A chef offered up her sourdough starter on Instagram and the results are amazing

Thanks to social media, nothing is faster than news in 2020, except maybe Sourdough starter. Just ask J.Ohanna HellriglThe 31-year-old cook, resident of Washington, DC, who at the beginning of the outbreak when the US started shuttering, offered to share a sourdough starter with her over 6,000 Instagram followers. At the last count, Doi Moi’s former chef had distributed over 500 iterations of her starter, creating a vast network of baked goods and goodwill in fairly dark times.

Continue reading: How to make your own sourdough starter

The bread starter in question was made from an apple that Hellrigl had brought with him from a trip to Italy, where most of his family lives (you can make a starter out of almost anything that ferments). As payment for each new starter she left to a fan or trailer, Hellrigl only asked for an obligation help restaurant staff how they can.

Hellrigl told the Washington Post which one first broke the storythat she distributed up to 500 sourdough starters near DC, launching a not-so-small community of convenience foods, including pizza, pancakes, donuts, and of course lots of bread. Hellrigl has received a steady flow of images of baked goods from their starter, along with thank you notes, social calls and records of how people have helped or donated restaurant workers to mitigate the shock COVID-19.

Read the full story in the Washington Post

“I wanted to use my platform to be a helpful citizen,” Hellrigl told Post, “but I admit that I was surprised by the response.”

In addition to the hundreds of starters Hellrigl has distributed, there is a waiting list of over 100 people hoping to get their hands on some. Hellrigl left the starters on their porch to pick them up to avoid unnecessary contact with those who take them with them.

Obi Okolo, one of the first to accept Hellrigl’s offer, said: “At the moment everything feels completely out of control and nobody knows what is coming, what is happening or what has happened – but there is this thing, this simple little one A combination of flour and water that does its job on its own and is ready to make a living. It’s almost a reminder of our kitchen counters that the world is still spinning. “

Sourdough starters are known to be difficult to get right. It takes time and patience to develop properly, which can explain the burning interest. Yeast was too of a lack In many grocery stores you don’t necessarily need it, as Hellrigl has proven. If you can’t get your hands on any of Hellrigl’s sourdough starters, take a look Chowhound’s guide to making sourdough starters yourself. If you do a good one, it’s easy to share. So don’t forget to forward it to an interested friend or neighbor.

Try to be inspired Hellrigl’s Instagram account It is full of ideas. She suggests trying this simple sourdough banana pancakes to work with Starter for a first try. Hellrigl, who grew up with cooking and restaurants, told the post: “I will always be available to give something to someone, but one day I hope that we are all busy enough not to bake bread all the time.”