This is my third attempt at making a sourdough loaf. The first two didn’t go great. My starter wasn’t ready the first time and I didn’t proof long enough, so it was flat and hard as a rock. The second loaf rose but still came out pretty dense, probably because I messed up the mixing and stretch and folds.
For this one, I followed a recipe with 100g starter, 350g water, 12g salt, and 600g bread flour. I did six stretch and folds about every 30 minutes, shaped it, cold proofed it overnight (8–9 hours), then let it come to room temp for about 3 hours. I baked it at 450°F for 30 minutes with the lid on and 15 minutes with it off.
The texture was way better this time, springy but just a smidge on the dense side which I didn’t mind, but there’s definitely room to improve. Any suggestions?
by Aggressive-Ad3645
20 Comments
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This might be a funny question but are you shaping? I read your post but didn’t see anything about shaping while it was proofing on the counter.
As for density—lower your flour amount. 600g is rather high for one loaf, just personal preference. Do a higher hydration, 450g-500g flour and then 350g water. That will make it less dense.
Well, you’ve got your scoring technique down pat — that’s a beautiful crust!
Beautiful scoring on that loaf!
If I’m reading your recipe correctly, the hydration is very low (~58%). Most beginner sourdough recipes are in the 65-72% range, which allow for moderately open crumb while still being reasonably easy to work with.
The crumb structure (large bubbles + dense spots) also suggests that it’s underproofed. You didn’t mention time or temperature for your bulk fermentation, so that could be another area to focus.
Most recipes I’ve seen use less flour, I’d drop to 500g from 600g unless the 600 was a typo. And a longer bulk ferment for sure.
Your scoring is gorgeous however. I bet you really nail it in the next couple of loaves.
I think this is under fermented!
I judged this book by its cover; really impressive scoring!
Did you skip BF?
You have a lot of good tips already. My suggestion is to bulk ferment by the temperature of your dough. All you need is a food thermometer and this chart. Simple
https://preview.redd.it/4yjdam3q2o9g1.jpeg?width=1123&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5c57c7ec563b7c3e514b4ba77c835e3414137525
I think you’re misjudging how strong your starter is. I think your process was ideal but the starter isn’t strong enough.
Try a 1:10:10 ratio the night before you start with the dough, also discarding half of the starter before feeding can make it slightly hungrier. The 1:10:10 ratio will rise slowly so that’s why you want to leave it overnight
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https://preview.redd.it/pbt017ifco9g1.jpeg?width=479&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f09412d1189a5d8e99c6f5b48613585bc24c870a
For a low hydration, sometimes it takes me 12 hours of bulk fermentation time. This is not proofed at all. Maybe try leaving it in room temp before cold proofing for a whole day and see what happens.
Scoring perfection!
Just gonna say if you nail that crumb, you are on your way to some magical boules! Up the hydration and let us know how it goes.
That’s beautiful
I would switch your flour to 500g, use 10g salt (although idk if 2g makes a big difference). Do your folds x4 every 30 mins then let it bulk rise for a bit. Once it’s doubled in size go ahead and toss it in the fridge over night 10-12 hrs. This looks under proofed to me, maybe I’m wrong but bulk rises are pretty important. Side note, that scoring is money!
The Bread Code’s YT channel was a game changer for me. Look out for his sourdough masterclass video, 30mins long but definitely worth a watch.
I’m not sure I understand letting it come to room temperature.
I put my dough into the very hot oven straight from the fridge, and I thought I was supposed to do that?
How did you score this!?