Recipes
Homemade Sourdough Bread

Homemade Sourdough Bread

Name: Homemade Sourdough Bread
Prep time: 14 h
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 14 h 45 min
Yield: 1 loaf
Ingredients: 400 g bread flour; 100 g wholemeal rye flour; 320 ml water; 12 g salt; 1 teaspoon caraway; 50 g rye sourdough starters; 100 g bread flour; 100 ml water; plain flour

Jakub SýkoraBakeryCzech Cuisine x se líbilo

You bake homemade sourdough bread from a rye starter that you refresh in the evening and work into a dough of bread and whole-grain flour in the morning. You let the dough rise slowly and fold it a few times to strengthen the gluten. The shaped loaf proofs overnight in the fridge. You bake it in a hot cast-iron pot, first covered and then golden without the lid. The long fermentation gives the bread its tangy flavor and crisp crust.

Příprava: 14h

Vaření: 45min

CELKOVÝ ČAS: 14h 45min

Step by step process

Starter

1
The evening before baking, prepare the starter: in a larger bowl, mix active rye sourdough with 100 g of bread flour and 100 ml of lukewarm water. Mix thoroughly, cover with a cloth, and let it rise at room temperature for 8-12 hours, until the starter doubles in volume and begins to crack on the surface.
TIP:
Starter is ready when it doubles in volume and has cracks. It should be bubbly and fragrant. Without cracks, you're too early, the bread will be less sour. If it's falling, it's too late, but you can still use it (more intense flavor).

Dough preparation

2
To the finished starter, add the remaining bread flour, whole grain rye flour, pour in lukewarm water, and add salt with caraway seeds. Using your hand or a mixer with a hook, knead into a smooth, slightly sticky dough for about 8-10 minutes.
3
Cover the bowl with a cloth and let the dough rise at room temperature for 2-3 hours. During this time, fold the dough two to three times, always lifting the edge and folding it to the center, which strengthens the gluten network.
TIP:
Gently lift the edge of the dough from all four sides and fold it towards the center, this strengthens the gluten network without aggressive mixing. You're not trying to stretch the dough, just strengthen it. If it's too sticky, work with a wet hand instead of flour. Each fold should take no more than 5-10 seconds.

Shaping and final proofing

4
Turn the risen dough out onto a lightly floured surface and carefully shape it into an oval or round loaf. Place it smooth side down in a floured proofing basket, cover with a cloth, and let it rise in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours (or 2 hours at room temperature).
5
One hour before baking, preheat the oven to 250 °C and place a cast iron pot with a lid or an empty baking sheet on the bottom rack to heat up sufficiently.

Baking

6
Carefully flip the risen loaf onto baking paper, score the surface with a sharp knife or razor in a grid pattern or with one deep cut, and place it along with the paper into the preheated pot. Cover with the lid and bake for 20 minutes at 250 °C.
7
Remove the lid, lower the temperature to 220 °C, and bake the bread for an additional 20-25 minutes until it has a dark golden crispy crust. When tapped on the bottom, the bread should sound hollow.

Cooling and serving

8
Remove the baked loaf from the pot and let it cool on a rack for at least an hour to finish baking inside and to stabilize the crumb. Only then slice it, as warm bread has a gummy texture.
9
Serve with quality butter, cheese, with soup, or just with olive oil and salt.

More tips:

The sourdough must be at full strength before use. after feeding, it should double in volume within 4-6 hours and form bubbles on the surface. A sluggish sourdough will yield heavy, under-risen bread.

If you don’t have a cast iron pot, place a tray with water at the bottom of the oven. the resulting steam will help create a beautiful crispy crust.

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