour. However you will still be able to make a good starter with rice, oat flour, millet, or sorghum
, it will just take up to 5 days.
- The 1:1 ratio of flour and water is approximate. Some flours will absorb more water (for example buckwheat and white rice) some flours absorb less water (oat and brown rice). Adjust the recipe so that you have a thick, yet still pourable consistency.
- Most of my recipes start with 1-2 cups of active sourdough starter, so I recommend making a large amount of starter, and keeping it going.
- I recommend using my gluten free bread flour mix for all of your gluten free breads, however, don’t use it for your starter. You just want to use wholegrain flour or white rice flour for your starter.
Keywords: starter, buckwheat, rice, sorghum, millet, quinoa, teff, bread
Hi Emillie,
I am trying to make a starter using your instructions and buckwheat flour. Here was my start: https://photos.app.goo.gl/aHK69eiNLd6pffsGA
After about 60 hours it looked like this: https://photos.app.goo.gl/KLLCs3jEkqR9SRx38.The flour is so grainy and dark. I cannot tell if it is getting bubbly or not. After two day it started to smell rather funky. Since I have zero experience with this I don’t know what to look for or it it’s done. Can you offer any advice? I live in Orlando FL.
What buckwheat flour do you use? How do I know when it’s done…or if it’s even working?
Thanks!
Unfortunately, the second photo doesn’t seem to be working. I’ve never had a fail with buckwheat flour. It usually starts to get bubbly on the side of the jar and the top will puff up. If you stir it, you should be able to see a structure of air bubbles. It should also have a sour smell. My bet is that it’s working. I’ve used all different types of buckwheat, though usually I use light buckwheat because my kids prefer a “whiter” bread. 🙂