DISCARD STARTER VS ACTIVE – HARRY POTTER EDITION

Honestly, I think this Harry Potter analogy I came up with is pure magic. It’s the best way to understand active sourdough starter verses discard starter, if you aren’t a Muggle that is. But to best understand the analogy, you must first meet my sourdough starter.

I’ve had my sourdough starter since 2021, but I haven’t named him until more recently – crazy I know! Naming your sourdough starter is all the rage right now. And if you know me, then you know I’m a HUGE Harry Potter fan! So you won’t be surprised when you hear my sourdough starter’s name…

Meet my Sourdough Starter, Voldoughmort and his split soul, Tom Riddoughl.

If you’re not a Harry Potter fan, you may not get any of what I’m about to say. That’s okay, I’ve got the Muggles covered too! You can skip to the end or click here to read the Muggle breakdown.

How I obtained Voldoughmort

Back in 2020, my mom started her very own sourdough starter from scratch during the Covid craze. Since we don’t live in the same state, it took a little while for her to bring me a jar of my very own starter.

In 2021, Voldoughmort (Tom Riddoughl) was officially held captive in my possession, mostly hidden dormant in the depths of the forbidden top shelf of my fridge.

AKA, I was afraid of him for a while. I didn’t really know what kind of powers he had, so I never really used him.

He was weak and even had a black cloak that would cover him. Muggles call the cloak the “hooch”. But when I did use him, bloody hell, his powers were magic.

Per my mom’s suggestion, I even split his soul. Not quite 7 times, but close. Because I knew I would have to wait awhile to get more starter from my mom if I ever killed Him.

Thus the rise of Tom Riddoughl.

Who is Tom Riddoughl ?

In case you haven’t seen Harry Potter, I am about to ruin it for you.

Tom Riddle and Voldemort are the same person. Gasp!

Remember when Tom says to Harry, “Voldemort is my past, present, and future”? Well, the same is true with my starter.

Tom Riddoughl is like the Voldemort in the first three books and movies of Harry Potter. He’s just hanging around in the background. But make no mistake, he is Voldoughmort. Keep reading…

Tom Riddoughl is my inactive starter or what is called “discard”.

I don’t typically use him or think of him as often, so when someone asks me what my sourdough starter’s name is, I usually say Voldoughmort. Voldoughmort also just sounds more dangerous and powerful (which he is) than Tom Riddoughl.

Tom Riddoughl is my Voldoughmort when he hasn’t been fed in more than three days. Tom Riddoughl is what my mom gave to me back in 2021. He is what I give to my friends and family when I gift them sourdough starter.

He stays in the depths of the forbidden fridge unless I briefly bring him out for a discard recipe or to add to him.

Sometimes he gets a little dark, I mean come on he’s one of the wickedest wizards of all time. But he puts on this black cloak, or develops the hooch as Muggles would say. When he does that, I just give him a mix and the cloak disappears. It does make him a little more sour. Muggles sometimes just take his cloak off and dump it down the drain.

His soul has now been split several times so I can keep him alive if I ever kill Voldoughmort.

I have several pieces of frozen, dried dough bits of him in my freezer. I have a tiny glass tupperware of him in my fridge as backup. And I have a larger, normal size tupperware of him that I dump the extra of my Voldoughmort into.

When a recipe calls for discard, it’s Tom Riddoughl that I am using, not Voldoughmort.

Pro tip: There are a ton recipes out there for sourdough discard, or inactive starter. You also don’t typically need that much starter for a recipe that calls for active starter, unless you’re making bulk loafs of bread. That’s why I keep a larger jar of Tom Riddoughl (discard starter) in my fridge so I have plenty to take from when I need starter for a discard recipe. Otherwise I have to wait until my Voldoughmort (active starter) looses some of his powers before I can make my discard recipes.

Who is Voldoughmort?

Voldoughmort is my true sourdough starter, but he’s more than just that.

He is Voldemort in the sixth and seventh books and movies of Harry Potter. He is untethered and powerful.

I’ve been using him pretty regularly the last 6 months (hence, why I guess He Who Must Not Be Named, now has a name). He feeds on that unicorn blood (flour and water combo) regularly and when he escapes the forbidden fridge, pure magic unleashes.

Don’t forget to check out How to Feed Your Sourdough Starter post here!

He gets to spend more time out in the wizarding world, often living on my counter a couple of days a week while feeding.

Voldoughmort is what I consider to be my active starter.

He has been stored in mason jars and different shaped glass tupperware, with which he’s managed to stay alive with no problem. I stopped using the mason jar and changed to a larger glass tupperware for ease and reduced mess when feeding and using him in recipes.

Voldoughmort gets fed roughly twice a week so I can make my favorite Artisan Sourdough Bread Recipe, or the Softest, Fluffiest Sourdough Rolls I’ve ever had. He is what I use when I need active starter for a recipe.

He can live in the forbidden fridge for up to 3 days and still do some damage before he no longer has his powers. After three days, he needs to be replenished and fed again with the unicorn blood.

Or sometimes I just leave him in the fridge for long periods of time (even months!) and then I just call him Tom Riddoughl.

So Voldoughmort is simply, Tom Riddoughl. Just in a different state.

I can easily make Voldoughmort out of Tom Riddoughl by simply feeding him. I can easily make Tom Riddoughl out of Voldoughmort by simply letting him hide in the depths of the forbidden fridge.

The Ultimate Duel

So, just to recap…

Tom Riddoughl and Voldoughmort are the same, just in different states. Neither one is better than the other, it just depends on what you need for your recipe.

Tom Riddoughl is my inactive starter, also what I call my discard starter. He stays in my fridge and I have plenty of back-ups just in case my active starter ever dies. I use him for any discard recipe I stumble upon. Sometimes he gets hooch build up on him that I usually just mix in to make him a little more sour.

Voldoughmort is my active starter. He is mostly fed every couple days and gets left on my counter after feeds so he can rise and get bubbly. He can last up to three days in the fridge and still be considered active. If I leave him in the fridge for long periods of time without being fed, weeks or even months, he is then inactive and becomes Tom Riddoughl.

If you’re wanting a duel between Tom Riddoughl and Voldoughmort, you can’t have one. They’re the same. If they dueled it out, both would die.

Active Verses Discard Sourdough Starter for Muggles

Active starter is simply fed discard starter. Discard starter is simply unfed starter.

You may be wondering if you need one jar of each. The simple answer is no, you don’t.

Discard starter is kept in the fridge to slow down the fermentation process. If you don’t use your starter very often, you most likely just have discard starter sitting in your fridge.

You can leave active starter (fed starter) out on the counter for a day while it rises to double in height and then either use it at it’s peak or put it back in the fridge for up to three days. It will still be considered active for those three days. But if you don’t use it within those three days, then it becomes inactive (or discard).

For a more in depth information regarding fed vs unfed starter for Muggles, check out my Active vs Discard Sourdough Starter post. It has all the Muggle language!

Please share and send this to a Harry Potter fan or Muggle who is just getting started with Sourdough! Hopefully it’ll make the process so much easier to understand for them, or at a minimum give them a good chuckle.

As always, leave a comment with any questions you may have!