I’ve been making sourdough bread for about six months now, and over that time I’ve refined my process to make it as easy, consistent, and streamlined as possible. I started out maintaining four starter jars and baking a batch every other day, but I’ve since simplified the routine to baking every Monday and Thursday while keeping just two starter jars in the refrigerator.
The result is a reliable process that consistently produces excellent sourdough bread, whether I’m making a classic loaf, a rustic boule, or crisp, flavorful baguettes.
- 800g bread flour
- 20g salt
- 500g bottled water warmed to 100-110F
- 250g sourdough starter
- 20g honey
I prepare my starter the night before I plan to make the bread. I keep two starter jars in the refrigerator and feed them weekly with 1/2 cup all-purpose flour and 1/3 cup purified bottled water. To prepare the starter for baking, I combine 100g of refrigerated starter with 1/3 cup water and 1/2 cup flour, which produces approximately 250g of active starter mixture. I leave this mixture at room temperature overnight. By morning, usually around 5:00 a.m., it is active, bubbly, and ready to use. The entire starter mixture is then used in the bread preparation described below.
- Weigh out and blend dry ingredients (flour(s), salt, extras).
- Weigh out and blend wet ingredients (water, starter, honey).
- Add dry mixture to the wet mixture and combine with a spoon until there is no dry remaining.
- Cover with plastic and let rest for 2 hours.
- With one hand, stretch and fold the dough 4 times, each time rotating 90 degrees.
- Allow to rest 40 - 45 minutes and repeat step 5 three more times.
- After the 4th stretch and fold, rest covered with plastic for 2 hours.
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