How to Keep a Sourdough Baking Journal (And Why It Changes Everything)

Sourdough is one of the most variable bakes in home cooking. Your starter's activity, your kitchen temperature, your flour's protein content, the humidity — all of it shifts the outcome. The bakers who consistently produce great loaves aren't necessarily more talented. They're better at tracking what they did.

What to log for every bake

A useful sourdough journal captures the variables that actually matter:

Hydration: What percentage of water to flour by weight
Flour mix: Bread flour, whole wheat, rye — and exact ratios
Starter percentage and condition: How much levain, how active
Bulk fermentation time and temperature
Proof time: Counter or fridge, and for how long
Bake time and temperature: Covered and uncovered phases
Result notes: Crust, crumb, flavor, oven spring

Using RecipeVersion as a sourdough journal

RecipeVersion is a free recipe app built around version tracking — which makes it a natural fit for sourdough. Every time you adjust your formula, save it as a new version. Your full baking history stays intact, and you can compare any two versions side by side to see exactly what changed.

For sourdough specifically: create one recipe called something like "Country Loaf" and version it every time you change your hydration, flour ratio, or process. After ten bakes, you'll have a documented timeline of your own development as a baker.

Paper vs. digital

Some bakers swear by a physical notebook kept next to the oven. That's fine — the habit matters more than the tool. But digital logs are searchable, shareable, and immune to flour dust. If you want to send your best loaf recipe to a friend, a shareable link beats a photo of handwriting.

Start simple

Don't try to log everything at once. Pick three variables you'll always record — hydration, bulk time, and result — and build from there. Consistency beats completeness.

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