My Everyday Sourdough Bread Recipe is my go-to sourdough bread that I want to eat every day. This recipe is high-hydration sourdough and the technique can result in an open crumb sourdough bread for both beginners and advanced sourdough bakers.The crust is golden and crisp, the interior is custardy and melts in your mouth, and the sour flavor is subtle. As always, adjust times for your own schedule and follow my guide above for a more detailed walk-through of each step.
1 Cast Iron Dutch Oven, (I use the Challenger Bread Pan linked here with fantastic results, but a Lodge Double Dutch Oven another cast iron dutch oven works well too)
Build the Levain:In a clean jar, mix the starter, flour, and water.Cover and set the jar in a warm location (between 75-80ºF) for about five hours until doubled in size and bubbly. Alternatively, skip making a levain and use 90g of active sourdough starter when you mix the dough.
30 grams Sourdough Starter, 30 g Bread Flour, 30 g Water
Autolyse:About an hour before the levain is ready, begin autolyse.In a medium mixing bowl, mix thebread flour, whole wheat flour, and optional rye flour(substitute with whole wheat flour if you don't have rye). Create a well in the center of the flour and pour in 310g of warm water.Mix together the flour and water just until it comes together and there are minimal dry bits of flour left. The dough will be very sticky during mixing.Cover and rest an hour or until the levain is ripe.
Mix:Add all of the levain to the mixing bowl. Dimple the levain into the dough and mix to combine about five minutes. The dough will be wet and shaggy. Cover and rest 30 minutes.Sprinkle thesaltand remaining 6g water on top of the dough (this helps dissolve the salt). Dimple the salt and water into the dough and mix until combined, smooth, and you cannot feel any individual salt granules between your fingers. This can take anywhere from 5-10 minutes.Cover and rest 15 minutes.
Levain, 9 grams Sea Salt
Bulk Fermentation (4 to 5 hours at 78ºF):Perform six coil folds during bulk fermentation(please refer to guide above for video and description of coil folds).The first two folds are in 15 minute intervals.The second two are in 30 minute intervals.The last two are in one hour intervals.Cover and rest until the end of bulk fermentation.At the end of bulk fermentation, the dough should be smooth, rounded, feel full of air, have visible bubbles, and should wobble/jiggle if shaken. The dough should rise about 50%.
Shape:Lightly flour the top of the dough in the mixing bowl and the bench/counter. Gently loosen the dough from the sides of the mixing bowl and turn the bowl upside down for the dough to slowly drop onto the counter.With the help of a bench scraper, shape the dough into a batard (oval) or boule (round). Refer to the guide above for videos and descriptions of each shaping method.Lightly dust the top of the shaped dough with flour and rest for 30 minutes uncovered.Lightly flour the banneton to prevent sticking. Using the bench scraper, quickly turn the dough over on the counter (the bottom seam will be on top now). Transfer the dough to the banneton. At this point, you can stitch the dough in the banneton if it still seems very slack. Please refer to the guide above for a video and description of stitching.Cover and rest about 30 minutes.
Cold Overnight Proof:Cover the banneton and place in a cold refrigerator to proof overnight or up to 48 hours.
Bake:Preheat the oven for an hour at 500°F with the Dutch oven and lid in it.Turn the dough out onto a piece of parchment paper. Using a bread lame or sharp knife, score the dough.The score should be ¼-½" deep and at a shallow angle (about 45°). Wearing oven safe gloves, remove the very hot baking vessel from the oven.Transfer the scored dough on or into the baking vessel and cover with the lid.Note: For added steam which can assist with oven spring and a blistering crust, I add two ice cubes to my Challenger Pan right before placing the lid on. You can also lightly mist your dough with a mister.Bake at 500°F for 20 minutes.After 20 minutes, remove the lid.Lower the oven temperature to 450°F and bake for another 20 minutes with the lid off or until the crust is dark brown and golden.Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack at least an hour before slicing.Slice and enjoy!
Video
Notes
From making the levain until the overnight proof, try to keep the dough at a constant, warm temperature (between 75-80ºF) as much as possible. I use a bread proofer to keep my dough at a constant 78ºF. The colder it is, the longer it will take for the dough to ferment. The warmer it is, the faster it will take. See my Bulk Fermentation 101 guide for more information.
Store the bread in a linen bag or a paper bag. After the second day, it will be more difficult to slice, so freeze slices beforehand in a freezer-safe bag. Reheat in a toaster oven.
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