When making sourdough, the ingredients you choose to use are extremely important. Not only do the ingredient amount matter, but so does the quality of those ingredients.
When I first started my sourdough journey I had no idea what kind of flour to use or whether it even mattered what kind I used. That’s why I have compiled a list of the best ingredients for your sourdough journey.
This post contains some affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. Read the full disclosure here.
Sourdough Ingredients
To make sourdough, there are a few basic ingredients you will need, no matter the recipe or variation you choose to make. These ingredients are:
- Flour
- Water
- Salt
- Sourdough starter
Need to make a sourdough starter? Find out how here.
Why ingredients matter
The reason for why ingredients matter when making sourdough is deeper than the simple fact that bread is made with flour, water and salt.
Ingredients matter because quality can vary greatly between brands, manufactures, even production timeline. While 2 flours may both be unbleached all-purpose flour, their makeup and quality can be very different. This variance in quality can greatly affect your sourdough starter and all baking you do with it.
This isn’t just true for flour either! The quality of each ingredient in your recipe matters.
The Best Sourdough Ingredients
1. Flour
When we look at what flour to use for sourdough, we typically see that unbleached all-purpose flour is recommended. However, I would argue that the specific brand of your flour matters too.
I have experimented with many different brands of all-purpose flours and can assure you that King Arthur is by far the best for your sourdough. Their Unbleached All-Purpose Flour is my favorite.
Not only are King Arthur Flours non-GMO, they provide a consistent protein content. This protein content is extremely important in the gluten-formation process of sourdough. Essentially, higher protein means more gluten. More gluten means stronger, stretchier dough, which is essential for an airy loaf of bread.
You can read more on protein content in flour here.
2. Water
It’s important to choose the right kind of water, as well as the right temperature water for your sourdough.
Temperature tends to be pretty straightforward: avoid extreme temperatures. You want to stick with lukewarm or room temperature water when making sourdough. Extreme temperatures can greatly impact the ability of your starter to rise correctly, and even kill it in some cases.
Type of water is a little more tricky to cover, because it really requires that you know what kind of water your home has. We typically want to avoid straight tap water because it can contain chloramine, which can inhibit the starter’s strength and ability to rise.
However, there are exceptions to this rule. If your water is filtered, then it is typically safe to use in sourdough. The most economical way to filter your tap water is to use a Brita Water Filter to remove the unwanted chemicals in the tap water.
Here is a list of the recommended water sources for your sourdough:
- Filtered tap water
- Spring water
- Bottled water
- Filtered rain water
Here are the water sources to avoid for your sourdough:
- Distilled water
- Reverse osmosis water
- Chlorinated tap water
- Hard water
For the best sourdough starter, try to use filtered water with a pH just below 7 and a hardness around 100-150 PPM. This ensures that your starter is strong and able to rise to it’s fullest.
3. Salt
There isn’t really a need for any special salt in your sourdough recipes. you can just use whatever you have on hand!
If you want to make a truly artisan loaf of sourdough, then you should invest in an artisan salt. This will also help to increase the nutrients in your sourdough.
Maybe you want to try a naturally dried sea salt, a fine Himalayan Pink Salt, or even flaked salt. Whatever you use will help to slightly change the flavor of your bread.
But maybe you don’t want to change it up, or you can’t afford to spend extra on fancy salt. That’s okay! Use whatever cooking salt you have on hand and make it work for you.
Best Ingredients for Sourdough
Hopefully this guide to the best ingredients for sourdough has helped you feel better prepared to start on your sourdough journey! I would love to hear your thoughts and know what ingredients you choose to use in your sourdough.
If you’re ready to start baking, check out my guide on How to Make a Sourdough Starter and my recipe for Basic Sourdough.
Leave a Reply