Gluten Free Sourdough Starter Recipe
Learn how to make a gluten free sourdough starter from scratch and bake delicious gluten free sourdough bread in just 5-7 days!
Because of high demand, we have created this tutorial for those that have wheat sensitivities, gluten intolerance or celiac disease to be able to make your own gluten free sourdough bread.
And don't worry about bland, dry, crumbly bread. The gluten free sourdough bread recipe that we have developed makes the most soft, sliceable and delicious gluten free bread!
The process is very simple so let's get started!
What you'll need
The ingredients needed to make this gluten free sourdough starter are:
- brown rice flour
- water
We choose to use brown rice flour because it is inexpensive and readily available, but you can use any gluten free flour of your choice.
You will need measuring cups, a glass jar with a loose fitting lid and a rubber band to mark the level of starter in the jar.
How to make a gluten free sourdough starter
Day 1: Add ½ cup brown rice flour and ¼ cup of water to a clean jar. Stir, cover loosely and let it sit at room temperature for 24 hours.
Day 2: Stir the starter, cover loosely and let it sit at room temperature for another 24 hours.
Day 3: Add ½ cup brown rice flour and ¼ cup of water to the jar. Stir, cover loosely and let it sit at room temperature for 24 hours.
The photos below were taken on day 3 before the starter was fed. You can see lots of bubbles on the sides of the jar with very little bubbles on the surface of the starter.
Day 4-7: Discard half of the starter from the previous day and add ½ cup brown rice flour and ¼ cup of water to the jar. Stir, cover loosely and let it sit at room temperature for 24 hours. Use a rubber band to mark the level of the starter right after it is fed.
You should expect to see bubbles on the sides of the jar, but little to none on top of the starter.
The starter is ready to use for baking when it rises by 25-30% in the jar after a feeding. Depending on the temperature, this could take anywhere from 6-12 hours. Warmer temperatures will cause the starter to grow faster.
Tips for success
TIP 1: Sourdough starters grow best at room temperature. Somewhere around 70°F is great. If it's colder than that in your kitchen, your progress will be slower. Be patient, I promise that it will take hold if you trust the process.
TIP 2: You don't need to purchase special rice flour to feed your starter IF you have a high speed blender or a grain mill. I used my high speed blender to make flour from brown rice to get my gluten free starter going. Just blend until it is as fine as possible!
TIP 3: Cover the jar loosely. I lay the lid on the jar without securing it. The starter needs to be able to "breathe" so don't screw a lid on too tightly. You can also use a piece of thick fabric with a rubber band to secure it in place.
TIP 4: Pick morning OR night to feed your starter to make it easy to remember.
TIP 5: Save the discarded starter in a separate jar in the fridge. When there is enough, you can make gluten free sourdough discard crackers! (recipe coming soon)
How to maintain a gluten free sourdough starter
Keep the gluten free sourdough starter stored in the fridge until you are ready to bake. The night before you plan to mix your dough, remove it from the fridge and feed it the amount needed to make your gluten free sourdough recipe with. Once a week, discard half of the starter and refresh with ½ cup gluten free flour and ¼ cup water and place back into the fridge until you are ready to bake.
How to make Gluten Free Sourdough Starter
INGREDIENTS
- 6 cups brown rice flour
- water
INSTRUCTIONS
- Day 1: Add ½ cup brown rice flour and ¼ cup of water to a clean jar. Stir, cover loosely and let it sit at room temperature for 24 hours.
- Day 2: Stir the starter, cover loosely and let it sit at room temperature for another 24 hours.
- Day 3: Add ½ cup brown rice flour and ¼ cup of water to the jar. Stir, cover loosely and let it sit at room temperature for 24 hours.
- Day 4-7: Discard half of the starter from the previous day and add ½ cup brown rice flour and ¼ cup of water to the jar. Stir, cover loosely and let it sit at room temperature for 24 hours. Use a rubber band to mark the level of the starter right after it is fed. The starter is ready to use for baking when it rises by 25-30% in the jar after a feeding. Depending on the temperature, this could take anywhere from 6-12 hours. Warmer temperatures will cause the starter to grow faster.
NOTES
- How to maintain going forward: Keep the gluten free sourdough starter stored in the fridge until you are ready to bake. The night before you plan to mix your dough, remove it from the fridge and feed it the amount needed to make your gluten free sourdough recipe with. Once a week, discard half of the starter and refresh with ½ cup gluten free flour and ¼ cup water and place back into the fridge until you are ready to bake.
- Discarded sourdough starter can be kept in a separate container in the fridge and used to make gluten free sourdough discard recipes.
As a person with celiac who grew up in the San Francisco area, sourdough bread is one of the foods I miss the most! I’m really excited to learn how make my own. You only list flour and water as ingredients, but does this also require some kind of yeast & bacteria additive to grow from? I’m only on day 3, but mine just looks like bubbleless paste. 😕
Hi Monika, keep feeding it. You probably won't see bubbles for a couple more days - Trust the process! It will look more like holes and fluffy (like the picture), rather than bubbly.
Never mind! It doubled last night all on its own. I’m so excited! Monika
Can you use the gluten free sourdough in any of your sourdough recipes?
Hi Barbara. Are you asking if you can use gluten free flour and the gluten free starter with the sourdough recipes?
Great instructions!
I've made gluten free sourdough for awhile now, and love your range of recipes!
In my old copy of the Tassajara Bread Book, brother Brown suggests using any several day old grain (or before!) left overs as a starter or in baked goods.
This is a good way to use quinoa, Rice or buckwheat if you've made a big batch, and don't have enough flour for your recipe. I am starting some GF Naan, using sorgham and rice flours with my starter and your recipe ❤️
I’d like to share some of my starter with a friend. How do I split it and keep them both going?
Hi Becca! I would feed your starter and after it has risen, pour about 1/2 cup into a new jar. Give this to your friend and let them know they need to feed it to keep it going!
Very unclear, 6 cups rice flour? I only used 3 cups, 1/2 cup on days 1,3, 4, 5, 6, and 7. Equals 3 cups Also it was very dry I had to add more water.
Hi Lisa, We put 6 cups of brown rice flour, even though you only use about half of that the first 7 days because you will need more rice flour to maintain the starter after the 7 days. This is to ensure you have enough rice flour.
I a did 1/2 cup fine brown rice flour and 1/4 cup water and it was dry and crumbly. I ended up adding another 1/4 cup of water to get a thick mix. I'm hoping for the best.
How long and at what temp do you cook the sourdough for?
THe clearest directions on making sourdough starter I have ever seen. Cant wait to get startee, thank you!
Can the discard be kept in the fridge if not using/feeding it everyday?
We put ours in the fridge and it completely molded
Yes you can put it in the fridge. It sounds like the starter was contaminated somehow.
I made my own gluten-free starter out of sorghum flour and on day 2 it crippled in size and is bubbly. is this normal? took my whole wheat starter 12 days to start looking like a starter.
Hi Rebekah, flours all act differently so I would keep going for at least 7 days to see what happens.
I had previously purchased a gluten free starter and ended up throwing it out. When I saw yours I decided to give it a try. I "trusted" the process, and it worked! I used it in your recipe for the gluten free sourdough bread, and it turned out great. I am really glad to have found a gluten free starter that works!