Category
Troubleshooting
If something went wrong, start here. Each article diagnoses one specific failure mode with the symptom, the cause, and a fix.
All articles in Troubleshooting
39 posts
Sourdough Troubleshooting by Symptom: A Quick Reference
When your bread has a problem, look up the symptom. Here's a single-page reference for common issues.
Sam Ellsworth · 4 min read
Sourdough Crust Pale and Soft: How to Get Color and Crackle
A pale soft crust means too little heat or too much steam. Bake hotter, longer uncovered, and trust the color.
Pete Kowalski · 4 min read
Sourdough with a Thick, Tough Crust: How to Soften It
An overly thick crust comes from too much heat for too long. Lower temperature, shorten bake, or skip uncovered time.
Charlotte Bishop · 4 min read
Sourdough Burning on Top but Raw on Bottom: Heat Distribution
When the top is dark and the bottom is pale, your oven is loading heat on the wrong surface. Here's the rebalance.
Sam Ellsworth · 4 min read
Sourdough Starter Stopped Rising Suddenly: 6 Causes
If your starter was working fine and just quit, something changed. Most causes are environmental and easy to fix.
Maya Patel · 4 min read
Mold on Sourdough Starter: How to Tell and What to Do
True mold means starting over. But many things that look like mold actually aren't. Here's how to tell.
Dr. Sarah Chen · 4 min read
Pink or Orange Streaks in Sourdough Starter: When to Throw It Out
Pink, orange, or red streaks mean bacterial contamination. Don't try to save it; start over.
Dr. Michael Lasalle · 3 min read
Starter Smells Like Acetone or Nail Polish? Here's Why
Acetone smell means your starter is hungry. Feed it more often or use a smaller seed amount.
Dr. Sarah Chen · 4 min read
Sourdough Spreading Flat in the Oven: Hydration and Shape
A flat sourdough usually means too much water for your flour or too loose a final shape. Both are easy to fix.
Sam Ellsworth · 4 min read
Sourdough Rising Unevenly? Cause and Cure
When one side rises and the other doesn't, the issue is usually shape, basket, or oven hot spots.
Pete Kowalski · 4 min read
Sourdough with Big Holes Only at the Top: What's Happening
When holes are concentrated at the top of the loaf, it's usually a shaping problem combined with under-bulking.
Tom Whitaker · 4 min read
Sourdough Tearing During Shaping: Hydration vs. Technique
When dough rips during the final shape, it's usually overworked, under-rested, or over-floured.
Charlotte Bishop · 4 min read
Wet Spots in Sourdough Crumb: Fermentation or Mixing?
Localized gummy patches usually trace to a mixing problem, not a baking one. Here's the diagnostic.
Lisa Hartwell · 4 min read
Sourdough Not Springing in the Oven: 5 Real Causes
Oven spring is the moment of truth. When it doesn't happen, the cause is almost always upstream.
Maya Patel · 4 min read
Sourdough Doughy Center? The Real Causes and Fixes
A gummy interior is rarely an underbaking problem. It's usually under-fermentation or cutting too soon.
Sam Ellsworth · 3 min read
Sourdough Cracking on the Side? Score and Proof Fixes
Side splits mean the dough escaped where you didn't tell it to. Here's how to direct the expansion.
Tom Whitaker · 4 min read
Sourdough Not Sour Enough? How to Build Real Tang
Cold retard, whole grains, and a mature starter are the levers. Here's how to coax pronounced sourness into your loaves.
Pierre Lambert · 3 min read
Sourdough Too Sour? 6 Ways to Mellow the Tang
Aggressive sourness usually traces to long cold retards and a strong acetic-leaning starter. Here's how to dial it back.
Dr. Sarah Chen · 3 min read
5 Sourdough Baking Mistakes and How to Fix Them in Real Time
Caught a problem mid-bake? Here's how to course-correct on five common sourdough mistakes before they ruin the loaf.
Master Baker John Park · 7 min read
Why Sourdough Collapses in the Oven (and How to Prevent It)
Oven collapse usually means the dough was overproofed by the time you scored it. Here's how to catch the window.
Maya Patel · 3 min read
Sourdough Bottom Not Cooked? Heat Distribution Fixes
A doughy bottom while the top looks done is one of the most common Dutch-oven mistakes. Here's the simple fix.
Carlos Vega · 3 min read
Why Is My Sourdough Crumb Too Tight? 7 Causes and Fixes
A tight, even crumb usually points to under-fermentation, weak starter, or low hydration. Diagnose the real cause in five minutes.
Sam Ellsworth · 4 min read
The Complete Sourdough Troubleshooting Checklist
Bread didn't turn out? Run through this checklist to find the cause. Covers every common sourdough failure.
Master Baker John Park · 5 min read
Why Your Sourdough Came Out Flat (And the Fix)
A flat, pancake-like sourdough has a small set of common causes. Here's how to diagnose and prevent each.
Master Baker John Park · 4 min read
Why Your Sourdough Crust Is Pale (And How to Get Color)
A pale, blonde crust on sourdough means something is off. Six causes and the fixes for each.
Pierre Lambert · 4 min read
Why Your Sourdough Has a Burnt Bottom (And How to Fix It)
Pulling out a great-looking loaf with a black, charred bottom? Five common causes and the specific fixes for each.
Carlos Vega · 4 min read
My Sourdough Dough Is Too Sticky: Fix and Prevention
Sticky dough is one of the most common beginner complaints. Here are the real causes and the fixes that work.
Maya Patel · 4 min read
When to Throw Out a Sourdough Loaf (And When to Bake Anyway)
An overproofed dough may still be salvageable. A moldy starter is not. A guide to knowing what's recoverable.
Master Baker John Park · 4 min read
How to Revive a Sourdough Starter After Months in the Fridge
If your starter has been neglected for weeks or months, it can almost always be brought back. Here's the revival routine that works.
Lisa Hartwell · 3 min read
Why Your Sourdough Tastes Bland (And How to Add More Flavor)
Six reasons your sourdough tastes flat, and the specific changes that bring out real flavor.
Diana Khoury · 3 min read
Diagnosing Your Bread by the Crumb
Cut a slice. Look at the holes. Each pattern tells a different story about what happened in your bake.
Master Baker John Park · 3 min read
Troubleshooting Dense Sourdough: Five Common Mistakes
Why your loaves come out heavy and tight — and the precise adjustments that fix each cause.
Master Baker John Park · 2 min read
What Starter Color and Smell Tell You
A field guide to reading your starter's appearance — what's normal, what's a warning, and what's a problem.
Rachel Goldman · 3 min read
Troubleshooting Your First Sourdough Bake
Specific problems beginners hit, and exactly what to fix next time.
Master Baker John Park · 4 min read
Troubleshooting Gummy Crumb
Why your bread feels wet inside, and how to bake, proof, and structure your way out of it.
Master Baker John Park · 2 min read
Troubleshooting: When Sourdough Won't Rise
Twelve specific reasons your dough isn't growing — and how to diagnose which one is yours.
Diana Khoury · 2 min read
Troubleshooting Overproofed Dough
It's not always lost. How to recognize overproofing and what to do — sometimes you can still bake it.
Pete Kowalski · 2 min read
Troubleshooting Flat Sourdough Loaves
Pancake bread is a structural failure — and structure has six possible causes. Here's how to find yours.
Victor Brand · 2 min read
Sourdough Starter Troubleshooting
Slow growth, off smells, hooch, mold — what's normal, what's not, and how to fix everything fixable.
Rachel Goldman · 2 min read