Every once in a while, I’ll look at the list of search terms that brings people to my blog. As you can see from some of the search terms above, lots of people look for sourdough starter equivalents.
Most of the sourdough bread recipes I’ve seen (and have written) call for starter weighed in grams. If you don’t have a scale, you’ll want those measurements in volume. But I’ve included conversions going in the other direction as well, from US cups to grams. Sometimes you’ll use a recipe that lists an ingredient in cups but you’d rather use your scale—especially if you live outside the US.
I worked out these conversions using my 100 percent hydration sourdough starter, which contains equal parts flour and water by weight. When I feed my sourdough starter (which I generally keep small), I’ll add 40 grams of flour and 40 grams of water to a spoonful of starter from the previous batch.
Metric to US
| Metric | US |
|---|---|
| 25 grams sourdough starter | 1 tablespoon + 1 generous teaspoon |
| 50 grams sourdough starter | 3 tablespoons |
| 100 grams sourdough starter | 1/3 cup + 1/2 tablespoon |
| 150 grams sourdough starter | 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon |
| 320 grams sourdough starter | 1 cup + 2 1/2 tablespoons |
US to Metric
| Metric | US |
|---|---|
| 1 tablespoon sourdough starter | 17 grams |
| 2 tablespoons sourdough starter | 34 grams |
| 1/4 cup sourdough starter | 69 grams |
| 1/3 cup sourdough starter | 92 grams |
| 1/2 cup sourdough starter | 138 grams |
| 2/3 cup sourdough starter | 184 grams |
| 1 cup sourdough starter | 276 grams |
Go here for a post that converts the sourdough bread ingredients to US cups.
