Easy everyday sourdough bread

Updated at: Sun, 03 Dec 2023 14:09:59 GMT

Step 1

Let's talk gear the pan

Step 2

Stir together your flours and salt in a large bowl.

Step 3

Add your starter to the bowl with the flours. I find a level muffin scoop of starter (about 60g, 1/4 cup) is just the right amount.

Step 4

Mix in the water. What temperature? Doesn’t really matter, though you want to avoid the extremes nothing icy cold or scalding hot. Cool to lukewarm tap water is fine. Keep in mind that warmer water will shorten your rise a tiny bit, while cooler water will lengthen it.

Step 5

Using a spatula, sturdy spoon, or dough whisk, mix everything together.

Step 6

Once the sticky dough comes together and no floury spots remain, switch to a bowl scraper and give the dough a few more brisk turns, mixing until everything is totally combined.

Step 7

Full disclosure I don’t actually mix this dough by hand. I throw all the in my stand mixer and mix on medium-low speed for 45 seconds. That’s it; done.

Step 8

Use a bowl scraper to scrape any sticky dough from the sides of the bowl into the center. Cover the bowl with plastic, a reusable bowl cover, or anything that will keep the dough from drying out; avoid porous cloth dish towels.

Step 9

Newly mixed dough (left) and that same dough 15 hours later (right), doubled in size.

Step 10

Set the dough aside to rise until about doubled, however long that takes; the duration of the rise is dependent on the vigor of your starter, the temperature of your house, and the mixture of flours you used.

Step 11

When the dough has risen sufficiently, ready your pan by spraying it with nonstick spray. I also like to coat the inside of the pan with sesame seeds, for extra flavor and crunch.

Step 12

Use your bowl scraper to scrape the risen dough back to the center of the bowl, gently deflating it in the process. Work the dough with the scraper for an additional 20 seconds or so; you'll see it come together in a jiggly, semi-elastic mass, something you can easily scrape over the edge of the bowl into the prepared pan.

Step 13

Sprinkle your favorite seeds on top, if you like; I've used sesame seeds here, but our

Step 14

Everything Bagel Topping is also a tasty choice.

Step 15

Scrape the sticky dough into the prepared pan. Smooth the top with wet fingers; it doesn’t have to be perfectly level, but shouldn’t have any large mountains or deep valleys.

Step 16

Cover the pan with plastic and let the dough rise until it’s about 1” below the rim, which will take 3 to 4 hours (depending on room temperature). If it hasn't risen sufficiently after 4 hours try moving it to a warmer location. Or just wait; it'll get there!

Step 17

Preheat your oven to 425°F about half an hour before you think your dough will be ready.

Step 18

Immediately place the bread onto your oven’s center rack and bake it for 45 minutes. When it’s done it’ll be pale brown, pulling away from the edges of the pan, and its top crust will be quite hard. If you have a thermometer, the loaf's temperature at its center will register about 204°F.

Step 19

Remove the bread from the oven, turn it out of the pan onto a rack, and let it cool completely — really! — before slicing.

Step 20

You can also shorten rising time by using a greater percentage of starter. Keep in mind, though, that you want to keep the flour/water ratio intact when figuring your baker's percentages, allot half the starter’s weight to water, half to flour.

Step 21

Reduce the water to 400g (1 3/4 cups) in summer, or under humid conditions.

Step 22

Mix everything together. Cover and let the dough double in size, about 12 to 16 hours. Scrape into a greased 9" x 4" x 4" pan; cover and let the loaf rise until it's within about 1" of the pan's rim, about 3 to 4 hours. Bake in a preheated 425°F oven for about 45 minutes, until bread tests done.

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