I’ve been having so much fun with our soudough starter, Birdie!! If you haven’t made your own bread or tasted the amazingness of freshly baked bread … you are missing out! It can be intimidating because it’s a process with some steps - but it’s not hard and you can totally do it!
Also, through much trial and error, I have discovered some tools to make the process a little easier…and wanted to have them all in one spot to share with y’all. So, here’s what helps me in the kitchen!
And a heads up: some of these links are commissionable links to products. I’d share about them anyway but if you do decide to buy them through these links I make a few dimes! ❤️
Danish Dough Hook/Whisk
Why do I love this?
Honestly, this isn’t a necessary tool, but I LOVE it and I use it every.single.day. In fact, I have two of them because one is always dirty! This replaced the whisk in my kitchen. Anything that I’m doing bread/dough related I use it-making cookies, muffins, sourdough, baguettes, etc. I even use it to scramble my eggs in the mornings.
Large ceramic bowl
I love a good ceramic bowl. I don’t ever use plastic or stainless bowls with baking my bread - I just want to be sure the active yeasts have nothing else to feast on, and feel like the more natural supplies used the better! They are also nice and big, sturdy, long-lasting. You will soon go from baking one loaf to 2-3 at a time. Promise. On the bowl-go big or go home!
I got this one as a gift from my awesome MIL, but I found some similar on Amazon:
Option 1: https://amzn.to/3rRzdsU
Also, I need these in my life! They are beautiful!
Digital Scale
Gotta have it if you want to do sourdough. Having the correct amount of ingredients is crucial to baking and I couldn’t do it without a food scale. This doesn’t need to be a super fancy piece of equipment, I love my Amazon Basics food scale - you can get it HERE, this one includes the battery!
Silicone Spatula
If you have a sourdough starter on your counter these will change your life! 😂 They are perfect for feeding your starter, help create those good air bubbles and are SO easy to clean! I use mine daily and is a must have in my opinion. Since you NEED this … HERE you go.
WECK Jar
These jars are super helpful when maintaining a sourdough starter. Using a glass mason jar is totally fine, but WECK jars are curved at the bottom which helps when you’re stirring your starter and creating those air bubbles.
Dutch Oven
It’s kind of a must. I got mine as a gift (MIL has good taste) but have also seen them tons at garage sales/goodwill. You’ll need one with a lid, that can go into ovens at 500 degrees. This is the one I have: https://amzn.to/3CsBUWT
Sourdough Kit
This is a one-stop shop kit. This is everything you need once your starter is up and running, and you’re ready to bake. You can definitely find these items sold separately but this is pretty much all you need. This kit includes 2 round banneton baskets (9 Inches), 2 washable linen liner cloths for smooth dough texture, 1 plastic scraper for shaping and scraping your dough, one stainless steel scraper for cutting your bread, 1 silicone stirrer(colors will vary)and 1 bread lame for scoring those beautiful images. One last thing - it includes our sourdough starter and instructions! This will make a great gift for someone that has “everything” - get it here.
I’ve just finished up making a batch of dehydrated sourdough starter. If you are ready to dive in and make your own, here’s the link to pick-up “Birdie” for you!