I was convinced my sourdough starter needed bottled water, then my tap proved me wrong

For months I only fed my starter with fancy spring water from the grocery store, thinking our city water would kill it. Last Tuesday I ran out and used plain tap water in a panic. Not only did it NOT die, the rise after 4 hours was actually BETTER and more active. My loaf that weekend had the most open crumb I've ever gotten. Has anyone else had a surprise win by breaking a 'rule' they thought was sacred?

2 comments

2 Comments

joel28017d ago

That "fancy spring water" thing got me too. I was doing the same with filtered fridge water for my starter, worried about chlorine. One day the filter light was red and I just used straight from the tap. The next feeding it was bubbling like crazy, way more than usual. My theory is our city water just has more minerals. The loaf was noticeably better, with a thicker, crispier crust. Sometimes the rules are just guesses.

butler.quinn17d ago

My buddy's tap water starter blew up too...