{From Adrienne – If you love sourdough like I do, but you've done on a gluten-free diet, I have the perfect treat for you.
A recipe for Gluten-Free Sourdough Starter. I'm convinced the gluten is a big health concern for many, but I still love good bread. And while this flax bread is one of our favorites, I‘ve been thinking about sourdough a lot since I found out that I can tolerate fermented foods.
We LOVE the tangy flavor of sourdough and I've been meaning to try my hand at making a gluten-free sourdough bread. Thanks to Tiffany of Don't Waste the Crumbs, I am now that much closer to my goal :)!}
In order to prepare myself for this post, I wanted to put myself into the shoes of someone who is gluten-free.
When most people think “gluten-free,” they think that bread is no longer an option–particularly breads like sourdough.
So in order to be able to empathize with them in their struggle to balance nutrition with their allergies or intolerance… I did some “research”.
Basically I wanted to think about what it would be like to be gluten-free.
And bread-free.
So I ate bread.
Homemade bread.
Two pieces, actually.
With a lot of butter.
And I realized how much I would miss it if I weren't able to eat bread like this on a regular basis.
I'm not trying to rub it in anyone's face – quite the contrary! I know how fortunate my family is to be able to eat whatever we want without breaking out in hives or keeling over in digestive pain.
It saddens me to imagine what it would be like to:
– not be able to walk into my kitchen and slice off a piece of bread whenever I want
– to request the waiter to remove the basket of bread instead of refilling it
– to worry about being sick for days because someone accidentally contaminated a cooking spoon!
I understand your pain.
That's why it truly brings me joy to share with you a way to have your cake–er, bread–and eat it too.
Gluten-free sourdough, baby. Oh yeah.
Imagine capturing wild yeast out of thin air and cultivating it over a period of several days so that without any help at all, it will magically make dough rise and become a beautiful (and relatively inexpensive–) gluten-free loaf of bread.
It really isn't as hard as it sounds!
But it is incredibly healthy! Quite possibly the healthiest bread you can make!
The Benefits of Sourdough
Sourdough is:
– easier to digest
– contains the healthy gut bacteria lactobacillus (the same major player in yogurt and kefir)
– most of the phytic acid is broken down and
– won't cause a spike in blood sugar like traditional bread often does.
If that's not enough to convince you, read more about the amazing benefits of sourdough.
Gluten-free vs. Regular Sourdough
Making a gluten-free sourdough starter isn't any different than making a regular sourdough starter.
– Both start with flour and water.
– Both take a few days and both get bubbly.
– The only real difference comes when you're ready to make sourdough bread and you have to pull out all the various types of gluten-free flours.
Gluten-free sourdough starter can be made in as little as seven days using gluten-free flour, water and a medium-sized bowl. I personally have successfully made gluten-free sourdough starter with brown rice, but I've read others have had success with white rice flour, teff, sorghum or even a gluten-free all-purpose blend.
Gluten-Free Sourdough Starter
Step 1. Combine 1/2 cup of flour (whatever gluten-free flour or blend you like) and a scant 1/2 cup of filtered water in the bowl.
Whisk until smooth and cover with a plate, leaving approximately 1/2″ gap for air to circulate.
Step 2. At least twice a day for the next six days, at regular intervals, add 1/2 cup of flour and scant 1/2 cup of filtered water to the existing starter.
This is called feeding the starter.
You do need to watch your starter carefully.
Here are a three of the most common things that you might notice and what they mean:
- Too Much Starter – If after a few days the starter begins to outgrow the bowl, pour some off to make a batch of sourdough pancakes. Leave at least 1/2 cup of starter in the bowl to continue feeding.
- Liquid At the Top – Liquid may or may not collect at the surface of the starter. Either case is normal. (FYI: the liquid contains more lactobacillus and gives the bread its sourdough taste.)
- No Bubbles – If you do not see bubbles at the top or at the sides of the starter, add a third feeding. Try to keep the feeding intervals equal. For example, 6am, 2pm and 10pm are all equally apart at 8 hours.
