A choice between two flours for my sourdough starter

My starter was sluggish, so I had to pick between feeding it with whole wheat flour or rye flour to boost activity. I went with the rye because I read it has more nutrients for the yeast. After just two days of using rye, the starter doubled in size much faster than before. It went from taking 8 hours to rise to only about 5. The bread I baked with it had a better, more open crumb. Has anyone else found one type of flour works best for a slow starter?

3 comments

3 Comments

riley431d ago

So you really saw that much of a difference just by switching to rye? I always thought whole wheat was the go to for a boost, but my starter was kind of lazy last month and I tried rye on a whim. It totally woke up, like it got way more bubbly and active almost overnight. Maybe the whole wheat I had was just old or something, but now I'm sticking with rye for feedings. What brand of rye flour did you end up using?

bell.felix1d agoTop Commenter

Rye can definitely give a starter a quick jolt because it has more simple sugars. Whole wheat is actually a better long-term choice for building a strong, stable culture in my experience. That lazy phase you saw might have been the starter just adjusting to a new food source, not the wheat itself being bad. A consistent feeding schedule with whole grains, not just switching flours, is what really builds a reliable rise. My starter gets sluggish too if I change its diet too suddenly, so I stick with one type of flour to keep it predictable.

uma_taylor471d ago

Maybe the water's mineral content matters more than we talk about.