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How to make a gluten free sourdough starter from scratch, step by step. Make it for love of the taste or for lack of commercial yeast. Get started today!

Active and bubbling light brown sourdough starter in glass jar.
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Why use wild yeast in this sourdough starter recipe?

Commercial yeast, like the instant yeast granules that we use in our gluten free bread recipe and many other gluten free bread recipes, is a single, isolated strain of yeast.

A pure “wild yeast” starter contains no commercial yeast at all. A wild yeast sourdough starter is great when you can't get your hands on commercial yeast because the cupboards are bare.

Once it's “active,” a sourdough starter can be used to create sourdough breads of all kinds. I have a whole chapter of pure sourdough breads in my bread book, GFOAS Bakes Bread.

Those recipes are more complex, and use more than just flour and water. They use my gluten free bread flour blend which contains some harder-to-source ingredients. This recipe is for a simple, liquid wild yeast gluten free sourdough starter, and the recipes are not interchangeable.

It does take time to cultivate, though, to allow the fermentation process to mature, so it's not a quick fix. At first, you must take action every 24 hours. Even after it's active, it must be maintained by being refreshed at least once a week. Otherwise, it may become inactive or over-active and spoiled.

Light brown starter in glass jar being fed with spring water and gluten free flours, and then being mixed with a nonreactive spoon.

Tools and ingredients needed to make a gluten free sourdough starter

What gluten free flours should I use to make a gf sourdough starter?

I have always found it easiest to create a sourdough starter using a combination of sweet white sorghum flour and teff flour, and following it up with our gum-free gluten free flour blend. I have also successfully made a starter using other types of flours like brown rice flour, and I have read good things about using buckwheat flour.

What kind of water do I use for a sourdough starter?

You will need to use bottled filtered water or at least distilled water. Regular tap water contains chlorine which will kill yeast. Make sure that all of your tools that were washed with tap water are dried completely.

What is the right container and spoon for mixing and storing a sourdough starter?

You will also need a nonreactive container like a clean jar and spoon. Stainless steel is nonreactive, and it's really fine. In an abundance of caution, I tend to avoid all metal, especially before the starter is fully active, so a glass mason jar is great. But don't make yourself crazy.

image from above of light brown liquid with small bubbles in it in glass jar on black surface

Troubleshooting your gluten free sourdough starter

My wild yeast gf starter hasn't become active at all

Yeast bread baking is an art as well as a science, and has a (sometimes very frustrating) learning curve. Creating a pure wild yeast sourdough starter is doubly so. The most important ingredient is patience

If you do have a bit of commercial yeast on hand, you can add a few grams to the mixture to give your starter a boost. Over time, the commercial yeast will be replaced by wild yeast.

If you're tempted to try to increase the ambient temperature surrounding your starter in an effort to help it grow, you can try lining a heating pad with multiple layers of towels and keeping it on low. Be careful, though, because all yeast will die at very high temperatures.

Hand holding glass jar with foamy very light brown liquid showing a rise line after the starter rose overnight.

My wild yeast starter hasn't doubled

The doubling sometimes happens so quickly and can be so fragile with this type of simple wild yeast gluten free starter that I couldn't even manage to get a photo of it as doubled.

If you assume it must have doubled because it's so active, try noticing whether there is any residue on the jar above the top of mixture that looks like it could have been left from a risen starter level. You can see in the photo above that there's a “rise line” that is above a cleaner section of the jar.

It also might be worth proceeding with a small-yield recipe. It depends upon whether or not you're willing to risk wasting some ingredients. You can also make crackers if the mixture doesn't rise! 

I think my gf sourdough starter has gone bad

Remember, this is essentially a controlled rot of ingredients using available wild yeast. Don't take chances with your health.

If you see something in your starter at any point that has a color you don't recognize, or the odor is at all disturbing and different, please discard it and begin again.

I forgot to feed or refresh my sourdough starter

Honestly, it's probably just fine. Don't listen to anyone who tells you that you have to feed your starter every single day, or that you have to start over again if you miss a step.

If you suspect that something has gone wrong, start again if you can. You don't want to throw good money after bad.

There's a strange liquid on top of my wild yeast sourdough starter

It's called “hooch” and you can stir it back in, then discard and feed or just feed, depending upon which step of the process you're completing. I prefer to drain off the liquid because it makes for a more sour starter, and my family doesn't love that.

How can I use this gluten free sourdough starter in baking?

The most common use of a sourdough starter is sourdough bread. Here is a link to our recipe for gluten free sourdough bread, which you will use to make yeast bread without any sort of commercial yeast.

A cut in half white bread bread, sitting on top of a wooden cutting board with crumbs from the cut crust
Gluten Free Sourdough Bread Recipe

FAQs

The process of making a sourdough starter is unlike almost anything else you'll probably ever do in your kitchen. Here are answers to some of the most common questions about this whole process. Once you understand it, the steps become much more intuitive.

What is a wild yeast sourdough starter?

A wild yeast sourdough starter, gluten free or otherwise, is a combination of flour and non-chlorinated water that is combined to creative an environment conducive to the growth of the naturally occurring yeast that is all around us and in gluten free flours.
It's essentially a controlled rot, like kombucha, but if you think of it like that, you may not ever want to make it so let's move on. When yours is good and active, as described in the recipe card below, you'll be ready to bake fresh gluten free sourdough bread with it!

Are all sourdough starters gluten free?
What does it mean to “feed” a starter?
What are the best gluten free flours to use to build a sourdough starter?