Another option is to add one to two tablespoons of water kefir, dairy kefir, kefir whey or kombucha in place of the water to for just one feeding. Since you are adding more bacteria “goodies” to the mix, you are boosting fermentation action.
Like Adrienne, I am fortunate to be blessed with readers who are willing to experiment alongside me. I've been working on sourdough for the past month and collectively there's a lot of helpful tips and ideas to be read. Read the body and comment section of these posts if you run into any problems make your starter. There's a good chance your issue has been discussed!
Step 3. When your starter is very bubbly and creates a dome on top 2-3 hours after each feeding (like the above picture), you are ready to make bread. This is often called the sponge.
I mentioned earlier that I'm leaving the bread making up to Adrienne. My pantry is simply not properly equipped with the various gluten-free flours needed to make a successful loaf of bread.
PS – Do not try to make gluten-free sourdough bread with brown rice flour alone. Trust me.
Instead I've collected a variety gluten-free sourdough bread recipes for you to experiment with. Because in all honesty, all sourdough breads – with or without gluten – are an experiment. A tasty experiment you can top with butter.
Keep in mind that every recipe will be different, calling for different types of flour and possibly using yeast. I've included several sources so that everyone can find the one that suits them best!
(Note: A few of these links are affiliate links. If you click on them and make a purchase, your price will not change, but I might make a commission. Your support is greatly appreciated and helps me keep providing this free resource to you :)!)
Gluten-Free Sourdough Recipes
- Gluten-Free Brown Rice Sourdough
- Artisan Style Sourdough
- Sourdough Bread Boule
- Basic Gluten-Free Sourdough Bread
- Another Basic Gluten-Free Sourdough Loaf
- Rustic Gluten-Free Sourdough
- Sandwich Bread
- An excellent bread recipe, plus recipe adaptations in Sourdough A to Z by GNOWFGLINS
(Adrienne here again. I think this is fabulous and a great jumping off point for tons of healthy creativity in the kitchen. I can't wait to work on Gluten-Free Sourdough for my family. It would be great topped with butter (if you can eat it) or Homemade Nut Butter. Mmmmmm.)
Tiffany is a frugal foodie, balancing the desire to feed her family healthy food while being a good steward of her finances. She realized it was possible to eat nourishing, traditional food on a budget if she made baby-sized changes in the kitchen. She continues to work hard at mastering real foods without going broke and shares her journey at Don’t Waste the Crumbs.
Top Photo Credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/lizdavenportcreative/6778890399/
Amy says
I make bread using kefir and sprouted buckwheat flour. I just mix 4 ounces of flour with enough kefir to make a batter. I leave that in a warm place until it is bubbly. Then I add it to the rest of my flour, with eggs, oil, water, a little ground flax seed, and salt. I let it rise overnight, and usually well into the next day, until it has doubled in size. The bread tastes really good and not particularly sour. My question for the experts is do the bacteria in kefir break down gluten (and similar harmful proteins found in all grains) or does it need the longer process of picking up yeasts from the air? Thanks.
Adrienne says
You can never guarantee that you will remove all of the gluten when doing even a real sourdough process so this would for sure not be enough time.
Lana says
Buckwheat flour naturally gluten free.
Kathy says
milk kefir or water kefir? or does it make a difference? thank you.
Lesley Burt says
I’ve had some success with GF sourdough before but had to give up for a while. I’m coeliac and made all my own good wholemeal bread for 20 years before diagnosis… and I HATE commercial GF bread. Now – I make my own Kombucha regularly, and I wonder, could I utilise the yeast that’s hanging around on the scoby …? What do you think?
Adrienne says
I have never heard of that. But I’m not a kombucha expert. 😉
Rod Barford says
Hi Lesley, as a first-time GF sourdough bread maker and coeliac, just wondering how you went with your own GF sourdough consumption? Did you tolerate it or were there side effects? Prior to diagnosis 3 years ago I was eating commercial wholegrain sourdough (properly made with culture imported from Belgium, not vinegar like most commercial ‘sourdoughs’) daily, but have not eaten it since, but would love to be able to do so.
Darlene says
My starter in bubbling nicely but doesn’t have a sour dough smell. What could be wrong?
