When Your Starter Starts Acting Sketchy (And What I Did About It)

So this week was kind of stressful, not gonna lie. I woke up on Monday morning to feed Yeaston like I always do, and something was off. The smell was... weird. Not like the normal tangy, yeasty smell I'm used to. It was kind of funky in a bad way, like something had gone wrong inside the jar. I immediately got worried that I'd killed my starter again, which if you've read my other posts, you know is NOT something I want to repeat.

I called my mom into the kitchen and was like, "Mom, is Yeaston dying?" She took a look and smelled it too, and honestly she seemed a little concerned as well. We started talking about what could have happened. Had I left the jar in a weird spot? Was the temperature in the house too crazy because of the Las Vegas heat messing with everything? Had I accidentally fed it something wrong?

My mom explained that sometimes starters go through phases where they smell a little off, especially if something about their environment has shifted. She reminded me that Yeaston is a living thing, and sometimes living things need a minute to adjust. That made sense, but I was still nervous because I had customers depending on me. I couldn't exactly tell them their sourdough was going to be late because my starter was having an identity crisis.

So here's what we did. We kept feeding Yeaston on schedule, making sure the feedings were consistent and the jar was in a stable spot away from direct sun. We didn't panic and throw everything out, which was honestly hard because my gut was telling me something was super wrong. But my mom kept saying to give it time and trust the process. After like three days of regular feedings, the smell started coming back to normal. By day five, Yeaston smelled like my starter again, that perfect sour smell that makes me happy every time I open the jar.

I learned that just because something smells weird for a little bit doesn't mean it's ruined forever. Starters are tough, even if they seem delicate. The key is staying calm and consistent with your feedings. I'm back to baking my regular loaves now, and everything is working great. Yeaston is bubbling away like the good starter it is.

If your starter ever does something weird, don't freak out like I did. Just stick with it and give it a chance to bounce back.