109 bread starter recipes

Rustic Mediterranean olive bread with dried mint, chopped onion, and black olives baked into a round loaf. Made with a sponge starter for deep, complex flavor.

Old-fashioned milk-and-flour sourdough starter with no commercial yeast. Two ingredients capture wild bacteria for tangy bread. Patience required.

Sourdough bread machine recipe makes a tangy yeast-free loaf with active sourdough starter, flour, water, and salt. Hands-off ABM sourdough for daily slicing.

Crispy Chinese-American shrimp toast: golden-fried bread triangles topped with seasoned shrimp paste, fresh ginger, water chestnuts, and toasted sesame seeds. A classic dim sum starter.

Sheepherder bread, a Basque-American sourdough leavened entirely with active starter. A simple six-ingredient loaf with chewy crumb and rustic crust traditionally baked in cast iron.

Rustic Italian yeast bread made with durum semolina flour and loaded with sautéed butternut squash, roasted red peppers, tomatoes, and onions. Uses a biga starter for deep flavor and makes four golden loaves.

Rye sourdough starter made the old Jewish bakery way: rye flour, water, a packet of yeast, and a halved onion that pulls in the wild flavor for classic deli-style rye bread.

Simple sourdough starter made with unbleached all-purpose flour and warm milk instead of water. A two-ingredient base for homemade sourdough bread.

Easy pumpkin loaves made with sourdough starter and biscuit mix for a shortcut spiced bread with raisins, walnuts, and a sweet golden glaze.

Old-fashioned potato sourdough starter built on potato water, flour, sugar, and a pinch of yeast. The starches feed wild and added yeasts together for a tangy, vigorous base for breads, pancakes, and biscuits.

Spinach salad with mushrooms, mozzarella, and a warm anchovy-olive oil dressing served with grilled bread toasts. A bold Italian-style starter with rich umami.

Homemade ciabatta bread using sourdough starter and active dry yeast for a tangy, open-crumbed loaf with a crisp, chewy crust. Makes three torpedo loaves.

Moist bran date bread with sourdough starter, buttermilk, and lemon zest baked into a dense, naturally sweet loaf. Spread with cream cheese for something truly special.

Sourdough pumpernickel bread with rye flour, molasses, black coffee, and caraway seeds. Uses an active sourdough starter for deep, complex flavor in every dense, dark slice.

Friendship-starter prune cake spiced with cinnamon and studded with chopped walnuts and stewed prunes. A moist, sourdough-tinged sheet cake from the Amish friendship-bread tradition.

A simple overnight yeast sponge starter made with just flour, water, and active dry yeast. The base for flavorful homemade bread with better texture and deeper taste.