Makes: 1 Loaf
Are you new to sourdough bread? This easy recipe is sure to make you look like a pro! Even if you aren't new this recipe is super easy and only requires a little hands on time making it easy to fit baking some homemade bread into your busy schedule.
This sourdough is made with a simple process while still yielding a beautiful loaf. You can make the dough the night before, allow it to proof on the counter overnight, and bake it in the morning. Alternatively, you could mix the dough up in the morning and bake it that night. This recipe is very flexible and allows you to move the times around to make it when your schedules allows.
Ingredients:
4 cups organic white bread flour, spooned and leveled (520 grams)
2 teaspoons fine sea salt (12 grams)
1 7/8 cups water (385 grams)
90 grams homemade sour dough starter (1/3 cup) fed 8-12 hours earlier, using it slightly after peaking (If your house is very warm you can usually use your starter about 6 hours after feeding it.)
Optional Ingredients:
Rice Flour
Seeds for flavoring (fennel, caraway, chia, flax, poppy, etc.)
Add ins such as nuts, herbs, garlic, dried fruits, cheese
Instructions:
8 am: 8-12 hours before mixing your dough, feed your starter, leaving it out on the counter making sure it doubles in size within 4- 6 hours. If you keep your starter in the fridge and fed it in the last 7 days- it is OK to use it straight from the jar, cold, without feeding. For best tasting bread be sure to use your starter when it's "hungry" meaning it has reached its peak and has began to fall.
8 pm: Using a kitchen scale weigh the flour in a medium bowl (Make sure to zero out the weight of the bowl). Next, add salt and any desired add ins such as spices, seeds, nuts, etc. Mix your starter and water in a small bowl until well mixed. Pour the starter and water mixture into flour incorporating all the flour using a wood spoon or your hands. It should be a thick, heavy, messy, sticky dough. Mix for about 1-2 minutes. Don’t worry about tidy dough here, just get the flour all mixed in and cover. Let rest for 15 minutes. It will loosen up as it rests.
8:20 pm: Do the first set of stretches and folds. With wet hands pull the dough from one side and stretch it upward, then fold it up and over to the center of the dough. Quarter turn the bowl and repeat, stretching up and folding it over the middle, repeat for about 30 seconds or until the dough gets firm and resists. Doing this helps strengthen the gluten. Cover, rest, and repeat the same process in another 15 minutes. With wet hands, stretch up the dough and fold over, turning, and repeating, for 30 seconds until the dough gets firm and resists again. Next, turn the dough over in the bowl so the bottom of the dough is now on top.
8:35 pm: Proof dough overnight, at room temp on the counter. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it on your counter for 8-12 hours. If your house is cold you may need to proof your dough longer. The ideal proofing temperature is between 68-70 degrees.
6-8 AM (The next morning): Check your dough. The dough should have expanded about 1.5 times bigger (it won't necessarily double in size and that is fine), with a slight springy dome to the top.
Do the POKE TEST: With a floured finger, poke the dough. If it indents easily and mostly springs back to its original shape but leaves, it has probably risen enough. If it feels firm or very hard to indent, let it rise longer. If it feels loose, runny, or indents too easily or doesn’t spring back, it is most likely over-proofed (don't throw it out, bake it anyways).
Line a bowl with parchment. I like using a high-sided bowl vs. a flatter or more shallow bowl to help shore up the sides. You can also use a floured Banneton you have one (this recipe does not require you to have one!)
2nd Set of STRETCH and SHAPE: Loosen the dough from the all edges of a bowl with using wet fingers. With both wet hands, carefully pull the dough straight up, in the middle and lift it, stretching straight up in the air- about 1-2 feet, and place it back down, gently folding it on top of itself. You want to basically pick it up in the middle let it slowly stretch itself downward then place it back in the bowl folding it over itself. In this first stretch, the dough may feel quite loose and runny. This is normal and it will firm up as it stretches and folds. (If your dough breaks here, it is a sign that it is probably over-proofed, bake it anyways). After the first stretch, give the bowl a quarter turn, wait 30-60 seconds, wet your hands again and stretch it up high again, folding over itself in the bowl. Wait 30-60 seconds. Then, the third time you lift and stretch, you will lift it all the way up and into your bowl lined with parchment paper, folding over itself like you’ve been doing. (If the seam from folding is up, pinch the seam closed). Sprinkle top with flour making sure to get the sides too, gently rubbing it in to create an even coat.
FINAL RISE and PREHEAT OVEN: Place the bowl in the refrigerator for one hour uncovered to firm up the bread. (You could also keep it in the fridge for a couple hours if you want to bake later.) Preheat the oven to 500F with your dutch oven inside and lid on. I usually preheat my oven for 1 full hour while my bread rests in the fridge.
SCORE & BAKE: When ready to bake pull the dutch oven out of the oven, be sure to close the oven to keep the heat in, and remove the dutch ovens lid. Take your breakout of the fridge and score the bread in the bowl, using a very sharp knife, lame, razor blade, (if you don't have any of these you can use scissors dipped in cold water), score the dough swiftly and deeply, at a 45-degree angle, 3/4- 1-inch deep 1/2- 3/4 the way around the edge of the dough. One deep slash is just fine. You want to score where you want the dough to puff out from. Carefully lift the parchment by the corners and place both the bread and parchment paper into the dutch oven. Cover quickly. You want to score the bread and transfer as quickly as possible.
BAKE: Place dutch oven in the middle of 500F oven for 25 minutes. Remove lid. It should be puffed and just lightly golden and internal temp close to 200F (if not, put lid back on for a few more minutes). Lower oven heat to 450F, continue baking another 10-15 minutes until its a deep golden brown and internal temp reaches 204- 208F.
COOL & STORE: Remove from the dutch oven, let it cool at least 1 hour on a rack or tilted up on its side before slicing. Store the bread wrapped in a kitchen towel for the first day to keep the crust crispy, then move it to a zip lock bag to keep it moist longer. You can also chose to slice up the bread and freeze it.