An easy homemade sourdough recipe for a fluffy sourdough loaf full of characteristic tangy sourdough flavour.
My advice regarding making sourdough is don't overthink it and not overplan it. Just go with the flow; it is an organic process, and you will find that if you persevere, it becomes second nature.
Allow the sourdough process to work around your schedule. The starter can still be used even if it is not at its peak. Stretch and folds/coil folds help develop strength and gluten, but if you only have time to fit in 2 lots, then do 2 lots of 8 and allow it to bulk ferment for longer if needed. If you don't have time to wait hours for bulk fermentation, let it complete the process in the fridge; don't lower the fridge temperature right down to 5 degrees as you would for cold proofing, so that fermentation can continue.
It is all about learning to understand what your dough is telling you along the way and developing the skills to work with it. That comes in time, but if you follow my instructions below, you should end up with a lovely sourdough loaf from the get-go.
Jump to:
My process for Easy Homemade Sourdough
I tend to start the process at about 10 am by taking my starter out of the fridge and leaving it to come up to room temperature for about an hour. My kitchen tends to be about 23-24 degrees centigrade.
I then discard all but 100 grams of the starter, mix in the flour and water and set it aside for about 3 hours until it has increased in size by about another two-thirds.
Tip: if your starter is nice and lively, you should hear it crackle and fizz slightly when you pour it into your bowl (love this sound!).
I double-check the starter is at peak by dropping a little into a cold glass of water; if it floats, then it is ready. That said, this isn't always an indication of readiness, so don't worry too much if it sinks. As long as the starter has risen by two-thirds, you are good to go.
Next, I weigh out 100 grams of the active starter into my mixer bowl and then add the flour and water. With the dough hook fitted, I mix into a sticky dough with the mixer on the lowest setting for 5 minutes.
I cover the dough and leave it for 45 minutes to allow the gluten to develop. Then I add the salt and do 8 stretch-and-folds. I then repeat with 3 more lots of 4 stretch-and-folds or coil folds every 30 minutes.
Tip: coil folds tend to be a bit gentler on your dough than stretch-and-folds, so I usually do half-and-half.
The dough is then covered again and left to bulk ferment for about 4 hours. It is ready once it has doubled in size and when a small section from the top can be pulled out into a thin layer without breaking. This is known as the windowpane test.
Tip: Use this calculator as a guide to work out your bulk fermentation times.
That takes me until about 8 pm. If the kitchen is warmer, then it can take less time.
After that, I shape the dough by spreading it out into a rectangle, folding each side over onto itself, rolling it up and pinching the ends together.
It is then placed in my floured banneton, covered and refrigerated until about 7 pm the following day.
Tip: your sourdough will develop more sourdough flavour the longer you refrigerate it. I often leave mine in the fridge for 2 days before baking.
The next day, I heat my oven to a very high temperature, score the dough, and mist it with a water sprayer. I bake it covered for 20 minutes and uncovered at a lower temperature for a further 15 minutes. I take it out of the oven when the internal temperature is about 208 degrees Fahrenheit.
Done. Simple 😊.
Why make this Easy Homemade Sourdough?
It is FAR better for you✔️
MUCH healthier than bought bread✔️
None of the rubbish and additives they put in shop-bought bread!
Made with natural yeast ✔️
Sourdough is a purely organic process made with self-grown organic yeast made by your starter.
Easier to digest✔️
Ever noticed how shop-bought bread causes bloating? Not so with sourdough.
Baked in 2 x 2lb loaf tins ✔️
No need for an expensive Dutch oven ✔️
Produces a loaf with agood rise, full of characteristic holes✔️
Lovely tangy sourdough flavour ✔️
Makes dough that is easy to handle and shape ✔️
Keeps well for 2-3 days ✔️
Top tips for perfect sourdough
Use a lively, bubbly and active starter at peak
The success of your sourdough really depends on how good your starter is.
I recommend buying a starter if you can.
A homemade starter can take a good 6 months or more to mature enough to make good sourdough with.
Also consider using a sourdough starter kit.
