It was the bread that got everyone talking during lockdown as a baking craze spread across social media making sourdough the go-to loaf.

Now Cambridge MP Daniel Zeichner has visited popular Cambridge cafe Stir to hear about the rise and rise of sourdough during official #SoughDoughSeptember.

The brilliant bread is made using only a few natural ingredients and this year’s #SourdoughSeptember is about promoting the qualities of real sourdough and the independent bakeries like Stir that make the genuine stuff.

Mr Zeichner heard how Stir’s sourdough (and all genuine sourdough) is made using just flour, water and salt – there no yeast, no chemical raising agents, no preservatives or other additives. But some bread claiming to be sourdough is actually ‘sourfaux’, and will contain these other ingredients.

Whilst genuine sourdough can seem expensive, Stir’s owner Matt Harrison explains that it goes stale more slowly and so lasts longer, still tasting great after 3 or 4 days. It also freezes really well so any leftover slices can be popped in the freezer and used when needed.

Daniel Zeichner MP said: “Sadly some people pay premium prices for ‘sourfaux’ but don’t get the benefits of the genuine stuff – it’s clear Cambridge people need to use their loaf to understand what they are buying. Thank you to Matt and the Team at Stir for teaching me all about sourdough. It is great to be able to support a fantastic local, independent business like this.”

Stir offers its customers the opportunity to buy and donate a sourdough loaf to Cambridge Foodbank when they are buying their own bread. For every 5 loaves donated by customers, Stir donates an additional loaf. This then gets delivered to the emergency distribution hub at Buchan Street in the north of the city.