Sourdough Basics

Sourdough bread differs from traditional yeasted bread in three ways: 

1) It is made with a wild yeast culture rather than packaged commercial yeast,

2) It is a “high hydration” type of bread recipe,

3) It tastes amazing!

By using a wild yeast culture, rather than packaged commercial yeast, sourdough bread also contains lactic acid bacteria — similar to sauerkraut and other fermented foods.  This naturally occurring bacteria is what gives sourdough bread its unique flavor.  But with that unique flavor comes some unique complexity because while the dough is rising, it is also fermenting, which can break down the dough unlike when using packaged yeast.  In addition, artisanal sourdough recipes typically prescribe a high water content in the dough which can make dough handling more challenging. 

Sourdough baking requires new bakers to learn some new skills, but there are plenty of resources available and if you put the time into it, you can master the art of sourdough baking!

What we call “sourdough bread” was known simply as “bread” or “leavened bread” until the early 20th century.  Rising a loaf of bread using a wild yeast starter is the way bread was made starting as far back as 4,500 years ago.  The popularization of commercial bakers’ yeast in the early 20th century simplified the bread making process by isolating a single species of very strong yeast, separating it from the lactic acid bacteria, and packaging it in dry form where it was very long lasting, predictable and less temperature sensitive than a wild yeast culture. 

By the late 1990’s sourdough bread had been all but forgotten except in specialty bakeries.  The artisan sourdough revolution in the 1990’s helped bring sourdough bread back to popularity. 

In the coronavirus pandemic of 2020, interest in sourdough baking skyrocketed as people were quarantined in their homes.  People began baking bread at home to avoid frequent trips to the supermarket, and home bakers finally had the time to devote to sourdough baking which is notoriously time intensive. 

Sourdough baking requires a few special tools, and like any other hobby, there are plenty of specialized tools available for those who are interested.  

Most of the tools required are things that you may already have in your kitchen.  The essential tools for sourdough baking include: 

1. A digital kitchen scale
2. A digital kitchen probe thermometer
3. A vessel to measure how much the dough rises
4. A dutch oven

The Products page includes links to all of the most common products used by sourdough bakers. 

I strongly recommend Chad Robertson’s “Tartine Bread” book which contains one of the most popular recipes for sourdough bread — the Tartine Country Loaf — and the description of the bread-making process is one of the most detailed you will find.  This recipe will help you develop all of the skills necessary to tackle any sourdough recipe.  Many are derived from this recipe and approach.  Here is a short version of the recipe, but I recommend the long-format version in the book.  

I also recommend Elaine Foodbod’s Master Recipe.  It is a good recipe for beginners and is somewhat simpler than the Tartine recipe. 

If you are an experienced baker and seeking ways to fit sourdough baking into your busy schedule, check out my video, “Post-Pandemic Sourdough For Busy People – The Low and Slow Method.”  This method employs new methods to schedule sourdough baking around a busy schedule and make delicious bread with minimal hands-on time.  

Sourdough baking is highly dependent on your dough temperature and kitchen temperature, so it is important to understand your “baking style” before selecting a recipe. 

Sourdough “baking styles” are based on the temperature range that you plan to use for bulk fermentation. 

• If it is winter, or you live in a cold climate, you may want to bulk ferment at 70F/21C. 
• If you plan to use a proofing chamber, you may want to bulk ferment at 80F/27C. 
• If you live in a tropical climate, or are baking in the summer, you may need to bulk ferment at 90F/32C.  

These three bulk fermentation ranges come with different challenges, and each temperature range requires different techniques. 

This video clip discusses the three “Sourdough Baking Styles.” 

Unbaked sourdough starter has probiotic microbes and enzymes similar to other fermented foods (e.g., sauerkraut, yogurt, kimchi), but once the loaf is baked, all of the probiotics die a fiery death in the oven.  Sourdough does have other beneficial aspects for gut health, but it does not retain probiotic properties. 

Sourdough fermentation breaks down the gluten to make the bread more digestible for some people with mild gluten intolerances.  In addition, it makes the nutrients in the flour more bioavailable. 

No.  However, some people who are gluten intolerant can eat sourdough bread because the fermentation process starts to break down the gluten and make it more digestible or tolerable.  Sourdough bread also has a lower Glycemic Index than other breads. 

It is possible to make gluten-free sourdough bread by using gluten-free flours, but that topic is not currently covered here.  

The first step is to create (or procure) some sourdough starter.  If you make your own, it will take about 10-14 days to get it up to strength.  

During that time, I suggest baking a few loaves of non-sourdough bread so you can start to get the feel for breadmaking with a simpler process. 

A good beginner’s bread recipe is Mark Bittman’s No-Knead Bread recipe.  Published in the New York Times in 2006, it is one of the most popular bread recipes of all time.  I used this recipe when I began making bread (pre-sourdough).  

In this recipe, it is important to keep the dough temperature around 70F/21C (or slightly higher). This will also introduce you to valuable skills for monitoring dough temperatures in the sourdough fermentation process.  

Try this recipe a few times while you are building your sourdough starter.