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Sourdough Bread: A Beginner’s Guide

Sourdough Bread: A Beginner’s Guide

This guide provides a simple recipe for sourdough bread, perfect for beginners, using just five ingredients.
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Prep Time 13 hours
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 14 hours
Course bread
Cuisine American
Servings 1 loaf
Calories 150 kcal

Equipment

  • Dutch oven
  • Digital scale
  • bowl
  • fork
  • Clean cloth
  • plastic wrap
  • parchment paper
  • wire rack

Ingredients
  

Dough Ingredients

  • 150 g active sourdough starter
  • 250 g warm water Can increase to 300-325g for a softer dough
  • 25 g olive oil Signature addition for crumb and crust
  • 500 g bread flour Not all-purpose flour
  • 10 g fine sea salt
  • fine ground cornmeal or non-stick parchment paper For preventing sticking

Instructions
 

Making the Dough

  • In a large bowl, add the sourdough starter, water, and olive oil. Mix with a fork to combine. Add the flour and salt. Continue mixing with your fork until the dough becomes stiff. Then squish everything together with your hands to incorporate all of the flour.
  • Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, reusable wrap, or a clean, very damp kitchen towel. Let rest (autolyse) for 30 minutes or up to 1 hour.
  • After resting, work the dough into a rough ball for about 15 seconds.

Bulk Rise

  • Cover the bowl with lightly oiled plastic wrap and let rise in a warm spot for 3-12 hours until almost doubled.
  • Optionally, during the bulk rise, perform stretch and folds starting 30-45 minutes in.

Shaping the Dough

  • Remove the dough onto a lightly floured surface and shape it into a tight ball.

Second Rise

  • Let the dough rise again for 30 minutes to 1 hour in a Dutch oven, or in a cloth-lined proofing basket if wetter.

Scoring the Dough

  • Make a shallow slash in the center of the dough before baking.

Baking the Dough

  • Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F for 20 minutes with the lid on, then uncovered for an additional 40 minutes.

Cooling

  • Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack for at least an hour before slicing.

Notes

For best results, weigh ingredients using a digital scale. Monitor rise times instead of the clock as they vary greatly with conditions.

Nutrition

Serving: 1sliceCalories: 150kcalCarbohydrates: 30gProtein: 5gFat: 2gSodium: 200mgFiber: 2gCalcium: 1mgIron: 6mg
Keyword Artisan, Beginner, bread, Sourdough, vegan
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