A Sourdough Series
Who knew there were so many things you could do with sourdough, right?! I get it…Sourdough is a large topic so I thought I would tackle this in baby steps! Here is the breakdown:
✰ How I am Gluten Intolerant and Enjoying Bread Again
✰ Sourdough Basics ~ What is a sourdough starter and what is sourdough bread
✰ A Beginners Organic Sourdough Bread Recipe {Organic and GMO-Free}
✰ Organic Sourdough Hamburger Buns Recipe {Organic and GMO-Free}
✰ A Traditional San Francisco Sourdough Bread Recipe {Organic and GMO-Free}
✰ Organic Sourdough Bagel Recipe {Organic and GMO-Free}
I highly recommend that you start with the first post and work down the list in the order that I have them. I have posted them within the level of difficulty. Beginners sourdough being the easiest to organic sourdough bagels being the most challenging.
All can be achieved. And as always, ask away in the comment section below this post!
A Beginners Organic Sourdough Bread Recipe
Alright, so let’s move onto this recipe. This is a super easy dough to work with and is great for beginners. It really is super simple and I promise you that you are in for quite a treat!
As I mentioned above, make sure your sourdough starter is good and active. If you store it in the refrigerator, be sure to feed your starter 3 times (with 8-12 hours in between). Your starter will be very active and will create a light and airy loaf of bread.
Mix together the sourdough starter, salt, water, and flour. It is best to keep the dough really sticky like this.
You want a sticky and wet dough…
Don’t worry, it will transform to a smooth dough, but a wetter dough creates a lighter, less dense loaf.
Knead the dough for 15-20 minutes. Watch this quick one-minute video where I show you how the dough looks like when you start and what it will look like once you are finished kneading it.
Dough Turns Into A Smooth and Elastic Dough
Once you are finished kneading the dough, split the dough into two equal portions. This recipe makes 2 loaves.
Sometimes I like to make 1 loaf and use the other section for pizza dough or hamburger buns (yes recipes are coming out for both).
Look how smooth and elastic this dough looks after it has been kneaded for 20 minutes.
Use a Banneton or Loaf Pan
Form your dough into a ball and place it into a floured banneton (I bought this one) and place the smooth side down (leaving the pinched bottom face up).
You can also use a 5″x9″ greased loaf pan if you desire. If you use a loaf pan, note that the crust won’t be as crunchy as that of a banneton loaf.
Proof Your Dough
Allow the dough to proof (or rise) for 2-8 hours. I know the time varies dramatically, but this time will differ with the changing temperatures.
I am in Florida and it takes my dough about 4 hours to proof.
Cover it with greased plastic and wait for it to double in size.
This is what it looks like when it doubles in size. It is now ready to go into the oven.
Invest in a La Cloche Dome Baker
Note, you can NOT bake this bread in the basket. It is best to have a stone la cloche dome baker (like this one) that is preheated in your oven.
Gently flip over into the preheated la cloche, score the bread if desired (however, for this recipe I prefer not to score the dough), and bake at 400 F for about 30 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 200 F.
When the bread is finished baking, allow it to cool a few minutes before removing from the pan (if you used one).
You want to remove the loaf when using a pan so that it doesn’t become soggy.
A Beautiful Sourdough Bread
Your loaf will look something like this! Allow to cool completely and serve with a good portion of butter.
A Beginners Organic Sourdough Bread Recipe
Prep Time: 4 hours- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 2 loaves 1x
- Category: bread
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: american
Prep Time:
Yield:
Category:
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Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
This sourdough bread recipe is perfect if you are just starting out. I find this recipe works best using a 9″x5″ loaf pan.
Ingredients
- 2 1/3 cup or 500 g bubbly sourdough starter [url href=”http://www.culturesforhealth.com/san-francisco-sourdough-starter.html” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow”](I get mine here)[/url]
- 1 tbsp or 10g unrefined sea salt
- 3 1/3 cup or 456g of organic white GMO free flour (I get mine here)
- 1 cup or 250g filtered water (you may need more, up to 1 1/2 cups)
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl or with a heavy-duty mixer with a dough attachment. If the dough won’t come together into a dough, add a little more water. Keep adding in water until a dough forms.
- Knead the dough by hand or with a mixer for about 20 minutes. When the dough has been kneaded enough, you should be able to stretch the dough and see through it (like pizza dough) and it shouldn’t break easily (see video above). This is when you know that the dough is ready for the next step.
- Split the dough in two equal portions and place in a greased bread loaf pan (I found this to work best with this recipe and for beginners) or you can place it into a floured banneton. To form the dough for a loaf pan, fold the edges in and then roll the dough and pinch the ends together. This will resemble the loaf pan slightly. Place pinch side down in loaf pan.Cover with a greased piece of plastic wrap and lay a light kitchen towel on top of the pans. If making a round loaf, pat out slightly into a circle and fold edges into the middle. Flip over and make the dough into a circle as shown above. Put the smooth side down and the seams up.