It helps you to gauge how much your starter grows after being fed. That said, any jar with an airtight lid will work fine. Ideally, add an elastic band around it so that you can see how much it grows.
Use a calculator to work out bulk fermentation times
Calculators are available to assist with calculating fermentation times. They are great for when you first start on your sourdough journey, as BF can be difficult to determine.
This bulk fermentation calculator is very good or try this simpler one.
Keep an eye on the bulk fermentation (but don't stress over it)
This tends to be the bit that those new to sourdough struggle with the most. The sweet spot of knowing when bulk fermentation has completed simply comes with practice. Essentially, though, the message is don't worry too much. If it is under-fermented, it will continue to ferment in the fridge during the cold proof. If over-fermented, it will still bake up into a great loaf. Generally, I find bulk fermentation takes about 4-5 hours in my kitchen.
Once your dough has doubled in size and you can stretch a piece into a thin window pane effect it should be ready.
Use high-protein flour
High-protein bread flour helps the dough with elasticity and structure, and ensures your sourdough rises well. A flour with 12-14 grams of protein is ideal. I use Allinson's Very Strong White Bread Flour mixed with store-brand strong white bread flour.
Use bread slings
Bread slings (picture above) are much better to use than just greaseproof paper (baking parchment) because they are tolerate the very high temperature that sourdough has to be baked at.
The loaf tins set I recommend comes with bread slings, or you can order them separately, but do get good quality ones or your dough will stick to them when baked.
Cold proofing
Sitting the dough in the fridge for 24-48 hours really helps to develop the sourdough flavour. The longer you leave it, the better.
Ensure your fridge is set low to prevent the dough from continuing to ferment.
Use loaf tins, not a Dutch oven
I find that a Dutch oven restricts the spread of my sourdough whilst it bakes, and that baking in loaf tins produces a far better loaf.
Storage
Store your Sourdough loaf wrapped in greaseproof paper (parchment paper) or use plastic-lined bread bags.
The sourdough will stay fresh for 2-3 days.
I tend to cut mine into slices if I know I won't use it all in that time and freeze it. Then defrost as needed.
Alternatives
If you fancy trying other bread on my blog, you may like to try my other Bread Bakes 🍞, such as my Seeded Granary Bread, which I adore making. I will also soon be posting a whole bread loaf, which is super tasty.
FAQ
Discard all but 100 grams of starter. To this add 100 grams of plain white flour (not bread flour) and 100 grams of lukewarm pre-boiled water. Mix thoroughly and set aside for about 3 hours at room temperature until the starter has doubled in size and a small piece floats to the top of a glass of water.
Rye flour is a lifesaver for a weak or failing sourdough starter. Instead of feeding with just plain white flour, mix in 70 grams of plain flour and 30 grams of wholemeal rye flour along with 110 ml of lukewarm pre-boiled water. Your starter will thank you for it!
Your sourdough starter only needs feeding once a week if kept refrigerated with an airtight lid on it. If kept on the counter, it will need feeding daily.
You should keep your sourdough starter refrigerated in an airtight jar and feed it once a week. If you choose not to refrigerate it, you can keep it at room temperature, but you will need to feed it daily instead.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
📖 Recipe
Easy Homemade Sourdough
Here's what you'll need...
- 2 x 2lb loaf tins preferably with fitted bread sling - but not obligatory
- Stand mixer with dough hook fitted or you can mix by hand using a wooden spoon or a Danish dough whisk
- Clingfilm (plastic wrap) or clear plastic shower caps are a great alternative
- Banneton however you can just use one of the loaf tins but flour it well first
- Bread lame or a sharp knife
Ingredients you'll need...
Starter - feeding
- 100 g Starter
- 100 g Plain (all-purpose) flour
- 100 ml Luke warm pre-boiled water at about 35℃
Sourdough
- 100 g Active sourdough starter at peak
- 420 g Extra strong bread flour protein content 13-14%
- 80 g Strong white bread flour or you can use another 80 grams of the extra strong bread flour
- 370 ml Luke warm pre-boiled water at about 35℃
- 10 g Fine salt
- Oil for greasing olive, vegetable or sunflower oil are all fine
Here's what we do...
