Baking Sourdough Bread is Easy Making your own sourdough bread is fulfilling, nourishing, and easy! It will feel like magic is happening in your kitchen. You mix your starter, flour, salt, and water together and then leave it alone to do its thing. There is no kneading involved and minimal hands-on time to create a healthy, homemade loaf. Enjoy the simple sourdough process and experience the freedom and independence of being your own baker. Discover this simple, ancient technique and bring ease, rhythm, and flow into your kitchen as you bake sourdough bread.
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What is Sourdough?
A delicious crusty loaf with a soft, chewy interior. Superior in flavor to any store-bought bread. Thrifty in ingredients, requiring only flour, water, salt, and time. Sourdough is a loaf that is truly greater than the sum of its parts.
Sourdough bread is known for its:
Sourdough bread is known for its:
- Sour flavor: It has a characteristic tangy taste due to the fermentation process.
- Chewy texture: The long fermentation breaks down some of the gluten, resulting in a chewier and more elastic crumb compared to regular bread.
- Crispy crust: Sourdough starter helps develop a thicker and crispier crust.
- Natural leavening: Unlike most breads that use store-bought commercial yeast, sourdough relies on a natural fermentation process involving wild yeasts that are naturally occurring in the air and on the grains of flour.
- Sourdough starter: This starter is a fermented mixture of flour and water that cultivates these natural, wild yeasts. Bakers maintain their starter by “feeding” it regularly with fresh flour and water.
- Long fermentation: Sourdough undergoes a long fermentation period when compared to other breads. This contributes to its unique flavor and texture as well as increased digestibility and health benefits.
What is Sourdough Starter?
A sourdough starter is a living culture made from flour and water that naturally leavens bread. A starter replaces commercial yeast in sourdough bread baking. When a simple mixture of flour and water is left at room temperature for several days the wild yeasts from the air start to multiply, creating a bubbly and slightly tangy-smelling starter. Regular "feeding" with fresh flour and water keeps the starter active and sweet-smelling.
Feeding, Storing, and Maintaining Sourdough Starter
Feeding
I suggest feeding your starter with flour labeled whole wheat or bread flour for the healthiest, strongest, and sweetest-smelling starter. All-purpose flour can be used if that is what you have on hand, but I suggest feeding it more whole wheat or bread flour as soon as you are able. Feeding means mixing a small amount of your starter with a fresh batch of flour and water. I use a wide mouth pint mason jar. I will combine about half a cup of flour with 1 teaspoon of my starter culture and enough water to make a thick dough-like batter. The precise ratio is not important. If you are a person who prefers specific measurements while in the kitchen, use 80 grams of flour, 80 grams of water, and 1 teaspoon starter. Stir until combined. Cover lightly and leave on the counter until it doubles in size (about 8-12 hours depending on the temperature of your kitchen).
Storing
I suggest storing your starter in the refrigerator and feeding it once a week. When you feed it, you will follow the feeding instructions above. In a clean jar combine fresh flour and water with one teaspoon of your stored starter. The rest of your stored starter is now considered “discard” and can either be used in recipes calling for sourdough discard, or it can be composted. Let your new jar of starter sit on the counter to ripen. This means it will bubble up and should double in size. It can take anywhere from 4-12 hours to ripen, depending on how warm it is in your kitchen and how recently you’ve fed your starter. I typically feed mine at night and it is ready to use in the morning. If you are not using it for baking, secure the lid and store in the fridge after it ripens.
The sourdough starter will keep for a long time in the refrigerator, even if neglected. It may eventually separate a bit or form a dark brown layer at the top. If either of these things happen, I simply pour/scrape off the top and use a teaspoon from the better-looking bottom of the jar to get the starter going again in a fresh jar. When this happens, it will need at least 2 feedings to get up enough strength to sufficiently leaven a loaf of bread.
The sourdough starter will keep for a long time in the refrigerator, even if neglected. It may eventually separate a bit or form a dark brown layer at the top. If either of these things happen, I simply pour/scrape off the top and use a teaspoon from the better-looking bottom of the jar to get the starter going again in a fresh jar. When this happens, it will need at least 2 feedings to get up enough strength to sufficiently leaven a loaf of bread.
Maintaining
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Creating a routine for feeding your starter is the best way to maintain its vigor so it is strong enough to make your bread rise. It can be kept at room temperature and fed once or twice a day, or it can be stored in the refrigerator indefinitely, and pulled out only when needed. You may opt for a combination of daily feedings for part of the week and storing in the refrigerator for the rest of the week. Do what works best for your schedule and your baking needs. View this part like an experiment and try a few different routines until you settle into the one that feels uniquely good to you.
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How to Make a Loaf (or Two) of Sourdough Bread
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This recipe provides enough dough for two loaves of bread:
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For the fresh starter, to be made the night before
80 grams of water 80 grams of whole wheat flour or bread flour 2-3 grams of ripe starter Combine water, flour, and ripe starter in a wide mouth ball jar and stir until combined. After stirring, gently cover and let it sit overnight. |
For the bread dough, to be made the next morning
1 batch of fresh starter for the night before 900 grams of flour (whole wheat, bread, or all-purpose) 750-800 grams of water (an all-purpose loaf will need less) 2 teaspoons of salt Mix all four ingredients together thoroughly with a spoon in a large mixing bowl. The dough should be shaggy, not tough or soupy. Cover loosely with a tea towel or bowl cover, then set a timer so you know when to do your first set of “folds”. If the temperature in the room is closer to 75 degrees, set the timer for 30 minutes. If it is closer to 65 degrees, set the timer for one hour. As you get more experience baking bread, you will get a feel for just how long it needs between turns. |
Folding
Now, to “turn” or “fold” the bread, place the bowl in front of you. Reach across the bowl and gently pull the far side of the dough towards you and “fold” it on top of the dough in the bowl. Give the bowl a quarter turn and repeat the process. Do this for a total of four times, turning the bowl, reaching for the far side of the dough, and folding it over. Drape the tea towel or bowl cover over the bowl and set the timer for a second time.
