My Gluten-Free Sourdough Tips and Tricks
- Michelle Berry
- Mar 3
- 9 min read
Updated: Mar 4
The Art and Science of the Loaf
They say baking is a science, but sourdough? Sourdough is an art form. I’ve been on this gluten-free journey for over 15 years now, but it wasn’t until a year and a half ago, right as I was starting my Nutritional Therapy Practitioner (NTP) program, that I finally decided to tackle the the missing piece of my gluten-free journey: the perfect sourdough loaf.
One of my very first assignments was to create a starter from scratch and document the experience. As a baker at heart, I remember thinking, “A baking assignment? I am exactly where I’m supposed to be!” I’m happy to report I earned a 100% on that project, but the true reward is that the starter I grew back in September 2024 is the same one I use today. I struggle to keep a plant alive, but you better believe I’ve kept my starter alive!I love sharing my starter "Grateful Bread" with friends, and I wanted to create this guide as a reference for anyone I’ve passed a jar to—or anyone ready to start their own journey.
Why Sourdough?
Beyond that signature tang, the true magic of sourdough lies in the fermentation. This process helps break down starches and neutralize anti-nutrients, making the bread much gentler on the digestive system and improving the bioavailability of the minerals in the grain.
As an NTP, I also have to keep it real: even with the fermentation and fiber, eating "naked" sourdough can still spike blood sugar. But that doesn’t mean it’s off-limits! Sourdough brings me pure joy, so I’m just smart about how I enjoy it. I always pair my slices with healthy fats and fiber (hello, avocado toast!) and aim to eat it toward the end of my meal, after my protein, to help buffer the carb response.
Trust the Process
I won’t lie: sourdough is a labor of love. My husband, JB, jokes that I completely tune him out when it’s time to feed my starter or prep a bake. So, yes, baking sourdough requires a time commitment, patience, and a healthy dose of "trusting the process."
But I promise you, when you pull that first crusty, golden loaf out of the oven, it is 100% worth it. The steps get easier every time, and before long, you’ll find your own rhythm. The best advice I can give? Just go for it and learn along the way!
Getting Started
To begin your journey, you need a starter. If you’re local to me in Clayton, please reach out! Sharing my starter with friends is my favorite part of this whole process, and I’d love to pass a jar of Grateful Bread over to you.
If you aren't local and are starting from scratch, I cannot recommend the Bakerita blog enough. Rachel does an incredible job of walking you through the nuances of a GF starter. I’ll admit, I reread her instructions about a dozen times and lived in her IG highlights while I was getting the hang of it.
Whether you get a starter from me or start your own, you have to give it a name! As I mentioned, the most fun part for us was crowdsourcing ideas from the family until we landed on Grateful Bread. (If you know JB, you know there was simply no other choice!) Naming your starter gives it a bit of "personality,” which will also help when you're talking to it and begging it to rise! Because yes, you will talk to it! If you're not feeling creative, just Google "sourdough starter names" for some truly hilarious puns.
My biggest tip for this stage? Be patient. There were multiple times I thought I had failed because my starter wasn’t rising or looked "dead," but if you just keep feeding it and trusting the process, it will eventually find its rhythm!
My Sourdough Toolkit
You don't need a professional bakery to make great bread, but these few items make the process much more enjoyable (and successful!):
Mason Jars: I love quart jars for my main starter. Pro tip: Keep some pint jars on hand if you plan on sharing your starter with friends—it’s my favorite part of the journey!
A Reliable Scale: Sourdough is all about precision, so a scale is a must. I don't see the one I have anymore but there's lots of options on Amazon. I always keep extra batteries on hand because there is nothing more annoying than a scale dying mid-bake!
Dutch Oven: I find the ceramic-coated ones work best; otherwise, the oil can burn off the surface.
Bannetons (Proofing Baskets): I recommend an 8” size.
For Round Loaves: I love these with linen liners.
For Oval Loaves: I prefer these silicone ones because they are foldable and great for storage—perfect if your kitchen is already feeling full!
Silpat & Parchment Paper: Essential for shaping and getting your loaf safely into the hot Dutch oven.
The Scoring Tool: A Lame (basically a fancy razor blade) is great for those pretty designs, but if you don’t want to buy something new, a very sharp paring knife works just fine.
Stand Mixer: You could mix by hand, but I always use my mixer to ensure everything is perfectly incorporated.
The Ingredients
Gluten-free sourdough relies on a specific blend of flours to get that perfect texture. What I love about these recipes is that they are naturally dairy-free and don't require eggs!
While my sister has had great success using a store-bought GF all-purpose blend (just make sure it has no added gums!), I prefer mixing my own to get the flavor and crumb just right.
My Go-To Flour & Starch Combo:
Anthony’s Brown Rice Flour: A great, fine-textured base.
Sorghum Flour: Adds a lovely depth of flavor.
Potato Starch: Helps with that classic sourdough bounce.
Tapioca or Arrowroot Flour: I usually use arrowroot since it’s always in my pantry, but either works!
Note: If you follow the Sourdough with Rebecca recipe, she uses a combo of brown rice, oat flour, and light buckwheat. Most of these flours are interchangeable—experimenting will slightly change the taste and texture, so feel free to play around until you find what your tastebuds love!
Other Essentials to Have on Hand:
Whole Psyllium Husk: This is the "secret ingredient" that acts as the glue (the gluten-replacer). Vital tip: Make sure you get the husk, not the powder, or your bread will turn out very different!
Filtered Water
Honey or Maple Syrup
Olive Oil, optional, but helps with a soft, delicious crumb
Sea Salt (I’m a Redmond Real Salt girl, always!)