Gluten Free Sourdough Starter Recipe

5 from 52 votes
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Resting time: 7 days
Yield: wild yeast sourdough starter
Learn all the details about how to make a wild yeast gluten free sourdough starter from scratch, step by step. Taste the true mix of yeast in your area, and use it to make gf bread or whatever you like!

Equipment

  • Glass jar or ceramic (must be nonreactive; no metal)
  • Nonreactive spoon made of wood or silicone (must be nonreactive; no metal)
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Ingredients 

To Create The Starter: per day, for 5 to 7 days

  • 1 cup (120 g) whole grain gluten free flour, (See Recipe Notes for info about selecting flours)
  • 1 cup (8 fluid ounces) spring water or distilled water, at room temperature

To Refresh The Starter: once per week, indefinitely, and before/after using

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Instructions 

Creating the starter: Morning of Day One: Beginning.

  • In a nonreactive container like a glass or ceramic jar, place 1/2 cup (about 60 grams) whole grain gluten free flour(s) and 1/2 cup (4 fluid ounces) spring or distilled water.
  • Using a nonreactive mixing spoon (like a wooden or silicone spoon), mix to combine well.
  • Cover the container loosely, and allow to sit on the counter at room temperature for 8 to 12 hours.

Creating the starter: Evening of Day 1: Building.

  • Remove the cover of the container, and add another 1/2 cup (about 60 grams) whole grain gluten free flour(s) and 1/2 cup (4 fluid ounces) spring or distilled water.
  • Using a nonreactive mixing spoon (like a wooden or silicone spoon), mix to combine well.
  • Cover the container loosely, and allow to sit on the counter at room temperature for 8 to 12 hours.

Creating the starter: Morning of Day 2: Building.

  • Remove the cover of the container, and add another 1/2 cup (about 60 grams) whole grain gluten free flour(s) and 1/2 cup (4 fluid ounces) spring or distilled water.
  • Using a nonreactive mixing spoon (like a wooden or silicone spoon), mix to combine well.
  • Cover the container loosely, and allow to sit on the counter at room temperature for 8 to 12 hours.

Creating the starter: Evening of Day 2: Building.

  • Remove the cover of the container, and add another 1/2 cup (about 60 grams) whole grain gluten free flour(s) and 1/2 cup (4 fluid ounces) spring or distilled water.
  • Using a nonreactive mixing spoon (like a wooden or silicone spoon), mix to combine well.
  • Cover the container loosely, and allow to sit on the counter at room temperature for 8 to 12 hours.

Creating the starter: Morning and Evening of Days 3 through 7 and beyond: Building and/or Discarding/Building:

  • Remove the cover of the container, and inspect the contents by tapping the jar on the counter to see if bubbles begin to break the surface of the mixture, and smelling it to see if it has any sour odor at all.
  • If it does bubble and have an odor, discard any relatively clear liquid that has accumulated on top (called “hooch”) + about 1/3 of the volume.
  • Then feed it: Add another 1/2 cup (about 70 grams) gum-free gluten free flour and 1/2 cup (4 fluid ounces) spring or distilled water.
  • Using a nonreactive mixing spoon (like a wooden or silicone spoon), mix to combine well.
  • If it doesn’t bubble and have an odor, do not discard but feed with 1/2 cup whole grain flour and 1/2 cup water as directed above.
  • Cover the container loosely, and allow to sit on the counter at room temperature for 8 to 12 hours.

When is the starter ready to use?

  • The starter is ready to use once it has ever doubled in size, and you have been feeding and discarding for at least one whole day.
  • The doubling is easily disturbed, though, and typically won’t last for very long. It just has to have occurred for you to confidently use it in a bread-baking recipe.
  • Before using the starter, you should have "fed" or refreshed it within approximately the previous 12 hours.
  • After using the properly fed starter, refresh it (see the next step for instructions), allow it to sit covered on the counter for about 12 hours, and then refrigerate it until it’s ready to be refreshed or used.

Refreshing (feeding) your active/mature starter.

  • An active starter can be used for baking, then refreshed and stored, covered, in your refrigerator for about a week.
  • After about a week, you should refresh it. Here's how you do that.
  • Refresh your mature starter by removing it from the refrigerator and discarding about 1/3 of the volume (including any clear liquid or hooch from the top).
  • Next, add 1/2 cup (70 grams) gum-free gluten free flour and 1/2 cup (4 fluid ounces) spring water or distilled water. Mix with a nonreactive spoon.
  • Cover the starter and allow it to sit on the counter for about 12 hours before returning it to the refrigerator.
  • Repeat the process every week for the life of the starter.

Video

Notes

About the flour you use to create the starter.
The best whole grain flours for a gluten free wild yeast starter are: A combination of sweet white sorghum flour & teff flour; brown rice flour; buckwheat flour.
About the flour you use to refresh the starter.
You can continue to use the same whole grain flour to refresh and maintain the starter, but it will affect the flavor and color of the baked goods you make with it.

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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How to make a gluten free sourdough starter from scratch, step by step. Make it for love of the taste or for lack of commercial yeast. Get started today!

About Nicole Hunn

Hi, I’m Nicole. I create gluten free recipes that really work and taste as good as you remember. No more making separate meals when someone is GF, or buying packaged foods that aren’t good enough to justify the price. At Gluten Free on a Shoestring, “good, for gluten free” just isn’t good enough!

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157 Comments

  1. Emily D says:

    Why is it important to use a Xantham free flour? Can you use cup 4 cup?

    1. Nicole Hunn says:

      Please read the post, Emily, for the most full explanation I have. You cannot use Cup4Cup, no.