My sourdough starter smelled like nail polish remover for 3 days straight

I thought I killed it (you know, that panic moment) because the acetone smell was so strong, but turns out it's just hungry bacteria producing extra acid. A guy at the farmer's market in Portland told me to feed it twice a day with whole wheat flour until the smell mellowed out. Has anyone else had their starter go through a weird chemical phase like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

sean11920d ago

My starter smelled like a science fair experiment that was about to fail.

andrew_wood7220d ago

Oh, I've been there myself. That fizzy, vinegary smell can really make you question what you've gotten yourself into. Don't worry though, most of the time it just means your starter is going through a normal phase and will settle down with a bit more time.