Learn how often to feed sourdough starter, when to keep it on the counter or in the fridge, and how to build a simple beginner feeding routine that actually fits your life.
If you keep sourdough starter on the counter, feed it every day or whenever it gets hungry. If you keep it in the fridge, feed it about once a week or before baking. For beginners, the easiest routine is to keep a small starter, feed it consistently, and watch for rise, bubbles, smell, and peak activity instead of only watching the clock.
Choose the routine that sounds most like your life. We’ll show you the simplest starter feeding schedule to follow.
Tap a routine above and we’ll give you a beginner-friendly feeding rhythm.
A sourdough starter is alive. It needs fresh flour and water to stay active, balanced, and strong enough to raise bread dough. Feeding is not just maintenance. It is how you build strength.
When starter gets fresh food, it begins fermenting. It bubbles, rises, reaches peak activity, and eventually falls when it runs out of food. Once you understand that rhythm, starter care gets much easier.
Keep starter on the counter if you bake often or want it active every day. Counter starter usually needs more frequent feeding because it ferments faster at room temperature.
Keep starter in the fridge if you bake occasionally. Cold storage slows fermentation, so the starter can go longer between feedings.
For bread dough, you usually want starter that is active, bubbly, expanded, and near peak after feeding. That means you should feed it before baking and give it enough time to rise.
Use fresh flour and water. Keep the amount manageable so you are not wasting flour.
Use a rubber band or marker so you can see how much it rises.
Look for bubbles, expansion, a pleasant fermented smell, and a strong rise.
Use starter when it is active and expanded, not long after it has collapsed.
You do not need a huge jar of starter. A smaller starter is easier to feed, easier to manage, and wastes less flour.
Recipes give timing, but your starter responds to temperature, flour, hydration, and strength.
Bubbles show activity. Rise shows strength. For bread, you want both.
If the starter rose and collapsed, it probably passed peak and needs fresh food before baking.
In Albuquerque, starter can dry on the surface faster. Keep it covered without sealing it airtight.
Brand new starters are not always predictable. Consistent feeding builds strength over time.
Start with Cora, Eat Well ABQ’s dehydrated sourdough starter kit. It is made for home bakers who want a real starter culture and a clearer beginning.
Shop the Cora Starter KitIn our Albuquerque sourdough class, Chef Evangalene teaches starter care, dough feel, shaping, scoring, and baking in a hands-on setting.
Book a Sourdough ClassA feeding schedule is only one part of starter care. These guides help you troubleshoot weak starter, store it correctly, use discard, and understand the full sourdough process.
If your starter lives on the counter, it usually needs frequent feeding. If it lives in the fridge, you can feed it less often and wake it up before baking.
Keep it on the counter if you bake often. Keep it in the fridge if you bake occasionally and want a lower-maintenance routine. For a deeper breakdown, read our starter storage guide.
Feed it early enough that it has time to become bubbly, expanded, and near peak before you mix your dough.
If there is no mold or unsafe smell, feed it fresh flour and water and watch how it responds. Many hungry starters can recover with consistent feeding.
Hungry starter may look flat, smell sharp or boozy, show liquid on top, or collapse after rising. If it will not rise after feeding, read our starter troubleshooting guide next.
Once you understand your starter’s rhythm, feeding becomes easier, baking gets more predictable, and sourdough starts to feel a lot less mysterious.
