Sourdough On The Rise In U.K., Despite Sagging Overall Bread Sales

British bread lovers are discovering the unique virtues of sourdough, and are increasingly willing to put themselves through the grind of preparing and guiding the raising agent (also called the starter or ferment) to fruition. The starter itself is not complicated: it’s made from just flour and water and environmental bacteria. But it goes through several time-consuming steps before it is ready to use in making dough. Sourdough is a hot trend in the U.K. restaurant industry: theprocess is used to make not only delicious loaves, but also pastry, cakes, doughnuts, ice cream and chocolate bars. “Once the sourdough bug hits you, it’s hard to turn back,” says Britain’s so-called queen of sourdough.