🎯 What You'll Learn
- ✓ What is a sourdough starter?
- ✓ Typical starter feeding ratio for active use?
- ✓ How do you know a starter is ready to bake with?
- ✓ Bulk fermentation — what is it?
- ✓ Proofing vs bulk fermentation?
Starter maintenance, hydration, bulk fermentation, shaping and bake, plus how to read a loaf that went wrong and fix the next one. For bakers past their first loaf and tired of contradictory advice.
A live culture of wild yeasts and lactobacilli kept alive with regular flour + water feedings. Provides leavening and flavor without commercial yeast.
1:5:5 (starter:flour:water) by weight for a slow, full peak around 8-12h at 24°C.
It at least doubles within 4-8 hours of feeding, smells fruity/yogurty (not vinegar), and passes the float test (a spoonful floats in water).
The first rise after mixing, when most flavor and dough structure develop. Usually 4-8 hours at 24-26°C, ending when dough has visible jiggle, domed top, and ~50-70% rise.
Bulk: dough as a whole, before shaping.
Proof (final): shaped dough rising in a banneton before bake.
Place shaped dough in fridge overnight (8-24h at 4°C). Slows yeast, lets bacteria add tang, makes dough easier to score, improves crumb.
Mix flour + water (no salt, no starter) and rest 30 min - 2 h. Hydrates flour, develops gluten passively, improves extensibility.
Weight of water as % of flour weight. 75% hydration = 750 g water / 1000 g flour.
65-72% with bread flour — easier to handle while still giving open crumb.
75-85% for open, holey crumb — needs strong flour and good handling technique.
Every 30 min during bulk for the first 2-3 hours. Strengthens gluten and degasses lightly; replaces hand kneading.
Lift dough from underneath and let it fold on itself. Gentler than S&F, good for high-hydration doughs.
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Cooking knowledge transforms you from following recipes to truly understanding food. Whether you're a culinary student preparing for exams, a home cook wanting to level up, or a professional chef expanding your repertoire, understanding techniques, flavor science, and food safety principles gives you the confidence to create, improvise, and excel in the kitchen.
Study a technique flashcard, then immediately practice it in the kitchen — muscle memory and conceptual knowledge reinforce each other.
Understanding why techniques work (Maillard reaction, emulsification, gluten development) makes them easier to remember and apply.
Study flavor profiles and techniques by cuisine type to build a mental map of culinary traditions and their signature methods.
Both — our decks range from fundamental cooking techniques and kitchen safety to advanced culinary methods used in professional kitchens.
Yes, we include cards on the science behind cooking — heat transfer, chemical reactions, fermentation, and ingredient interactions.
Yes, our cooking decks span multiple cuisines including French, Italian, Asian, and Latin American, covering signature techniques and flavor profiles.
We include essential food safety cards covering temperature danger zones, cross-contamination prevention, proper storage, and hygiene best practices.
Absolutely — our decks start with fundamental knife skills, basic cooking methods, and kitchen organization before progressing to advanced techniques.