Easy Sourdough Bread Recipe for Beginners

If your goal this year is to start making sourdough bread, this is the recipe to try!

This is the recipe that made sourdough feel easy and fun for me — like, “Oh! I can actually do this!” There are no complicated schedules and no endless stretching and folding. You simply mix the dough, leave it to rise, shape it, chill it and bake it.

Sourdough can still be a little temperamental, as the temperature of your kitchen, the strength of your starter and the flour you use will all affect the rise. But this is by far the simplest method I have found.

A good, healthy starter and strong, high-protein bread flour will give you the best results.

INGREDIENTS

160g sourdough starter
400g water
650g strong bread flour
12g salt, approximately 2 teaspoons

METHOD

1. Add the sourdough starter, water, flour and salt to a large bowl. Mix until everything is well combined and there are no dry patches of flour remaining.
2. Cover the bowl with cling film, a lid or a damp tea towel.
3. Leave the dough in a warm place until it has roughly doubled in size. Depending on the temperature of your kitchen and how active your starter is, this can take anywhere from 3–12 hours. I often mix the dough before bed and leave it on the counter overnight.
4. Tip the risen dough onto a clean work surface. Gently stretch it out, fold the sides across one another and roll it into a round loaf. Wetting your hands slightly can make sticky dough easier to handle.
5. Choose a deep bowl that is approximately the same size as your shaped loaf. Line it with a clean, dry tea towel and dust the towel generously with flour. Rice flour works particularly well as it helps prevent sticking.
6. Place the shaped dough into the prepared bowl with the folded or seam side facing upwards. Dust the top with a little more flour, cover and refrigerate for 1–4 hours. For the best flavour and texture, you can leave it in the fridge overnight.
7. Gently turn the cold dough out onto a sheet of non-stick baking paper so that the smooth side is facing upwards. Use a sharp knife, bread lame or clean kitchen scissors to score the top.
8. Lift the dough, together with the baking paper, into a cold cast-iron pot or ovenproof saucepan with a lid.
9. Place the covered pot into a cold oven, turn the temperature to 220°C and bake for 1 hour.
10. After an hour, carefully remove the lid. If the loaf needs more colour, bake it uncovered for another 5–10 minutes, or until beautifully golden brown.
11. Transfer the bread to a cooling rack and allow it to cool before slicing. This is the hardest part, but cutting into it too soon can make the inside slightly gummy.

Important tip: Do not wash pieces of sourdough dough down the drain. Once it dries, it becomes extremely hard and can block your pipes. Scrape any leftovers into the bin instead.

Let me know if you try it — and please tag me so I can see your beautiful loaves!

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