Let's Get Baking: My Favorite Recipes & Techniques
Now I wish I could say I could develop a gluten free sourdough recipe on my own, but I'm leaving that to the professionals. I rotate between two incredible creators. Both are fabulous, but they offer slightly different flavor profiles. My suggestion? Follow both on IG and prepare to be inspired. Then bake both recipes and see which one speaks to your tastebuds! I honestly can’t choose which is better, so they are both kitchen staples for me.
1. Rachel Connors, Bakerita
Follow her on IG: @bakeritablog
This has been my go-to reference ever since I started this journey. I've done some research and read blogs from other bakers, but I always go back to Bakerita. Rachel’s blog is essentially my sourdough bible; I read (and reread) her explanations and lived in her Instagram highlights before I even touched my starter. My first tip: head to her site, read her deep dives, and print the recipe.
My Personal Tweaks
While I follow her recipe closely, here are a few things I’ve learned after dozens of loaves:
Since I keep my starter in the fridge, I pull it out the morning before I bake to let it reach room temp (remember to loosen the lid!) before feeding. This leads to a much faster, stronger rise.
My first few loaves were a bit gummy, so I backed the water down to 270g (vs. the 290g in the recipe).
To help with that texture, I always use the higher amount of brown rice flour (80g) in the mix.
I've found 12g of olive oil is my sweet spot.
Baking Time: I typically do 45 minutes covered and at least 30 minutes uncovered.
My Two-Day Schedule: While Rachel bakes in one day, I prefer breaking it up. This longer fermentation gives the bread a deeper, more "sour" flavor:
Day 1 (Prep): Take the starter out in the morning. Feed it in the afternoon. At peak rise (about 4 hours later), mix your preferment and let it ferment on the counter overnight (8–12 hours).
Day 2 (Bake): Mix and shape your loaves in the morning. Let them rise for 4–8 hours, then bake!
Pro-tip: If you aren’t ready to bake on Day 2, you can put the shaped loaves in the fridge. Just take them out a few hours before baking so they reach room temp before hitting the oven.
Follow her on IG: @sourdoughwithrebecca
Rebecca uses a smaller starter amount and a slightly different flour blend—including oat and buckwheat—which gives the loaf a beautiful earthy, nutty flavor.
Wait, Buckwheat? Yes! Despite the name, buckwheat is naturally gluten-free. Fun fact: there are different types! Light buckwheat is milder, while dark buckwheat has a more intense, nutty profile. My loaf was perfect on the very first attempt with this recipe. I followed her baking suggestions exactly: 40 minutes covered and 25 minutes uncovered.
Click here for the reel with Rebecca's recipe or click the PDF below (just a copy/paste from her reel caption). I ALWAYS like to have printed recipes when I bake so I can make notes.
Tips for Sourdough Success
After a year and a half of trial and error, here are the little "hacks" that made the biggest difference in my kitchen:
Keep a rubber band around your starter jar at the "fed" level. It makes it so easy to see when it has doubled—both when it's slow-growing in the fridge and when it's peaking before a bake.
If you are doubling or tripling your recipe (which I highly recommend for the freezer!), write out all your new weights and conversions before you even touch a bag of flour. There is nothing worse than being halfway through and wondering, "Wait... did I double the salt already?" Pre-writing your numbers eliminates the guesswork and keeps those errors at bay!
If your loaves are getting too dark on the bottom, place a cookie sheet on the very bottom rack of your oven while the Dutch oven sits on the rack above it. This diffuses the heat so the base of your bread doesn’t burn.
If you’re struggling to get a great rise, I found a brilliant trick in a sourdough Facebook group: Apple Cider Vinegar and Ground Ginger. I was skeptical, but it really works, and you can't taste the ginger at all!
Use honey as your sweetener, add 1 tbsp of ACV to the psyllium husk mixture when you add the olive oil, and whisk 1/4 to 1/2 tsp of ground ginger into your dry flour mixture. It’s like a little wake-up call for your starter!
I cannot stress this enough—do not cut into the bread until it is completely cool. If you cut it while it's warm, it will be gummy. I leave mine on the counter overnight before I even think about slicing.
If you won't eat the whole loaf within a week, pre-slice it and pop it in the freezer. You can grab a slice or two whenever the craving hits!
This bread is at its absolute best when toasted. It gives you that perfect "crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside" experience.
Don't Waste the Discard!
If you’re keeping your starter happy in the fridge but you realize you have a lot more than you need for your next loaf, don't toss it. Sourdough discard is the unfed, inactive portion you remove before feeding to keep your starter a manageable size. While it doesn't have the "oomph" to make a loaf rise, it adds a delicious tangy flavor and a nutritional boost to other recipes.
Bakerita has a great post with 10+ ways to use discard. Her sourdough discard pizza crust is literally my favorite crust ever. We love grilling it on a pizza stone in our smoker but if you don't have either of those, she uses a lodge cast iron pan in the oven!
Caring for Your Starter
When I'm not baking, I keep Grateful Bread in the fridge. A quick feeding every 7–10 days keeps it healthy and happy.
My Maintenance Routine:
Feed it 25-50g of flour and 25-50g of water. Just keep the water/flour ratio pretty equal to maintain the correct consistency (similar to thick pancake batter). I feel like I tend to do 2-4g more of water to flour but play around with it.
Give it a good stir, scrape down the sides, and close the lid tight.
I keep a piece of blue painter's tape on the jar and write the date of the last feed.
Keep it towards the front of the fridge so it doesn’t get shoved to the back and forgotten!
I hope this guide helps you conquer the "missing piece" of your gluten-free journey! Happy baking, and please let me know in the comments if you decide to start your own gluten free sourdough adventure. I’d love to hear how your first loaf turns out!
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