The Wild Crumb

Leaving town when you’ve got jars bubbling on the counter is a special kind of emotional crisis.
You’re excited for your trip — but also side-eyeing your starter like,
“Will you survive without me, or burn the house down?”

Good news: your ferments won’t die, explode, or start a micro–society while you’re gone… as long as you set them up properly.
Here’s how to prep each one so you can leave home knowing your kitchen won’t become the set of a fermentation disaster documentary.

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Sourdough Starter: The Low-Maintenance Roommate

Starters are hardy. They’ve survived wars, migrations, and people who “forgot for months.”

If you’ll be gone 3–7 days:

Give it a normal feeding.

Let it sit out 1 hour to wake up.

Tuck it into the fridge like a chilled burrito of microbiological peace.

It’ll nap the whole time.
When you return, give it 1–2 feedings and it’ll be back to full gremlin energy.

If you’ll be gone 1–3 weeks:

Feed it 1:3:3 (starter:flour:water) or 1:4:4.

Refrigerate immediately.

This gives it extra food for the long haul.
Think: big starter lunchbox.

If you’ll be gone a month or more:

Either:

Freeze a tablespoon of starter
or

Dry a thin layer on parchment and store it in a jar as flakes

Rehydrate it when you’re home — it will resurrect like bread Lazarus.

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Ginger Bug: The Drama Queen Who Will Explode if Ignored

Your ginger bug has two modes:

1. adorable,
2. explosive weapon.

So here’s how to leave town without returning to sticky cabinets.

If you’re gone 1–3 days:

Feed it normally the day you leave.

Leave the lid very loose or use cloth + rubber band.

Keep it somewhere cool.

If you’re gone 4–7 days:

Give it a big feed:
20 g ginger + 20 g sugar + 40 g water

Put it in the fridge.

Loosen lid slightly.

It’ll slow down and behave.

If you’re gone 1–3 weeks:

Same big feed.

Refrigerate.

When you get back, give it 2–3 days of normal room-temp feeding to revive.

If you’re gone longer:

Dry or freeze a portion the same way you would a sourdough starter.
Yes — ginger bugs can be resurrected too.

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Sourdough Discard: The Forgotten Child

If you have a jar of discard, you can:

put it in the fridge

ignore it completely

Discard is immortal as long as it’s cold.
You could leave for five years and come back to a funky science project that still bakes fine crackers.

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Ferments are sturdier than we think.
They don’t need constant supervision — just a little prep and trust.
Once they’re fed, tucked away, and cooled down, your jars will snooze peacefully while you’re out living life.

And when you return?
They’ll perk up the moment you feed them, like tiny creatures happy to see you again.

Your jars won’t fall apart without you.
They just wait — quietly alive, ready to bubble again when you get home.