Starter - feeding
- Take your starter from the fridge and discard all except 100 grams of it.
- Add your flour plus your luke warm pre-boiled water and mix together thoroughly. You will then have about 300 grams of starter.
- Loosely cover and leave at room temperature to rise by about two thirds. Mine takes about 3 hours and my kitchen is around 23℃.
- Once your starter has increased by about two thirds it should be ready. A useful test can be to take about half a teaspoon from the top and pop it into a glass of cold water. If it floats then the starter is active and ready to use.
Sourdough
- Take your stand mixer bowl and add 100 grams of your active starter to it.
- Tip in your flours and then your pre-boiled lukewarm water.
- Set your mixer onto the lowest setting and allow it to mix the dough for 5 minutes without stopping.
- Scrape the dough off the dough hook (it will be very sticky), cover the bowl with cling film (or a new clear shower cap works very well ) and set aside at room temperature for 45 minutes.
- Remove the covering and tip in your salt.
- Wet your hands and then scoop your fingers under one quarter of the dough. Gently pull the dough up vertically and then fold it back onto the dough in the centre. Turn the bowl a quarter turn and repeat another 3 times, i.e. until you are back to the start.
- Repeat the above step again so that you have done 8 stretch and folds in total. This process helps build the gluten and thus strength in the dough. You can do coil folds if you prefer, lifting the dough up by the middle and placing it back down so that either end sits under the middle and again turning the bowl a quarter turn and repeating, until you have done 8.
- Cover the bowl again with clingfilm/clear shower cap and set aside for another 30 minutes.
- Repeat again with just 4 stretch and folds or coil folds this time. Cover again and leave for 30 minutes.
- Repeat the step above twice more every 30 minutes. By which times you should have done 4 lots of stretch and folds every 30 minutes in total.
- Remove the dough from the bowl and then lightly oil it.
- Return the dough to the bowl, cover again with cling film/show cap if using and set aside to bulk ferment.
- Use this calculator to work out your bulk fermentation times.My kitchen is about 23℃ and I find the bulk fermentation takes about 4 hours. Generally when ready the dough will have pretty much doubled in size, have a bit of a shiny slightly domed top and a few bubbles may be poking through at the edges. You should be able to pull a segment up and it will stretch into a thin sheath without breaking, this is known as the windowpane effect.
- Lightly flour your work surface and tip your dough out onto it.
- Gently stretch the dough into a rectangle shape of about 10 x 12 inches in dimensions.
- Fold one of the long sides over into the middle and then do the same with the other side so that you have 3 layers on top of each other.
- Starting with the short side nearest to you, roll the dough up fairly tightly. Pinch the ends together.
- Flour your banneton and then place the dough into it with the seam side facing up.
- Cover with clingfilm/shower cap again and place in the fridge (fridge needs to be at about 5 degrees) and leave for 24-48 hours. This cold proof is what gives the dough it's typical sourdough flavour.
- Pre-heat your oven to 250℃/230℃ fan/480℉/Gas mark 9.
- Once the oven has heated up take your dough from the fridge and sprinkle over some flour. Place your bread sling over the top and flip the dough onto it.
- Take a bread lame or a very sharp knife and cut a line about 1 cm deep from one end of the dough to the other along with long side. You can make further cuts in pattern over the top if you choose to.
- Spray the dough with water (this creates those characteristic sourdough blisters on the dough as it bakes).
- Lift the dough using the bread slings and place it in the loaf tin and then place the other loaf tin on top.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- Reduce the temperature to 220℃/200℃ fab/390℉/Gas mark 7 (I usually leave the oven door open a little to bring the temperature down quickly) and remove the loaf tin covering the bread.
- Bake for a further 15 minutes until browned all over and the internal temperature of the bread is between 205-210℃.
- Remove the bread from the tin and allow to fully cool before cutting it (the dough will continue to steam inside hence it is important not to cut it too soon).
Comments
No Comments