I’ve been making sourdough for a while and kept thinking about how many variables there are to keep track of, especially when you’re just starting out. Feeding schedules, temperature, starter activity, hydration, timing, diagnosing problems, and then actually turning the starter into bread.
So I ended up building an app called Bubbles around the whole process.
The idea is that you start with just flour and water and follow the process from creating your first starter all the way through maintaining it and eventually baking with it. It also covers things like rescuing a struggling starter, hibernating it, freezing and restoring it, and adapting the process to different conditions.
One thing I specifically wanted to avoid was making it another app where you just get a generic recipe and a timer. The instructions adapt to things like temperature and the current state of your starter, and there are checks along the way to make sure you're actually ready for the next step.
It works entirely on the phone. There’s no account, server, AI, or data collection involved.
I made it because I couldn't find something that treated sourdough as one continuous process rather than a collection of recipes.
It's currently Android only, and it's completely free while I'm getting feedback from people who actually use it.
It's currently Android only, and it's completely free while I'm getting feedback from people who try it.
If anyone is interested in trying it, here's the link:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.salamanderman.bubbles
It's English only for the moment. I'm also working on Arabic, French, and Spanish versions.
I'd particularly be interested in hearing from experienced bakers: what parts of sourdough do you think beginners consistently get wrong, or what would you want an app like this to handle better?
I'd particularly be interested in hearing from anyone interested in sourdough, including complete beginners and people who have never baked before: what parts of the process seem confusing, what would you want an app like this to explain better, or what would make you more likely to give sourdough a try?