Sourdough Bread

Why This Sourdough Bread Works

During the first rest with just flour and water, the flour slowly soaks up the water. Gluten starts to form on its own without much work. The dough feels smoother and less sticky after this, so it can stretch instead of tearing later.

Once the sourdough starter and salt go in, the starter begins to eat the flour and give off gas. During the stretch and folds, that gas gets trapped inside the dough instead of leaking out. Each fold lines up the gluten more and more, so the dough can hold its shape and keep those bubbles. Over a few hours, it goes from shaggy and loose to bouncy and airy.

In the fridge overnight, the dough rises slowly and firms up. It’s easier to score and doesn’t spread out like a pancake. In the hot Dutch oven, steam stays around the dough at first, so the loaf can rise high before the crust sets. Once the lid comes off, the surface dries out and browns, giving a crisp shell while the inside stays moist and chewy.

Mistakes To Avoid

Letting the starter be weak or not very bubbly leads to a slow, lazy rise. The dough stays dense and tight instead of puffing up, so the baked loaf comes out flat with a tight, heavy crumb instead of an open, airy inside.

Skipping or rushing the 30-minute flour-and-water rest means the flour does not soak up the water properly. The dough then feels rough and tears during stretch and folds, and the finished bread tends to have a tougher chew and a less even crumb.

Overdoing the stretch and folds, or handling the dough roughly, can squeeze out the gas that is building up. The dough loses its lightness, spreads out instead of holding shape, and bakes into a wide, low loaf with fewer holes inside.

Cutting the cold-proof short in the fridge, or letting it go way past 18 hours, throws off the dough’s structure. Too short and the loaf bakes up tight and small; too long and the dough can over-relax, stick badly, and collapse in the oven.

Slicing into the bread before it has cooled for at least an hour lets the steam rush out too fast. The crumb then turns gummy and squishy, and the slices compress instead of staying light and springy.