Adrienne says
I’m not a sourdough expert…but maybe not the right kind / enough bacteria? I would personally try to bake it and see.
Constance J Day says
My gluten freed starter has liquid on top and smells very strong, is it okay, do I need to start over or just stir it in?
I did not have that problem with my non gluten free starter.
Adrienne says
I am sorry but I’m not a sourdough expert. However, from looking online liquid that is dark can mean the starter is hungry and should be poured off before feeding. The strong smell might be just normal – different starters smell different. Look online and see if you think that your particular smell is OK. Thanks and hope it turns out well!
Eric Brown says
Thank you for this recipe!
My wife had been wanting me to try working with GF Sourdough and provided me with the link to this page. I fed and watered the mix twice a day for a week before using it and it worked really well. I’ve used it twice this past week to make English muffins and sourdough french bread. Tonight I’ll be using it to make a loaf of sandwich bread. Here are some pictures of my results;
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/2320000/Food/sourdough-english.jpg
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/2320000/Food/sourdough-french.jpg
Thanks again for posting this.
-Eric
Adrienne says
So amazing!!!!!!
Brian says
Eric, what is your recipe for english muffins? Are they difficult to make with this?
H Kendall says
I have never seen anything as weird as this starter, looks ok but when you try and use it with the flour for a loaf, it feels more like play dough mixed together!!!!!! I have thrown one (unbaked) out and today tried another but I have no hope. So, I guess it’s all a big hoax because I followed the directions and used my gluten free flour.
Adrienne says
Oh no – I’m so sorry! The author of this post apparently has done it many times. Why did you throw it out and not add more liquid maybe?
H Kendall says
I was just tired of trying and do not understand why (or how) it works without any sweetener to feed the yeast, either. When I added flour to the starter etc to form a loaf, it just became like clay, even with half the flour. Would never try this recipe again.
Adrienne says
Sourdough starters don’t need sugar – the yeast comes from the air.
Stela Relf says
HI,thanks for the recipe:) I stared my sour dough starter 2 days ago and just saw that you are advising not to use brown rice flour but that is what I used. Shoul I add different flour to it or trow it away and start new batch?
Thanks
Adrienne says
Sorry this is late. I have never done it myself but the author said it didn’t work well. Did you happen to keep trying? Interested in what happened.
Lisa says
I believe the post said not to try to make the final bread using only brown rice flour. You definitely can’t do that. You need a mix of flours including high starch flours such as arrowroot, potato starch, and/or tapioca starch. It may be OK to have your starter be only brown rice flour. Just follow one of the gluten free sourdough bread recipes that uses additional flours when making the bread. I started my starter about 5 days ago using both sourghum and brown rice flours. I did sourghum for a few days, then brown rice, and now am back to sourghum. I think the sourghum may be working a bit better. It seems to be doing what it should be. After the first few days it got bubbly and smelled really sour. Now it smells a little sour, but also yeasty, like the yeast smell when baking gluten stuff with packaged yeast. I also seem to be getting the sponge dome now. I’m on day 5. I’ll try and remember to post after I try making bread with it, which I should be able to do soon.
Page says
To answer the multiple questions about Gluten Free Flour. There are 3 very good blends on market which are cup for cup. Namaste, Gluten Free Jules, and Better Batter. I have used all of these with equal success. You simply use one cup for one cup regular flour in a given recipe. Hope this helps. Happy Baking all. Page
Kerry says
King Arthur also makes a great GF flour.
Robert Lyons says
I use potato flakes for starter. They too, are gluten free.
Amy Crume says
Just potatoes flakes and it comes out like sour dough bread? I have tons of organic potato flakes….I want to try this!
Helen says
Hi my starter has a dry surface almost like a film. It smells very strong. Should I be concerned that this dry film like surface is bad bacteria or is this normal? Most pictures and videos I have seen all look shiny and wet on the surface.
Adrienne says
I wouldn’t think that is good. I haven’t been able to get the author to comment here for awhile and I’m not a sourdough expert but I wouldn’t eat it.
