Homemade Sourdough Bread, Step by Step

Inspired by The Clever Carrot If you are new to sourdough, watch the step-by-step video here: Simple Sourdough Bread or in the post above. Troubleshooting: If you have issues with your dough being too sticky, please read this post: Why is my sourdough so sticky? The 4 common mistakes. Notes: You need an active sourdough starter. I have had success activating starters from: King Arthur Flour Breadtopia As always, I highly recommend investing in a digital scale before beginning any bread baking adventure. This is the Dutch Oven I use for sourdough bread. I used this Dutch oven for years, and it's a great one, too. Flour sack towels are a great investment because they ensure your dough will not stick while it is proofing. I love using rice flour for dusting (as opposed to ap or bread flour) because it doesn't burn. When you use a flour sack towel, however, you don't need to use any flour. Find all of my sourdough essentials here: Essential Equipment For Sourdough Bread Baking I love a high-hydration dough, and I have great success using 380 grams of water in this recipe, so feel free to play around and push the hydration here. Salt: I have had success using both kosher salt and fine sea salt here. When I use kosher salt, I use the Diamond Crystal brand. When I use sea salt, I use the Baleine Fine brand. Regardless of the brand, I use 12 grams. Shaping: If you're looking to get a more open crumb, try shaping a batard (as opposed to a round). Watch this video for guidance. Also: The recipe below follows the traditional shape once, rest, then shape again method. I often skip the preshape now and simply shape the dough once. I still get a nice open crumb. Adding Other Ingredients: If you'd like to add cheese, herbs, jalapeños, or other seasonings, do so before the third set of stretches and folds. Consider adding a fifth set of stretches and folds to ensure the ingredients are evenly incorporated into the dough. How much Sourdough Starter to Use? Because my kitchen is cold for much of the year, I like using 100 g (1/2 cup) of starter as opposed to 50 g (1/4 cup). When determining how much starter to use, consider a few things: If you live in a warm, humid environment, 50 g should suffice. If you plan on doing an overnight rise, 50 g also should suffice. If you want to speed things up or if you live in a cold environment, consider using 100 g starter. Note: If you use 100 g of starter, your dough may rise more quickly, so keep an eye on it. As always, rely on the visual cues (increasing in volume by 50%) when determining when the bulk fermentation is done. A straight-sided vessel makes monitoring the bulk fermentation especially easy because it allows you to see when your dough has truly doubled.

Good

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet