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    Gluten Free Sourdough Starter

    Apr 4, 2020 · 6 Comments

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    In this recipe I teach you how to make your own gluten free sourdough starter at home. You will simply combine gluten free flour and water to start the fermenting process. You can use this starter to make lots of easy and delicious gluten free sourdough recipes!

    You can purchase sourdough starters, but it's really easy to start your own and will cost a lot less. Starting your own also means you know exactly what's in it and that it's truly gluten free.

    Once your starter is done try my Gluten Free Sourdough Bread, my Gluten Free Sourdough Pizza Crust and my Gluten Free Sourdough Croutons.

    Jump to:
    • Ingredients
    • Instructions
    • Supplies
    • Top Tip
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • More Recipes You Might Enjoy
    • Gluten Free Sourdough Starter

    Ingredients

    Gluten Free Flour
    Hot Water (not too hot to burn, but also warmer than room temperature)

    Instructions

    In a one quart jar place the flour and hot water. The water should be hot but you should still be able to run your hand under it without burning yourself. 

    Stir the flour and water mixture until thoroughly combined.

    Place a lid on top without screwing it down or place a coffee filter and rubber band on top.

    Put the jar in a warm place. I put mine on the mantle above our wood stove. The room should be 70-74 degrees for the starter to grow.

    Everyday around the same time discard half the starter and put another ⅓ cup gluten free flour and ⅓ cup hot water for 6 days. On the 7th day save the discard in a container and place in the fridge. Repeat the process of adding ⅓ cup flour and ⅓ cup hot water. 

    On the 8th day add the discard to yesterday's container. Place this on the counter to bring it back up to room temperature. Feed the starter in the jar another ⅓ cup flour and ⅓ cup hot water. 

    At this point you can leave your starter out and repeat the process of making bread every other day or you can place your starter in the refrigerator. If you place your starter in the refrigerator you will need to feed it ⅓ cup flour and ⅓ cup water once a week to keep it alive.

    Supplies

    Top Tip

    • Gluten free sourdough starters tend to take longer to ferment and start bubbling than a regular starter. Be patient, it will happen.
    • Do not use tap water that has chlorine in it for this recipe. It is best to use filtered water or tap water from a well. Chlorine will hinder the fermenting process of your starter.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Can you eat sourdough bread on a gluten free diet?

    I know that some people who have an intolerance to gluten can eat sourdough that is made from regular wheat flour. That isn't the case for me and may not be the case for you. If you can't tolerate any gluten I wouldn't suggest eating regular sourdough bread.

    This recipe shows you how to make your own gluten free sourdough starter. I love that you are in control of everything that goes into the starter and the environment it is processed in. You will know for sure that it's gluten free and safe for you.

    More Recipes You Might Enjoy

    • Gluten Free Sourdough Bread
    • Gluten Free Sourdough Pizza Crust
    • Gluten Free Sourdough Croutons
    • Gluten Free Apple Cinnamon French Toast Casserole

    I get my ingredients from Thrive Market. Thrive Market has been a game changer for me eating gluten free. They have so many options I can’t get at my rural grocery stores! Use this link to get 25% off your first order!

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    Gluten Free Sourdough Starter


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    • Author: Elaine VanVleck
    • Total Time: 5 minutes
    • Yield: ¾ cup daily 1x
    • Diet: Gluten Free
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    Description

    In this post I show you how to make an easy gluten free sourdough starter. It's so simple to start the process with gluten free flour and water! This sourdough starter makes the best bread!


    Ingredients

    Scale

    ⅓ cup Gluten Free Flour
    ⅓ cup Hot Water (not too hot to burn, but also warmer than room temperature)


    Instructions

    In a one quart jar place the flour and hot water. The water should be hot but you should still be able to run your hand under it without burning yourself. 

    Stir the flour and water mixture until thoroughly combined.

    Place a lid on top without screwing it down or place a coffee filter and rubber band on top.

    Put the jar in a warm place. I put mine on the mantle above our wood stove. The room should be 70-74 degrees for the starter to grow.

    Everyday around the same time discard half the starter and put another ⅓ cup gluten free flour and ⅓ cup hot water for 6 days. On the 7th day save the discard in a container and place in the fridge. Repeat the process of adding ⅓ cup flour and ⅓ cup hot water. 

    On the 8th day add the discard to yesterday's container. Place this on the counter to bring it back up to room temperature. Feed the starter in the jar another ⅓ cup flour and ⅓ cup hot water. 

    At this point you can leave your starter out and repeat the process of making bread every other day or you can place your starter in the refrigerator. If you place your starter in the refrigerator you will need to feed it ⅓ cup flour and ⅓ cup water once a week to keep it alive.

    • Prep Time: 5 minutes
    • Category: Breads
    • Method: Fermenting
    • Cuisine: Gluten Free

    Did you make this recipe?

    Tag @smallfarmbiglife on Instagram and hashtag it #smallfarmbiglife

    More Gluten Free Recipes

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    • Gluten Free Mother's Day Recipe Ideas

    Sharing is caring!

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    Comments

    1. sandra says

      December 17, 2024 at 7:01 am

      after I put the 8th day discard into the container in the fridge, what do I do with the container I left out? does that get thrown out?

      Reply
      • smallfarmbiglife says

        December 17, 2024 at 2:01 pm

        Hi Sandra. The container you have left gets fed again so you can produce more sourdough starter the next day. When you reach a point where you have enough starter or want to skip days you can feed the starter you have left again and then put it in the fridge to slow down the fermentation process.

        Reply
    2. Nancy Curtis says

      April 29, 2025 at 2:59 pm

      What do I do with the rest of the jar that has been kept at room temperature after I add the discard to the jar from the fridge on the 8th day?

      Reply
      • smallfarmbiglife says

        May 03, 2025 at 12:14 pm

        Hi Nancy. I feed the jar at room temperature again so I can keep making starter for more batches of bread. If you don't want to make more starter I would place the starter in the refrigerator until you're ready to continue to use it for making starter. ~Elaine

        Reply
    3. Sheila says

      June 06, 2025 at 9:20 am

      What do you mean by you can contnue the process of making bread every other day?

      Reply
      • smallfarmbiglife says

        June 06, 2025 at 11:56 am

        If you continue to feed and remove from your sourdough starter you should have enough starter to make bread every other day. The starter doesn't make enough to make bread every day.

        Reply

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