Repeat this folding process until you have folded the bread a total of four times, and it has risen about 30%.
Repeat this folding process until you have folded the bread a total of four times, and it has risen about 30%.
Gently pull the dough up.
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Fold the dough over on itself.
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Repeat the pulling process.
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Repeat the folding process.
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Cutting and Shaping
Next, you will be dividing the dough in half and shaping each loaf on your work surface. First, gently dump the dough out onto a floured cutting board or other prepared surface like a clean countertop. Use a sharp knife or a bench scraper to divide the dough in half. Shape the loaves right on the cutting board by using the same folding technique, this time turning the loaf itself. Do this to each loaf about four times, or until they get a sturdy, round shape. Let them rest 15-30 minutes.
Reshape them in the same manner, as tightly as possible without ripping parts of the dough, and flip them over so they are seam side down on the cutting board. After just a few minutes the seam will seal up and you can place them in your proofing baskets, seam side up. Let the loaves rest in the baskets for 10 - 30 minutes, then place in the fridge for at least 20 minutes, and up to 12 hours. This slows down the final rise, enhances the flavor, and makes it easier to score.
Reshape them in the same manner, as tightly as possible without ripping parts of the dough, and flip them over so they are seam side down on the cutting board. After just a few minutes the seam will seal up and you can place them in your proofing baskets, seam side up. Let the loaves rest in the baskets for 10 - 30 minutes, then place in the fridge for at least 20 minutes, and up to 12 hours. This slows down the final rise, enhances the flavor, and makes it easier to score.
Dump the dough onto a board.
Pull the dough once more to shape it.
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Cut the dough in half.
Fold the dough once more to shape it.
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Pull the dough to shape it.
Flip the dough so it is seam side down.
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Fold the dough to shape it.
Place the dough in proofing baskets seam side up.
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How to Bake Sourdough Boules
I am going to take you through two different ways to cook your sourdough boule in your home oven. I have used both over the years with excellent results!
Dutch Oven Style
A heavy enameled or cast iron Dutch oven that can retain heat at high temperatures is a must. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F with the Dutch oven and lid in the oven. This will bake only one loaf at a time - unless you can fit two Dutch ovens in your home oven! Lightly flour the exposed part of the loaf and invert it into the Dutch oven so the smooth rounded side is up, and the seam side is down. Quickly and carefully score the top of the loaf with a lame or sharp razor blade a few times. Scoring means slashing the top of the loaf to allow the steam to escape and the bread to rise and expand. Swift but gentle slashes about ½ inch deep are what you are aiming for when you score your loaf. Place the lid back on the pot and bake for 20 minutes at 500 degrees F. Remove the lid, reduce the temperature to 450 degrees F, and bake for another 20 minutes. The crust should be a beautiful dark brown and will feel completely firm.
Repeat this process for the second loaf, which should have been waiting patiently in the fridge while the first loaf baked.
Repeat this process for the second loaf, which should have been waiting patiently in the fridge while the first loaf baked.
Pizza Stone Style
I have used a pizza stone, a sturdy round of soapstone, and currently a pizza steel, which is a thick piece of steel able to withstand the high heat needed for home cooked pizza, or in this case, sourdough bread. You will also need a cast-iron skillet or sturdy metal pan to place below the pizza stone. I can cook two loaves at a time on my pizza steel, which is why I currently prefer this method. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F with the pizza stone and iron skillet/sturdy pan in the oven. Lightly flour the exposed part of the loaf and invert it onto a cutting board or pizza peel. Score the top of the loaf with a lame or sharp blade a few times. Carefully slide the loaf onto the hot stone in the oven. Repeat with the second loaf. Throw about half a dozen ice cubes into the skillet to create steam for the beginning of the bake and quickly close the door. Bake for 23 minutes at 500 degrees F. Reduce the temperature to 450 degrees F and bake for another 23 minutes. If the crust gets too dark with this method, you can tent it with a piece of aluminum foil halfway through, at the same time you are reducing the temperature.
Good Things Come to Those Who Wait
Take your bread out of the dutch oven or off the pizza stone and let the loaf cool on a wire rack for at least an hour. It is hard to wait but the texture will be better if you do.
Storing Fresh Sourdough Bread
To store, I recommend letting it sit out until cool, or placing it in a paper bag or a cloth bag made especially for storing bread. The crust will get quite hard and crusty at this point. If you prefer a considerably softer crust, move it to a large plastic zip-top bag once it cools. During the course of a week, I may move a loaf back and forth a few times from the cloth bag to the plastic bag, and back again, depending on how crusty or moist it is becoming. It takes about 8-12 hours for the bread crust to harden or soften.
Tools of the Trade
Here are the things you will need to bake sourdough successfully at home:
- Kitchen Scale for the most accurate measuring for the best results;
- Large bowl for mixing and folding the dough;
- Tea towel or bowl cover to cover the bowl in between folds;
- Large, sharp knife or bench scraper for dividing dough;
- Cutting board - for shaping your bread on;
- Proofing baskets for shaping bread (you can purchase these online or find them at a resale store. A colander lined with a linen cloth or tea towel works well, too. You will need two.);
- Lame for scoring lines in the top of the loaf before baking (I used a sharp razor from the hardware store for years, which is essentially just a clean, new blade for a utility knife.); and
- Dutch oven or a pizza stone and iron skillet/metal pan for baking the bread.