Basic Sourdough “Country” Loaf
This video will teach you how to make a basic “Sourdough Country Loaf” using a poolish sourdough starter. The highlighted techniques in this video are the slap and fold, stretch and fold, the tension pull used during final forming, and baking the bread in a cast iron dutch oven to replicate a crackly crust and deep color, one of the main attributes that makes hearth breads so desirable.
The basic formulation, based on the baker’s percentage is as follows:
- 70% Hydration
- 2% Salt
Ingredients for Recipe in This Video
- 275g Warm Water
- 500g Poolish Sourdough Starter
- 400g Bread Flour
- 100g Whole Wheat Flour
- 15g Salt
Instructions
- Measure out water and add 500g poolish sourdough water to the water
- mix the water and starter together
- Place mixture back onto scale and add in 400g unbleached bread flour ( optional use a mix of white and whole wheat flour 1:1)
- Mix well and Allow to rest for about 30 minutes (autolyse)
- Measure out non-iodised salt and add to the dough that has been resting
- Remove dough and place onto a clean work surface and work the dough as indicated in the video
- Once worked, sprinkle work surface with a bit of flour, then stretch and fold the dough through the flour on the surface
- Round the dough off and allow to rest again on the work surface for about 10 minutes
- Turn dough upside down and stretch and fold yet three times with a rest interval in between each stretch and fold as per the video
- After final stretch and fold allow to sit again allow to bulk ferment at room temperature for about 3 to 4 hours or until dough has grown to 1 1/2 times its original size.
Comments
Whilst this recipe in the video below is quite time consuming, it does produce an absolutely delicious loaf.
How To Make A Basic Loaf of Sourdough Bread
As an alternative to the recipe above, take a look at this video
How To Make The Worlds Tastiest Sourdough Bread
Ingredients – Feeding the starter: 225g sourdough starter
- 75g water
- 75 flour
Making the loaf: 250g warm water
- 500g good quality white flour
- Big pinch of salt (10g)
Special Equipment
- A jar of sourdough culture
- A baking stone
- A proving basket
- Cling film or shower cap
- Dough scraper
- Water sprayer & oven gloves
Instructions
- To make your own sourdough culture, mix equal parts flour and water in a sealable jar – 75g of each works well. The mixing action traps natural airborne yeast particles in the flour and water mix, and they begin to feed on the flour in the jar creating a living yeast colony. Leave the jar somewhere warm and remember to feed your sourdough equal parts flour and water every day. By 5 days in it should be bubbling and ready to use to bake our sourdough bread.
- Feed your starter 12 hours before baking with 75g flour and 75g water, leave out of the fridge for 12 hours before baking to enliven. Put the flour into a bowl and add 300g of your sourdough culture. Then add the warm water and the salt. Mix it all together and then turn it out onto a table for kneading. It is a wet dough so you have to work it for a long time (15 minutes by hand) before it will start to come away from the table. The finished dough should be very soft but doesn’t stick to the back of your dry hand. If it does, work in a little more flour.
- Feed your starter for the next time with 75g flour and 75g water and store back in the fridge.
- Once it’s stretchy, put it into a bowl and leave it somewhere warm to rise for 2 hours.
- Shape the dough on a lightly floured surface to fit a proving basket or loaf tin. To do this, stretch the dough out into a long rectangle then fold each outer third inwards. Knuckle down a seam at the bottom of the dough nearest to you, then roll the dough down from top creating a tight loaf shape.
- Dust the proving basket or loaf tin with flour and roll the dough in flour to stop it sticking. Put it into the basket, cover it and leave it to rise in a warm place for a second time, for about 8 – 12 hours.
- To bake it you will need a baking stone or a heavy metal baking tray. Get your oven very hot at 240°C/gas mark 9 and heat the stone or tray. Carefully turn the loaf out onto the hot stone or tray – be careful not to knock any air out. Give it your signature cut on the top then put the dough in the oven and throw a cup of water into the bottom of the oven to create steam. Bake for 30 minutes until golden.
