The sourdough moms are sweeping the nation and I am not even mad about it. To be honest, at first, I was a little hesitant to get into the sourdough fad . . . I am not much of a cook, I would eat cereal every day if my family didn’t actually want something else to eat for dinner. So the idea of making my own bread felt super foreign to me.
Also, if I am being even MORE honest, I thought making bread fit into the hippie homeschool mom category. Turns out, I am homeschooling, so why not jump on the bandwagon and learn how to feed my family?
The Sourdough Trend
So why the trend? Why all of a sudden is every Instagram reel and TikTok flooded with people’s “sourdough discard recipes” and people showing off their “pretty loaf”?
I don’t know why everyone else started but I can tell you why I did. Over the last couple of years, my social media has been flooded with the crazy things our government allows in our foods, the unhealthy options, and people who want to help guide us to be healthier.
I could go on the “What the heck are they feeding us?!” speech but I recommend reading labels and seeing what is really in our grocery store food.
Switching to Sourdough
When I realized I could make my own three-ingredient, healthy bread for the family, I thought why the heck not change that one thing? Maybe I am a hippie homeschooler and didn’t know it.
Disclaimer: I am NOT a professional sourdough lady. I have messed up a ton. I still google and ask a ton of questions. I am NOT the sourdough mom on your TikTok feed who makes bread into pretty decorations and then makes 1,342 discard recipes. Also, if you are a professional sourdough lady, please don’t judge me. I legit am your biggest fan.
This is sourdough for beginners and the moms who have 23 activities to take their kids to while also trying to work, take care of themselves and maintain their sanity. I am here as the mom who is like, “Girl, I don’t have time to wash my hair. Why would I have time to make bread?”
I see you, Mom. I see you so well, we should be besties.
How Did I Start?
In true lazy girl fashion for sourdoughing, I went to a sourdough class. I actually took my daughter to this class in hopes she would become my baking buddy. This class was a game-changer . . .
First, we started by eating sourdough with different toppings. (Umm, a class where I get free snacks? Yes, please!) Then, they taught us how to keep the sourdough alive, how to make it, tips, and best of all: We left the class with a 100-year-old sourdough starter to take home and keep alive! (Just think, a Tamagotchi pet — but one that also feeds your family.)
The Lazy Mom Sourdough Method
Here is what I learned and how I make lazy mom sourdough. This isn’t the TikTok sourdough method with 2.4 million followers. This is your tired, next-door neighbor with kids, working, a life all in between trying to make bread. If you can relate, yay, you will do just fine!
1. Get Sourdough Starter
I used the sourdough starter they gave me at the class and I followed the paper instructions they gave me. People sell sourdough starters on Etsy and locally. It is an easy find!
2. Feed the Sourdough Starter
I “feed” it every day with 1/4 cup organic flour and 1/4 cup filtered water. Stir and cover it.
3. Starting a Loaf
When I am ready to get a loaf going, I take a different glass jar and put 1/4 cup of starter, 1/4 cup of water, and 1/4 cup of organic flour. I stir, put a rubber band around the glass to mark the top of the mix, cover it, and then let it sit on the counter. I wait for it to bubble and double in size. (Sometimes it does not exactly double, but it gets bubbly and bigger.)
This process can take anywhere from two to six hours. Some people have mastered the timing on this but I have learned that depending on temperature and weather changes, the rising time differs. Tip: To make it go “faster” I’ll put it in the oven with the light on. The warmth seems to speed it up.
4. Making Dough
I pour the new starter into a big glass bowl with two cups of filtered water and stir. Then, I add four cups of organic flour and one tablespoon of salt. Stir and cover with a damp towel.
5. Lifting the Sourdough
If you are seeing TikToks of sourdough, you probably hear people talking about “stretch and folds.” Welp, this is lazy girl sourdough . . . After letting it sit about 30 minutes in the bowl, I just use a spatula and lift the sourdough around in the bowl. I do it again a couple more times if I remember. Note: I have tested out not lifting it around at all and the bread still came out great, in my opinion.
6. Assess the Dough
I bake my bread about 12-14 hours after I first put all the ingredients together in the bowl. Sometimes the dough has risen, however, sometimes there is not a big rise. If I get to 12 hours and it hasn’t risen, then I let it sit a little more.
7. Adding a Design to the Dough
If you want to make those pretty sourdough designs you see online, you have to score the dough. Scatter flour on your counter, throw the dough on, shape it into a loaf, and then make designs.
I did this a good 15 times until a friend told me that my bread would still look good and taste good without it. Like, hold on, there is an even EASIER way to do this? No flour mess on my counter? The time-consuming shaping and scoring is unnecessary? Just throw it in and go? Ummm, sign me up!
8. Baking the Bread
When I am ready, I preheat my oven to 450 degrees. I throw a piece of parchment paper in my cast iron Dutch oven, dump the sourdough ball in there, and cover it with the lid.
Once it’s in the oven, I set a timer for 55 minutes. When the timer goes off, I remove the lid and let it crisp up for another five minutes.
9. Cool and Enjoy
I was told in the beginning to take the bread out of the Dutch oven and let it sit on a cooling rack for 90 minutes. Sometimes waiting to dive into it is easier said than done!
What Is All This “Discard Stuff”?
You probably have seen sourdough discard recipes while scrolling through social media. So far, we have made crackers and cookies. The cookies were amazing!
Basically, discard is the extra sourdough starter you have in your original jar. After feeding it daily, if you don’t make bread every day then you may start to get a full jar of starter. That is sometimes when people use their starter to make more fun recipes.
Bonus: What Else I Have Learned
- Going on vacation? Put the starter in your refrigerator and it will stay good.
- Made extra bread? Slice it and freeze it. You can pull slices directly from the freezer and put them in the toaster!
- Need a gift idea? Sourdough loaves make the best gifts.
- Want to make it more fun? Throw in mix-ins. We’ve added cheese, pepperonis, Italian seasoning, and even chocolate chips!
Again, I am not a sourdough expert. This is how I make it for my family, which is more doable for me. With only three ingredients, it’s organic and now I have some control over what my kids eat. I hope this inspires someone else to give it a shot!
