Is your sourdough starter sluggish, separated, or smelling a bit strange? Don’t panic. This troubleshooting guide helps you diagnose common starter mishaps-from hunger signs like hooch to temperature stalls-so you can revive your wild yeast and get back to baking beautiful loaves.
Not sure which symptom is yours? Try the visual What’s Wrong With My Loaf? guide – match it to the fix in one click.
More Troubleshooting Topics
Crust & ShapeCrafting the ultimate golden, crackly blister.
Rise & Structure ProblemsMastering the mechanics of a perfect rise.
Sourdough in Hot, Humid ClimatesTaming wild yeast when the heat is on.
Crumb & TexturePerfecting the interior matrix of your loaf.Swipe to see more categories
Every beginner guide tells you to drop a spoonful of starter in water and watch what happens. King Arthur’s own bakers tested that advice and found it fails – here’s the science of why, and the three signs that actually tell you your starter is ready.
A starter that just sits there, refusing to bubble, is one of the most common – and fixable – beginner problems. Here’s what’s usually going wrong and the small changes that get it rising again.
A thin, watery starter with a layer of dark liquid on top looks alarming, but it almost always just means your starter is hungry. Here’s why hooch forms and the quick fix.
That sharp acetone or vinegar smell coming from the jar is startling the first time you catch it. Here’s what’s actually happening inside your starter and how to get it smelling sweet again.
