Beginner path
Start here with sourdough
New to sourdough? We could ask you to read everything first — but we won’t. Sourjoe starts beginners the way bakers actually succeed: jump straight into three guided recipes — create a starter, build a leaven, bake your first loaf — with the reading saved for the waits in between.
Jump right in
The guided path is three recipes, in order: create your own starter (5 minutes of work a day for 5–6 days), make your leaven (10 minutes, then a 5–6 hour ripen), and your first bake (about 8 hours start to finish, only ~2.5 of them hands-on).
Guidance built in
Each recipe carries all the guidance you need on ingredients, tools, and timing as you go — no cross-referencing, no guessing what “until doubled” means at step four.
Suggested first readings
Sourdough involves plenty of waiting — perfect reading time. Novices get the most from Essentials, Starter & Leaven, Baker’s Process, and the Glossary in Reference, in that order.
Tools when you want them
When you’re ready to go beyond the guided path, the free calculators put numbers on rise time, hydration, dough temperature, and your whole bake schedule.
Want the interactive version? Open the Sourjoe public preview to see the guided interface, live examples, drawers, and sample tools, or jump to sign-up options.