How do I improve a weak sourdough starter when just starting out?
Most early struggles trace back to the starter, so keep it at room temperature and feed it daily at 1:5:5 (one part starter, five flour, five water) for several days; each feeding makes it better at fermenting flour. Growing a reliable starter often takes about a week, sometimes longer, so an early stall is normal and not a failure.
Answered by Hendrik, The Bread Code
From the book
In most cases something is probably off with your sourdough starter. This very often happens when the starter is still relatively young and isn’t as capable of fermenting flour. Over time your sourdough starter is going to become better and better. Keep your sourdough starter at room temperature and then apply daily feedings with a 1:5:5 ratio. This would be 1 part old starter, 5 parts flour, 5 parts water. This allows you to achieve a better balance of yeast and bacteria in your sourdough. Even better could be the use of a stiff sourdough starter. The stiff sourdough starter boosts the yeast part of your starter. This allows you to have less bacterial fermentation, resulting in a stronger gluten network toward the end of the fermentation [ 37 ]. Please also refer to the Subsection 12.4.2 where I explained more about overfermented doughs. You can also refer to Section 4.4 (Stiff starter) with more details on making a stiff sourdough starter.
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