A Late Friday Post

Sourdough is another one of those things that I just plugged away at and have had SO MANY FAILURES! I’ve been experimenting with sourdough since before the pandemic and am only just now feeling an ounce of confidence when it comes to baking. And yes! I have tips:

I try to mostly ignore the amounts of time given in all of the recipes and am learning to pay attention to the starter and the dough.

mix the dough when it looks like the starter has doubled. The amount of time will depend on how happy and healthy the starter is (sometimes I go months without using my starter and sometimes I’m using it daily) and how warm the house is. My house is usually around 62º and that’s not conducive to a happy starter!! So it almost always takes more time for my starter to double than what the recipes say. – don’t rush the bulk fermentation process. I’ve started using a clear bowl and a rubber band to mark the height of the dough so I know when it’s actually doubled. And my dough NEVER doubles while in the fridge, so I’ll usually put it in the fridge overnight and then take it out the morning I want to bake. I* put it on a heating pad* for a couple of hours to help warm it up and get the sourdough activated and happy. – Start the shaping process once you’re certain the dough has doubled. It gets all jiggly and fun to play with when it’s ready to be shaped. – Once I’ve done two shapings, I put it in a basket and leave it on the counter for 2 hours for its final proofing. Then I put it in the freezer for at least an hour — this makes it easier to score before going into the oven. I’ve left it there for as long as three hours because of other commitments. My guess is you could probably leave it in the freezer for as long as you need to. It stops the fermentation process and your bread will not be over-proofed.

I spent YEARS rushing that bulk fermentation process because all of the recipes said that 10-12 hours overnight in the fridge was enough time. But then I’d pull the loaf out and it was a solid and cold brick that wouldn’t hold its shape and was impossible to score after shaping. And then there would be so many deep tunnels throughout the loaf that told me that I was doing something wrong, but I didn’t know what. And slowly, I figured out that using that heating pad the day I wanted to bake made all of the difference!

I’m also happy to share recipes, if that’s helpful. But honestly, I think all the recipes out there will work. It’s really about not rushing the process and learning when the starter and dough are ready for their next steps!

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