A Complete Guide to Making Sourdough Bread
- Piece of Cake Staff
- Aug 22
- 4 min read
Written by Shawn Krajewski
This is my final article. It's been fun writing for the past year, but the sands of time cannot be stopped, and I have to do something with my existence to keep it interesting. (I am going off to college to get a degree in computer science). I already got a good amount of my emotions out in my last article, and I pride myself on getting to the point and not wasting time, so this will be just a regular recipe. So, once again—and for the last time—let me teach you how to make food!
Equipment:
Large bowl
Spatula
Large container with lid
Non-stick spray
Cutting device
2 small to medium bowls or baskets
2 smooth towels without bristles
Heat-resistant container*
Parchment paper
Ingredients:
775 grams of sourdough starter
700 grams of water
1000 grams of flour
Composed of both bread flour and whole wheat flour.
30 grams of salt
All-purpose flour
Rice flour
Step 1: Mixing
First, grab your sourdough starter and your large bowl. If you're using a premade one, add in the 775 grams required for the recipe. If you're using a starter made with my recipe, save 100 g to the side for future starters, and pour the rest into the bowl. Once added, mix in the water with a spatula. The reason for adding fluids first instead of the drys is so you can more easily mix and ensure that the starter is even throughout the entire loaf.
Now for the most important decision of your life (or at least for the last 20 minutes of it): What is the ratio of flour you're going to add? When creating sourdough, you need both bread flour and whole wheat flour. Bread flour provides structure, but whole wheat offers flavor. This is because bread flour is dense in gluten, and whole wheat isn't. For the sake of this recipe, you can imagine bread flour like a rope going through the dough, keeping it together. But whole wheat tastes better because it's high in energy, which our brains actively seek out. (That's why sugary foods taste so good, because they're dense in energy. Our brains want us to continue eating those energy-dense foods, so they release dopamine that makes us think they taste good.)
I recommend around 600 grams of whole wheat flour, with the rest being bread flour. Additionally, do not forget the salt! If you don't add salt, your dough will be messed up. You'll end up with a disappointing loaf of sort-of-bread on your counter that you'll stare at in despair, questioning your life choices. (And no, I'm not speaking from experience.)
Once the flour and salt are added, tilt the bowl by twenty degrees, grab your spatula, and start mixing! Once homogenized, get your container, spray the inside with your non-stick spray of choice, and pour in your dough. Use the spatula to scrape any residual parts into the container, and place the lid on top.
Step 2: Tending
Remember when I said you'll need at least a couple of free hours for the first day? That's because of this part. While this step is tedious and time-consuming, it's also the simplest. For the next three to six hours, check on the dough every thirty minutes and fold it. I recommend having something fun to do in between those thirty minutes. For instance, a show or something, like DanDaDan—it recently just got its second season, and I have been loving it! Or heck, you could just play some Minecraft or Rain World; that works too.
Now, how do you tend to your dough? Well, it's simple! Remove the lid from the container, wash your hands with cold water, and grab one of the sides. Imagine the dough's a square. You want to grab one side at a time and fold it to the other side. Repeat with all four sides, recap the lid, wait thirty minutes, and repeat roughly 5-7 more times.
Step 3: Shaping
It's time to shape your dough. Grab some AP flour and sprinkle it on your counter. Take your dough and pour/place it on the flour. Now, take your cutting device and split the dough into two.
Once separated, you want to mold it. Imagine the dough as a square again, but this time, take the edges and fold them into the center. (Rather than folding the sides onto each other.)
Next, flip the dough over and take out your bowl or basket. If it's a bowl, add a side towel within, spread a thin layer of rice flour, and then place your dough on top, folding the towel over it. If it's a basket, sprinkle some rice flour, and then place the towel on top. Repeat with the second dough and place it into the fridge for later.
Step 4: Baking
The next day, remove your dough from the fridge, and take out your container(s). For extra style points, you can gently cut into the bread, making a tic-tac-toe pattern. While this isn't required, it does make it look better.
Set your oven to 425 degrees and place the container inside. As it heats up, your container should be heating up as well. Once everything is up to temp, put parchment paper inside the container and grab your dough. Place it in the container with the rice flour side pointing up. Remember to use protection—such as oven mitts—as you don't want your hands to be the next thing on the menu!
Once in the container, let the bread dough bake for 20 minutes. After this initial bake, remove the container's lid and continue to bake it for another 20 minutes. The first bake is to form a crust, while the second is to cook the bread more properly. Once done, remove from the oven, cool, slice, and enjoy with butter and salt.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as it gave me pain. Seriously, I had to go through hell and back to ensure this recipe (and product) came out well. From messing up the recipe multiple times to scheduling complications, it was truly a journey. Now, have a great day, and I hope you read more of my work in the future. Thank you for taking the time to read my crackheaded writing style!
*Notes:
For instance, two cast irons stacked on top of each other, or a specialized pot.
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