Lori says
Hi Helen,
I know your comment is a couple months old, but I think what you’re seeing is normal. Just stir the starter with a fork prior to discarding some starter, and giving water and flour again. From experience, gluten-free sour dough starter takes a little bit to get going. It will smell bad for the first 3-4 days, then when the pH gets just right (for me, around Day 5), the yeast will suddenly begin working and you’ll get a double in size rise. You may see a “rise” on day 2-3, but that is a false rise brought on by the initially present bacteria (which will be overtaken by the yeast when the pH is just right). Hope this helps!
Carrie says
It totally didn’t take 6 days to get a nice dome on my starter. I’m not feeding it today, then will asses tomorrow. But mine seems done after only 3-4 days. I used a gf flour blend I found online(it’s amazing!) and have had the most amazing luck with the combo of flours! I’ll likely be making some pancakes tomorrow to deal with all the starter that has been created!
Thanks so much for these directions!
Sue says
Hi Carrie may I ask what gf flour blend it was please?. I’m terrified of wasting my time and money on something that won’t work so to have someone recommend something that worked for them would be better for me to try.
Sandi says
Carrie, what is the name of the flour you found on line?
Jeannine says
Have you ever used coconut or almond flour to make the starter?
Adrienne says
I haven’t but you should be able to do it.
clulu says
coconut flour is notoriously heavy and will hardly rise at all ive read and experimented so be careful
Adrienne says
Yes I would not recommend a high amount of that flour.
Iverna says
Hi Jeannine, I don’t know if your question has been answered yet. Just in case it hasn’t here’s what I know regarding coconuts.
Coconuts are known for their antiviral, antibacterial, and antifungal properties.
Seeing that sourdough is a fermentation process. Starting, and/or feeding your sourdough with coconut flour is counterproductive.
I hope this helps
Kind regard
Mercedes says
Hi!
I mixed the ingredients for your sourdough starter, but it looks like cookie dough, very dry. It doesn’t look at all like the one in your picture. I used the same quantities as suggested and gf ap flour.
Thanks!
Adrienne says
Hmmm..What is in the AIP flour?
Adriane says
For gluten sourdoughs you want to use a 1:1 ratio of water and flour based on weight not on volume sooo 70 grams of water = 70 grams flour/gf Flour but water and flour weigh differently so 1/4 c Flour does not = 1/4 c water for hydration purposes. I recommend getting a scale and weighing out both! That’ll fix your problem
Mike says
I use Namaste GF flour and found that it works for me to feed the starter with 100g of water and 75g of gluten free flour.
I have been making sourdough bread for years with wheat flour and feed my regular sourdough 1 to 1 by weight but had to adjust my water and gf flour proportions for gluten free starter. I haven’t tried any other flours besides the Namaste so perhaps they might behave differently.
Mercedes says
Hi!
I mixed the water and the gf flour for the sourdough starter yesterday. It seems to be very dry. The consistency is like cookie dough. I added 1/2 cup gf flour and 1/2 cup water, but it doesn’t seem to be right. Please help me! Thank you!
Adrienne says
Hi there. I’m sorry but the author of the post didn’t respond to the last email that I sent her – maybe see if you can find help online?
Acacia says
What GF flour are you using? I just started a sourdough starter using brown rice flour and sorghum flour in equal amounts with water (i.e. 1/4 cup brown rice flour and 1/4 cup water in the morning then 1/4 cup sorghum and 1/4 cup water at night). If you used a general flour blend it has added starch (corn, tapioca, potato) which will change the starter greatly.
Fiona says
Hello,
Love your post; I would like to ask will I be able to use buckwheat or amaranth flour soley?
Thank you so much!
Best,
Fiona
Adrienne says
I think that should be fine!
Mary says
After you make bread do you continue to feed your starter twice a day? Also, do you leave this on the counter or the fridge?
Adrienne says
You should be able to either keep on the counter and feed it or put in the fridge and feed it weekly.
Olivia Pendergast says
HI, I just moved from the States to Kenya so I am a little limited in the things I can get… I can’t get water kefir grains currently so could I use juice from fermented carrots to kick off this starter?
THanks!! Great resource!
Olivia
Adrienne says
I have no idea – sorry. I can see if the post writer can chime in.