Sourdough Bread - basic, quick method


Sourdough bread.

Makes 1 loaf.

 

Bread3

A 24 hour recipe... looks nice but a little cakey and not sour enough.

This is a good quick sourdough bread with not much fuss but it lacked the sour taste of a good bread. It had lots of holes in the bread and but was slightly 'cakey'.

A traditionally French shaped sourdough boule. Allow yourself about 3 –4 hours for the dough to be mixed, folded and shaped ready to place in the coldest part of the fridge to prove overnight.(If you are new to bread making, you can, instead of shaping the dough and putting it into a banneton, grease a 2lb bread tin liberally with butter, let the dough rise in it overnight in the fridge and then bake as per the recipe instructions below.)

Equipment:

A large mixing bowl

A round cane banneton

2 clean tea towels

A baking stone or a Dutch oven or La Cloche

A large heatproof pan, a sharp knife or ‘lame’ to slash the dough with



Ingredients:-

  • 300g water
  • 100g sourdough leaven (made with your starter)
  • 100g of stoneground organic wholemeal flour
  • 400g organic strong white flour
  • 10g fine sea salt mixed with 15g of cold water
  • 25g rice flour mixed with 25g of stone ground white flour (for dusting your banneton)
  • Semolina to dust the bottom of the baking surface.

Method:-

    Late afternoon

    • Mix
    In a large bowl whisk your water and starter and mix well. Add all the flour and mix until all the ingredients come together into a large ball.

      Cover with a clean damp cloth and let the dough rest on the side in the kitchen for between 30 minutes and 2 hours – this what bakers call Autolyse

      • Fold
      Add the salt mixed with the water and dimple your fingers into the dough to allow the salty water and salt to distribute evenly throughout the dough. Leave for 10 mutes.

        Next lift and fold your dough over, do a quarter turn of your bowl and repeat three more times. Repeat 3 times at 30 minute intervals with a final 15 minute rest at the end.

        • Shape
        Shape the dough lightly into a ball then place into a round banneton dusted with flour (If you don’t have a banneton then use a clean tea towel dusted with flour inside a colander). Dust the top with flour, then cover with a damp tea-towel

        • Prove
        Leave your dough to one side until it is 50% bigger then transfer to the fridge , and leave to prove there for 8 – 12 hours.

          Bake the following morning

          • The next morning preheat your oven to Gas Mark 9 for at least 30 minutes before you are ready to bake.
          Place your cloche or baking stone in the oven and a large pan of boiling water underneath (or use a Dutch oven). The hydration helps form a beautiful crust.

            Once the oven is up to full heat, carefully remove the baking stone from the oven, taking care not to burn yourself dust with a fine layer of semolina, which stops the bread sticking, then put your dough onto the baking stone and slash the top with your blade. This decides where the bread will tear as it rises.

            • Bake for an hour.
            Bake for 30 minutes at Gas Mark 9 with the lid on the Dutch Oven then...

              After the first 30 minutes remove the lid, reduce the oven to Gas Mark 8 and bake for another 30 minutes.

              • The crust should be well baked but not burnt after an hour's baking.
              You need to choose just how dark you like your crust but I suggest that you bake until it is a dark brown – it tastes much better.

                Storage

                • Sourdough is really best left to cool completely before slicing and is even better if left for a day to let the full flavour develop.
                • Once your sourdough has cooled, store in a linen or cotton bread bag, or wrapped in a clean tea towel.

                Note:-

                if you don’t like a crunchy crust on your sourdough bread, simply wrap your bread in a clean tea towel whilst it is still warm.


                * To make 100g of leaven, use 1 tablespoons of sourdough starter, 40g of water and 40g of strong white flour, mix well and leave, covered on the side in the kitchen in the morning. It will be lively and bubbly and ready to bake with in the evening.


                More advanced recipes and tips are available to members of the sourdough club, and a very in depth explanation is covered on our sourdough courses.



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                Category: Breads
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