Sorghum Sourdough Starter (Gluten-Free)

5 from 3 votes

Sorghum Sourdough Starter (Gluten-Free)

Gluten-free sourdough starter is easy to make once you learn the ins and outs and the bread you make with it is delicious! Sorghum flour is one of the best choices for a starter that is gluten-free.

Prep Time14

Total Time14

Course: Sourdough starter

Cuisine: European

Keyword: Gluten-Free Sorghum Starter, Sorghum flour sourdough starter, Sorghum Starter

Servings: starter

Calories: 141kcal

Author: Natasha Levai

Cost: 5

Ingredients

sorghum flour, not millet or amaranth, those are different
water, I am using tap water

Instructions

On day 1 mix 20g of sorghum flour and 20g of water in a glass jar. You can use any kind of utensil for stirring.
Cover the glass jar with a loosely attached lid or cheesecloth fixed with a rubber band (keeps bugs out better) and let it sit for 24 hours.
Keep the jar at room temperature or in a warm spot away from direct sunlight and food sources.
On day 2 check your starter for activity. If you don't see any bubbles, stir the mixture, cover it, and let it sit for another 24 hours.
If you start seeing bubbles on day 2, proceed to the next step!
On day 3 you should start seeing activity in your starter.
Today we will add 20g of sorghum flour and 20g of water to the jar, stir, cover, and let it sit for another 24 hours.
We will not discard anything today.
On day 4 we will start discarding some of the starter.
Take a clean jar and add 10g of your 4 days old starter to it, discarding the rest. It is best to throw away any starter that's younger than 7 days just to be safe.
Add 20g of sorghum flour and 20g of water to the jar, mix, cover, and let it sit for another 24 hours.
On day 5 we will again discard everything but about 20g of starter. You don't have to be precise, eyeballing is fine.
This time we will add 40g of flour and 40g of water to it. We are giving our bacteria more food at once instead of feeding it twice a day (saves time!).
Mix and cover your starter and let it sit for another 24 hours.
From now on, you will keep repeating the previous step every 24 hours until your starter is ready to bake with!
Keep mixing 10-20g of starter with 40g of flour and 40g of water daily.
You can start collecting the starter discard from day 7 and use it in gluten-free starter discard recipes. The starter will keep in the refrigerator for about 1 month.
Once the starter is mature, you can either keep feeding it daily or keep it in the refrigerator and feed it once a week. If your starter grows mold, you will need to start over, otherwise, it will keep forever!

Video

Notes

Make sure to switch the jar to a clean one once a week to prevent mold growth!

Troubleshooting & Tips

If your starter grew mold - you need to start over. Sometimes if your starter is close to food sources or if you used a dirty spoon to mix it might grow mold in which case you need to throw away the whole thing!

The top of the starter is slightly discolored - it is a normal thing to have your starter change its color on top, no need to worry unless you see mold patches!

My starter is pink - if you use buckwheat flour, your starter might look pink-ish. My sorghum starter also looked slightly pink sometimes which is a normal part of the process.

Water on top - the water is called hooch and is a sign of your starter being hungry. Sometimes the water layer will show up right after you fed the starter which is normal and will go away later on.

A water layer in the middle of the starter - this is a sign that your starter has passed its peak activity and is deflating. No reason to worry!

Nutrition