My first sourdough starter died after I left it in a cold car overnight

I was visiting my sister in Philly last winter and brought my starter along to bake at her place. Forgot it in the car during a 20 degree night and woke up to a frozen, cracked jar on the passenger seat. Tried to revive it with warm water and feedings but it just smelled like old gym socks after three days. Ended up tossing it and starting from scratch back home. Anyone else ever killed a starter in a dumb way like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

brooke53327d ago

Did you let it thaw naturally before trying to feed it? I've done the same thing and found that gradual warming in the fridge over a day worked way better than rushing it with warm water.

derek_burns27d ago

I swear, @brooke533, you're onto something BIG. It's like with everything in life, you can't rush the GOOD stuff. I've noticed the same pattern with my own meal preps and even with my plants - try to speed things up and you just end up with a mess. Thawing fish in warm water? That's how you get that weird, cooked on the outside but still frozen in the middle situation. Same with defrosting meat on the counter - you're just asking for trouble. Slow and steady wins the race, every single time.