Sourdough Bread Baking Masterclass

Master sourdough prep with essential tools—electronic scale, thermometer, bench knife, parchment, bowls, and spatula—plus proofing baskets, baking steel, and Dutch oven for great fermentation and crust.

Explore cake, all-purpose, bread, and heritage flours—wholemeal, spelt, and rye—and learn how protein content, gluten development, and hydration shape dough texture and sourdough flavor.

Master temperature control in bread dough by calculating water temperature from room, flour, and starter temperatures to hit an ideal 24–27°C, shaping fermentation, flavor, and preventing over-fermentation.

Discover what a sourdough starter is and how hydration and feeding cultivate lactic acid bacteria and yeast from wheat's natural spores, yielding gut-friendly bread and promoting fermentation.

Day one of the sourdough starter covers equipment like silicone spatula, maintains 24–27 c, and feeds 50 g flour with 50 g water in a sealable container with airflow.

On day two, feed sourdough starter with 50 g water and 50 g white flour, mix for 30 seconds to a smooth consistency, and observe the rise around 10 am.

Feed the sourdough starter 50 g flour and 50 g water, monitor its rise for stability, discard some starter as it grows, and plan tomorrow's 10 a.m. feeding.

Observe the sourdough starter on day four as it ferments and doubles, then discard most of it to lower acidity and feed with 50 g water and 50 g flour.

Note day five: when the starter doubles in 12 hours, feed twice daily with 50 g water and 50 g flour, discarding as needed. Monitor readiness in 2–3 days.

Feed the sourdough starter with 50 g water and 50 g flour each night, discard to lower acidity, and watch it rise and become more active.

Observe fermentation and acidity on day seven, then discard most, keep about 20 g, and feed 100 g flour and 100 g water to strengthen the culture.

The starter is ready when it doubles. Feed 15 g with 80 g water and 80 g flour, then refrigerate 1–2 weeks, and discard most before reuse.

Store the starter in the fridge for home baking, discard most, keep 15 grams, and feed with flour and water to maintain health and control acidity.

Master the sourdough starter by troubleshooting hooch, feeding ratios, temperature, water quality, flour choices, and container materials, and learn how to recover neglected starters.

Learn to calculate dough percentages with flour set at 100 percent. Base hydration, salt, and starter on flour, then scale any recipe for desired batch size.

Learn the autolyse process for a 65% hydration dough by hydrating flour with water, rest, then add salt and develop gluten before shaping and baking in a dutch oven.

Dissolve salt in water and mix evenly into the dough, then develop gluten by kneading, rest 30 minutes, and begin stretching to build dough structure.

Learn how to perform stretch and folds to develop gluten, keep gases in the dough, and gently shape and rest the dough between folds, monitoring temperature and fermentation timing.

master pre shape and final shaping of sourdough, assess readiness by about fifty percent rise and a domed side, and prepare the banneton with plain and rice flour.

Preheat a Dutch oven for at least one hour at 250 C. Proof until the indentation springs back with a slight wobble, then score and bake with steam.

Cool the loaf on a rack for at least two hours to evaporate moisture and prevent a soggy bottom, achieving a light, open crumb at 65 percent hydration.

Learn dough percentages for a spelt loaf at 71 percent hydration, with flours, 300 g water, 8 g salt, and starter, plus gluten development via slapping foils and stitching-based shaping.

Learn to build a levain by feeding starter with equal parts water and flour, monitor activity, and prepare autolyse dough with spelt and bread flour, hydrated in stages before mixing.

Observe a bubbly levain ready for use, add starter and salt, mix and knead 2–3 minutes to develop gluten, then rest the dough covered for 30 minutes.

Learn how to develop gluten in sourdough dough using the slap and fold technique, dipping hands in water to prevent sticking, and performing 50–70 folds before resting and stretching.

Perform stretch and folds on dough, varying pressures every 30 minutes to trap gases, strengthen the dough, and rest one to three hours to develop a light, smooth crumb.

Pre shaping emphasizes gently lifting and reshaping the dough after rise, using a scraper and light flour, to create a smooth surface before final shaping.

Shape and stitch a sourdough loaf with a 50/50 rice flour and all-purpose flour dusting to prevent sticking, then seal and proof for 1–3 hours or overnight 12–24 hours.

Preheat the oven for at least an hour, bake in a Dutch oven, score at an angle to form an ear, then finish baking until golden.

Learn to troubleshoot sourdough density and deflation by keeping an active starter, proper fermentation, gentle shaping, and a hot oven, while adjusting hydration and flour type.

Transform sourdough discard into delicious banana muffins, pancakes, and non bread using the starter’s acidity for leavening, with almond and wholemeal flour, banana, and chocolate.

Learn to mix yogurt with sourdough discard and a touch of yeast to make a forgiving naan dough, then ferment, roll, and cook on a hot cast iron skillet.