- Allow to proof (or rise) for 4-8 hours or until the dough doubles in size. This time can vary greatly depending on the weather.
- Preheat an oven to 450 F.
- If using a banneton, flip your bread out onto a La Cloche Dome Baker. If using a 9″x5″ bread pan, just leave it in the pan.
- I find it best not to score the top of the dough on this particular recipe. This dough is a wet dough and when scoring, it tends to deflate or fall a bit.
- Reduce the temperature of the oven to 400F and put the bread in.
- If using a La Cloche Dome Baker place the lid on. After 20 minutes remove the lid to allow the bread to brown.
- Cook for 30 minutes or until the internal temperature of the bread reaches 200F.
- Allow the bread to cool completely before slicing. This is very important because if you slice into a warm loaf, your bread will be gummy in texture. Resist temptation and allow it to cool.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Cultures for Health
Sourdough Starter purchased from Cultures for Health
The recipe looks so delicious. Really thanks for sharing.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing this! This is a life-changer for me and my family who also suffer from GMO gluten sensitivities. I made 2 loaves using this recipe and they were amazing, both in taste and texture! I made a few minor tweaks to the recipe (used 1/2 tbsp. of salt and baked it at 400 with an egg wash after the first 10 mins.) but all in all, it turned out 2 perfect loaves! My 11 yr. old daughter who struggles with gluten-sensitivities loves bread but was never allowed any. With your recipe, she can enjoy bread again and in fact can’t get enough of it. Her best friend who is also showing some gluten-sensitivities also enjoyed several slices and wanted more! Needless to say, you have changed our lives and I am one thankful mommy. Thank you so very much for all the effort you put into creating and sharing this post. God bless youl
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Wow, what kind words…you’ve made my day. Thanks so much for sharing your story and for sharing your thoughts with me. I’m so happy you all are enjoying it! When you get a chance, you should try this recipe (it is one of my favorites)…and easy too! 🙂 https://wholelifestylenutrition.com/recipes/traditional-san-francisco-sourdough-bread-recipe/
This will be interesting to see if this bread comes out at all. My first red flag was that there is only one period of rising. Second red flag was that there was so little flour called for in proportion to the starter, and for 2 loaves of bread. First I kneaded it with my dough hook for 20 minutes and it was practically liquid, so I put it out on my butcher block and proceeded to knead it for another 20 minutes. I was choking back tears, it was such a mess. It finally got sort of like your picture. I struggled to divide it into 2 pieces, it was still so sticky, that I gave up and added almost another cup of flour to plop it in to the bread pan. it is rising a little, and its been 2 hours…so we’ll see. To be continued.
Well, the bread came out perfectly! And it was delicious. It rose nicely in the bread pans –in a relatively short period of time (2 hours) it looked beautiful when I took it out of th oven; perfectly shaped. Slices , holds together, tastes delicious. Everyone raved about it. I am giving it 4 stars because I had to add that extra flour- (see above) an ad I don’t know how it would have come out had I not done that.
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Luann, perhaps it would have come out just as beautifully. 😉
Hey! thank you so much for sharing this wonderful recipe. It’s really very nice i will try it out.
Do you need the lid to bake this in the dome? I have a stone pie plate and a pizza stone. Would either of these work?
You do need a lid, yes. You can always use a dutch oven instead of your stone pie plate.
Thank you for the great write up. I’m giving this a try and I’m pretty new to bread making. Before I get started I have one question. After splitting the dough in two what do you do with the other portion if you only have on banneton? Should I let that rise elsewhere? Do I wrap it and put it in the frig/freezer? I’m not sure if the directions are assuming that I have to bake both halves right away or if the second half can be stored somehow. Thanks again.
You can always form it into a loaf and let it rise free-style in a dutch oven. If you want to use your banneton, you can put the second half in the refrigerator while the first loaf is rising and then when the first loaf is complete you can remove the second loaf and put it in the banneton and repeat the previous method. It may take a bit longer to rise because the dough is cold, but it will get there.
IF YOU DID NOT PUT THE SECOND BATCH IN THE FRIDGE BUT KEPT IT OUT COVERED ON THE COUNTER AND THEN AFTER THE FIRST BATCH WAS DONE BAKING FOR 30 MINUTES AND COOL BAKE THE SECOND BATCH FOR 30 MINUTES AND COOL.
CAN YOU USE A GLASS LOAF PAN AND DOES IT HAVE TO BE COVERED WHILE BAKING?
I have read the comments.
However, since they were from awhile ago, I would like to know what you have found that works the best????
What do I do with the dough for my second loaf while the first loaf is in the Banneton etc?
Also, to save headaches for me since it is my first time can I just half your recipe?
Thank you ?
Thanku so much sharing this grate knowledge.
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Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe.