Sourdough for Beginners

Hi friends!
Here is a tutorial for baking your first loaf of sourdough bread. I've included a recipe and video instructions for each step. Please know that there are many ways to successfully make sourdough. This is just my method. I'd encourage you to try others' methods too and take notes on your process. If you keep at it, you'll develop your own idiosyncratic method.

A few notes:
1. Sourdough starter: You will need an active sourdough starter. In these times of flour shortages, I'd highly recommend obtaining a starter from a friend. You can also make your own starter. I followed this method:
King Arthur Flour Sourdough Starter
To conserve flour, you can scale down the amounts recommended in the King Arthur tutorial. So instead of 1 cup of flour and 1/2 cup of water, you could use 1/2 cup flour and 1/4 cup water.

2. Measuring by weight vs volume: Many sourdough bakers use a kitchen scale; so amounts in most sourdough recipes are listed in grams. If you have a scale, it will make the process easier. But I want to make getting started accessible. So in this recipe, I'm giving rough volume measurements.

At the same time, many sourdough bakers bake entirely by feel and use no measurements. It's all about developing the method that works for you.

3. Time: "Watch the dough, not the clock." Rising times for starter and dough can vary widely based on a number of factors (ambient temperature, temperature of water used in dough, starter vigor, amount of starter used in recipe, type of flour, etc!). Because of that, you'll want to learn how to "read" your dough. However, I've given a timeline in this recipe to give beginners at least a rough estimate to follow. I'd highly recommend taking notes for yourself!

Recipe with a sample timeline:

Thursday a.m.  feed starter
Thursday p.m. before bed: feed starter

Friday a.m.*
Make pre-ferment
100 g of active fed starter (approx 1/2 cup)
150 g flour (bread or all-purpose flour) (approx 1 1/8 cup)
285 g water (approx 1 1/4 cup)

Whisk all ingredients in a bowl. Cover with a towel and leave at room temp for 7-10 hrs. You can also start this step in the evening and leave it out overnight. It should be nice and bubbly and pleasantly sour-smelling when ready to move onto the next step.

*Note! Beginning with an active, "doubled" starter is very important! If your starter rose and fell during the night, feed it again and begin when the starter is ready. It's best (schedule-wise) if you can make this pre-ferment either in the morning sometime before noon OR in the evening right before bed. This will help you avoid having to stay up late to mix your dough.




Friday ~4 p.m. (7-10 hrs after making the pre-ferment)

Make dough
To the preferment add
300 g flour (approx 2 cups; bread flour is ideal. All-purpose flour will do. Can do part whole wheat)
8-10 g water (approx 1 Tbs)

Measure out and set aside
13 g salt (very scant TBs)

Using your hand, mix all ingredients except salt into a "shaggy" dough. Cover. Leave at room temp for 1 hour.



Friday, ~5 p.m. (1 hr after mixing dough)

Mix your salt into the dough and do the first set of stretch and folds (see video below). Cover and leave at room temp for 30 minutes.

*Note: if your dough is very dry at this point, mix in a small amount of water as you add the salt. Start by adding a TBS and only add more if it still won't come together into a dough. It's not against the law to add a lot more water, but I've purposely tried to keep this a drier dough so that it will be easier to work with. Carry on.



Friday 5:30 p.m.

Do another set of stretch and folds. Cover and leave at room temp for 30 min.

Friday 6 p.m.

Do 3rd set of stretch and folds.



Friday 6:30 p.m.

Do final set of stretch and folds. Look for "windowpane." See above video.
Cover with a tea towel and a plastic bag. Place in the fridge overnight.


Saturday a.m.
Remove the dough from fridge and shape into a boule. Let it rest on the counter while you prepare a vessel for the shaped dough to rise in.



A well-floured towel in a colander works great for proofing your shaped dough. If you have rice flour, it works very well to keep the dough from sticking to the towel. You can grind a small amount of rice in a coffee grinder. Otherwise, cornmeal, or regular flour will do. Just make sure it's well-floured!

Place the dough topside-down in the towel-lined banneton or colander. Cover with a tea towel and leave at room temp for 2-4 hours, or until dough is ready to bake.




Saturday around noon (or whenever dough is ready)

When dough is ready to bake, it will have risen, although probably not "doubled in size." It might jiggle when you shake it. You can try a "poke test." Wet two fingers and press them into the dough up to the first knuckle. If the hole fills back in quickly, it needs more time to proof. It the hole fills in part-way, it's ready to bake.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Place Dutch oven in the oven while preheating*  Your dough needs steam when it's first placed in the oven to keep the crust soft with the baking bread expands. The Dutch oven accomplishes the steaming effect of professional ovens by containing the steam from the baking bread.

*Many people insist on preheating the Dutch oven. And just as many people insist that a cold Dutch oven works better. I prefer to pre-heat mine as I feel it gives a greater "oven spring," but you should experiment for yourself. Also, if you don't have parchment paper on hand, I'd recommend not preheating the Dutch oven, so you don't burn yourself trying to lower the dough into the pot. If you don't have a Dutch oven, use a cookie sheet with an oven-safe bowl upturned over the loaf.



Turn your dough out of the banneton/colander onto a sheet of parchment paper. Use a sharp razor blade to score it.



Place the dough in the Dutch oven and put in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes.
After 20-25 minutes, remove the lid of the Dutch oven. Return bread to oven and bake additional 10-12 minutes or until crust is desired "brown-ness." I place a cookie sheet on the lower shelf at this point to prevent the bottom of the loaf form getting too done.






Cool finished loaf on a wire rack and try to refrain from cutting into it for 1 hour so the crumb can set. Enjoy! Send me pictures of your loaves! And remember, loaf fails are part of the process. Take notes and try again! Happy baking.