A sourdough starter is a big commitment. It’s essentially a Tamagotchi toy for adults that will inevitably take up more of your time and attention than you ever imagined. But the commitment is more than worth it. Making your own sourdough bread offers nearly limitless possibilities for personalization (not to mention it makes your house smell like heaven all day long). One of the easiest ways to customize your sourdough is to use different types of flour. But this begs the question: Is one type of flour better than the other?
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 The Regular Chef | 2020-05-22 22:21:16 |  178,152 Views |
Which flour is best for a sourdough starter?
Flour serves as food for the yeast and bacteria that gather in a starter and honestly any type of wheat or rye flour will do. Yes you can make a successful sourdough starter with basically any type of flour you choose as long as it has enough gluten to hold air bubbles. That said different types of flour will cause slight variations in your starter especially in terms of how long it takes to mature sourdough and how the finished bread will taste. For best results the answer is not to use just one type of flour but rather to use a combination.
The most effective sourdough starters use a 50/50 mix of whole wheat and white flour. To understand the difference between the two we need to look at the structure of grains. A grain kernel is made up of three parts. At the heart of the kernel is the germ which is the seed of the plant. Surrounding the germ is the endosperm a thick layer that is mainly made up of carbohydrates and serves as a food source for the plant. Finally there is the bran which refers to the hard outer shell of the kernel.
Whole wheat flour contains all parts of the grain kernel. White flour on the other hand is made from only the endosperm. White flour includes both all-purpose flour and bread flour while whole wheat flour includes both whole wheat and rye. Each variety has beneficial properties for sourdough. Whole wheat flour contains more nutrients for yeast and bacteria but white flour is better for forming a strong gluten network.
