The Essential Sourdough Bread Baking Course

learn how to make a sourdough starter from scratch using water and unbleached rye flour, select a glass jar, and track progress with a scale.

Begin your sourdough journey by making a yeast starter with 50 g unbleached rye flour and 80 g lukewarm water, covered loosely, away from sunlight at 20–25 C (77 F).

On days 3 to 6, apply the new refresh formula and temperature adjustments by trimming the starter to 50 grams, replenishing with 50 grams rye flour and water, and repeating.

Refresh your starter daily with 30 grams of starter, 50 grams rye flour, and water; manage maturation by temperature and always reserve at least 30 grams extra starter.

Explore a beginner-friendly sourdough bagel recipe, with precise ingredients and overnight starter prep using mature starter and rye flour.

Mix bagel dough by hand with flour, water, starter, and salt, then rest under a damp cloth. Refresh the starter with rye flour and water for another day.

Develop gluten in bagel dough with stretch and folds, forming a tight ball and smoothing the dough; rest for 15 minutes and 3 hours to promote gluten development.

Shape four equal bagel portions and form a center hole by pulling corners under, then refrigerate on a floured tray for eight hours or overnight to bulk ferment.

Boil your bagels in a medium pot, using a slotted spoon and strainer, for 50 seconds per side to achieve a chewy texture, then dry and cool before baking.

Prepare the baking tray, space boiled bagels evenly, apply an egg wash, optionally add seeds or grains, and bake at 230°C for 15–20 minutes until golden brown.

Conclude the sourdough bagel lesson by resting the bagels at least five minutes after a 15–20 minute bake to develop the dough. Enjoy with butter or in a sandwich.

Discover the sourdough bread recipe introduction and ingredients for two loaves, including wheat flour, rye flour, water, salt, and a night-before starter with mature starter, rye flour, and water.

Measure 700 g wheat flour, 160 g rye flour, and 600 g water; mix by hand to form dough, then rest 30 minutes in autolyse to maximize moisture and handling.

Add and evenly distribute salt and mature starter into the dough, fold to incorporate unmixed ingredients, rest for 15 minutes, and refresh the starter with rye flour and water.

Practice stretch and folds to develop gluten in dough, with 15-minute and 30-minute rests and a final three-hour rest to improve structure and gas retention.

Learn to divide dough into two balls, tighten the sides, and rest; prepare two floured, cloth-lined bowls or bannetons, then shape and refrigerate overnight to develop flavor.

Preheat a metal pot with a water tray at the oven bottom to prevent burning and form a crispy crust; flour and score dough, then bake with the lid on.

Finish your beginner sourdough loaf by baking 25 minutes, carefully remove and handle a hot pot, wait 5–10 minutes before cutting, then preheat for a second loaf and score it.

Master a single loaf of rye bread using rye flour, water, salt, and mature starter, with overnight starter prep and tips to ease handling, plus optional cake wheat substitution.

Combine 430 g rye flour with 300 g water to form a dense, wet clay dough; keep one hand free, then rest 30 minutes for autolyse to absorb moisture.

Master the second rye bread dough mix by adding the remaining ingredients after the autoline is complete and mixing thoroughly, noting rye flour's lower gluten than white flour.

Learn to bake a rye loaf using a water tray for steam and a preheated covered pot. Score for crust texture and finish with a final bake.

Conclude your sourdough rye journey with a 25-minute bake, 5–10 minute rest, and rye’s dense texture and aroma—explore variations with other grains for deeper flavor.

Master the rustic baguette with precise ingredients, including cake flour, water, salt, and a special dry starter prepared the night before, guided step by step for home bakers.

Mix 700 g flour with 500 g lukewarm water by hand until incorporated, rest for one hour, then add 90 g more water after the autolyse rest to maximize moisture.

Add 90 g water, 13 g salt, and 64 g dry starter to the second-day dough, spread evenly, mix, then rest 15 minutes for water absorption.

Develop gluten in high-hydration baguette dough using slap and fold: scoop, slap, and fold through cycles with rests, increasing speed until smooth, then rest before the stretch and fold technique.

Learn to develop gluten in a wet dough through three stretch-and-fold cycles and 30-minute rests; refrigerate overnight up to 21 hours to retain moisture and strengthen the dough for baguettes.

Divide dough into four pieces and rest for thirty minutes. Flour, flip, and roll into baguettes; proof on a floured cloth to develop gluten at room temperature for two hours.

Bake rustic baguettes by proofing dough, preheating to 260°C, generating steam with a water tray for crust, and scoring with a sharp knife before a 20-minute then 15-minute bake.

Remove the hot rustic baguettes from the oven, let them rest for five to ten minutes, then slice into a light crumb; enjoy versatile meals with this sourdough staple.

Introduce the croissant recipe and ingredients, including a night-before starter with mature starter, cake flour, water, butter, and salt. Note parchment paper, flour options, and common pitfalls to perfect croissants.

Prepare croissant dough by measuring flour, water, butter, salt, and starter. Knead by hand until integrated, then rest for fifteen minutes to begin gluten development.

Develop gluten in the dough with stretch and folds, then shape into a tight ball, rest 15 minutes under a damp cloth, repeat, and refrigerate 30 minutes.

Shape dough on parchment to a 17 by 17 cm square using 50 cm of parchment, fold sides, roll to flatten, then wrap and refrigerate overnight up to 21 hours.

Shape a 125 g beurage butter into a 10 cm square on parchment, press and roll to smooth, then chill 10 minutes to laminate without melting.

Create butter layers in croissant dough via multiple folds, rest in the fridge, and roll in one direction to spread evenly.

Shape the dough into croissants by cutting five medium triangles and two smaller ones, roll from the wider end, apply egg wash, and proof at 25 c for two hours.

Bake your croissants after a two-hour proof, preheat the oven to 203 degrees Celsius (446 degrees Fahrenheit), reapply egg wash, and bake 15–20 minutes until butter seals into the dough.

finish your first sourdough croissant batch to a crispy, golden crust with a fluffy interior, then cool on a metal rack and enjoy with jam or in a gourmet sandwich.

Celebrate completing the Souda Mastery Course. Explore more baking with additional courses on sourdough breads, pastries, donuts, tarts, and cinnamon rolls.