Our Sourdough Recipe

This is the recipe for sourdough bread that I personally use twice a month. It’s beginner friendly and has been my go-to recipe for many years.

INGREDIENTS

• 650 grams water at about 80 degrees
• 200 grams ripe starter
• 800 grams white bread flour (I prefer King Arthur)
• 200 grams white whole-wheat flour ( I prefer King Arthur)
• 20 grams fine sea salt

MAKES 2 LOAVES

 

Day 1: Prepare Starter

Day 2: Mix Your Dough

The bulk of your work occurs on this day, so you’ll want to set aside some time to tend to your dough. Your dough may take anywhere from 5 to 8 hours to finish its rises. You don’t have to always be there but keep an eye on it.

1. Weigh out 650 grams of lukewarm filtered water and add 200 grams of your ripe starter (Make sure the starter is at peak before using). Mix with a spoon until it’s almost all the way dissolved in the water.
2. Weigh 800 grams of white bread flour, 200 grams of white whole-wheat flour  and 20 grams of fine sea salt in a large mixing bowl. Mix to combine.
3. Combine the starter with water into your flour and salt mixture. Then mix with a spatula until the flour soaks up most of the water.
4. Knead by hand for about 10 minutes. Any kneading technique will work.  This step is used to strengthen the gluten structure of the dough.
5. Pinch off a golf ball size piece from your dough and place it into a small  glass jar. Level the small sample as best as you can and mark the            starting point of the dough with either a rubber band or marker. Doing this will enable you to see just how much your dough has risen. You want a    total rise of about 75% once the bulk fermentation is complete.
6. Cover both the sample and your dough and let it sit for 30 minutes.

Stretch and Folds

Stretch and folds are important for building the strength of your dough. It also gives the finished crumb a more uniformed look.

1. After resting for 30 minutes do a set of stretch and folds. Perform stretch and folds across all four sides of the dough. Be very gentle while doing this. You don’t won’t to degas the dough. You want to preform stretch and folds once every 30 minutes for 2 hours. A total of 4 stretch and folds should be done. Check your sample every time to see its progress. Remember you are looking for about a 75% rise.
2. After you’ve completed 4 sets of stretch and folds you can now let it sit  covered until your sample has reached about 75% rise. This can take up to 8 hours but varies depending on your room temperature.

 Watch our video on how to stretch and fold

      

 Pre-Shaping

1. Prepare your proofing basket. Sprinkle a generous coating of flour onto you baskets. Make sure to coat evenly and to get the sides and bottom.
2. After you’ve achieved the 75% rise you are ready to pre-shape the dough. This step helps build tension in the doughs surface which helps give a better rise when baking.
3. Clear a work surface or a baking mat and very lightly dust with flour. Gently turn out the dough onto your work surface. Let the weight of the dough do most of the work. Be very gentle when doing this as to not degas. You can use a bench scraper or other tool to gently release it if it becomes stuck at some points.
4. Once the dough is on the work surface you can then cut the dough mass equally in half with a bench scraper. You don’t have to be exact. Just eyeball it the best you can. Remember to be gentle throughout this whole process.
5. Using floured hands and working with one piece of dough at a time, gently pull all the edges of the dough toward the center to create a semi tight round packet. Then pinch the seams closed with fingertips.  Use a bench scraper to turn the loose ball of dough over so it rests seam-side down. Then gently drag the dough with the scraper across the work surface to build up slight tension. Repeat with the second half of dough. Let both pieces of dough rest, covered, on the work surface for 15 minutes.

Watch our video on how to pre-shape 

 

Final Shaping

 This will be the last shaping before your final proof. This is also done to build more strength in the breads surface.

1. Uncover the dough and lightly dust the tops with flour. In one motion use the bench scraper to lift and turn the dough over, floured side down.

• For an oval shaped loaf

1. You can use the stitching method like I use in the video or use the method for beginners. Beginners method, slide your fingertip beneath the dough and stretch it gently into a square shape. Now Fold the left side of the dough inward toward the center, then fold the right side inward and overtop of the left fold. Starting at the end closest to you, roll the dough away from you into a bulky spiral. Then pinch the seams closed with fingertips making sure you also pinch close the butt ends. Then place the loaf seam side up in the oval basket.

• For a round shaped loaf

1. Use the same method as your pre-shape method. You can see it in the video. Make sure to use the dragging technique after to built up tension on the top of the loaf. Place the loaf seam side up in the round basket.

Watch our video on final shaping

 

Proofing

1. Now cover the loafs and let it sit at room temp for about an hour. This will help the dough to relax.
2. Put your loafs into a plastic bag. (A plastic bread bag works fine for this).
3. Place the loafs into the fridge and leave it for at least 12hours. You can leave it up to 2 days. The longer the dough stays in the fridge, the more sour it becomes . You can fine tune this stage to whatever suits your taste buds.

Baking Day

1. Prepare the oven. About an hour before baking, arrange a rack in the lower third of your oven and place a large, uncovered Dutch oven inside. Heat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit
2. Prepare the dough. Remove one loaf from the refrigerator and uncover. Lightly dust the exposed dough with flour, gently massaging it into the surface. Place a piece of parchment paper over the basket, making sure the parchment is longer and wider than the basket by several inches. Invert the loaf onto the parchment paper. Remove the basket, then slowly peel away the towel. Dust the rounded side of the dough with a little more flour, rubbing it into the surface to coat evenly. Then Brush off any excess flour you have.
3. Make a slash in the dough. Use a lame or a plain sharp razor to make a long, center slash all the way down the length of the loaf. Make the cut about 1/4-inch deep, angling the blade at a 45 degree angle. The 45 degree angle cut will give your sourdough a nice ear.
4. Bake the dough. Very carefully place the heated Dutch oven on the stovetop. Taking care not to touch the sides, use the parchment paper to lower the loaf into the Dutch oven. Cover and return it to the oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Then, carefully remove the lid and reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Continue to bake the loaf uncovered until the surface is deeply browned all over, another 30 to 40 minutes. Remove the Dutch oven from the oven, and use tongs to help you pull out the loaf. Transfer the Dutch oven back to the oven, and set the oven temperature back to 450 degrees. Repeat the process with the second loaf of bread or if your oven is wide enough you can use two Dutch ovens side by side.
5. Let your loafs cool on a cooling rack for at least a few hours. You might be tempted to cut into it early but please allow it to cool completely. The cooling process is important.
6. After it’s been cooled you can now cut, eat and enjoy.

Watch our exciting baking day video

 

You can keep your bread in a bread bag on the counter for up to a week. I usually just pre slice it, then put it into a plastic bread bag, and stick it in the freezer. I’ll pull out however many slices I need for the day and put the rest back into the freezer. It last longer doing it this way.

I hope you enjoyed this recipe. Thanks again and Happy Baking.