Cooking 101: Sourdough Bread
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Today we are talking about Sourdough Bread. Tangy, soft, perfect for any kind of sandwich…sourdough bread. This recipe is so simple, I didn’t even drag out the bread machine to make it…a miracle I know. This recipe came with my sourdough starter that I purchased from King Arthur’s Flour in Vermont.
It is a descendant of one that began it’s life over 250 years ago!!! When the sourdough arrives it looks like this…..
It has been in transit, so it is hungry…that means you need to feed it when it arrives. They include a sheet with all of the instructions that you will need…
Sourdough 101:
Once you have followed all of the instructions, you will be ready to bake your bread. I purchased the “kit” so I have the official sourdough crock to store mine in the refrigerator…
Each time I want to make bread, I just scoop out some starter…
place it in a bowl and add 1/2 cup of water…
and 1 cup of flour…I think this might be the wrong photo, just pretend…
Cover and let rise for 4 to 12 hours before using in your recipe…
If you aren’t planning on using your starter, just remove half and feed the remaining half…
and place back in the refrigerator until next time…or next week. Do not forget about your starter, it will die an ugly death!
How to make Sourdough Bread:
Place sourdough starter in a large bowl.
Add water, yeast, salt, and sugar.
Stir in flour.
Knead to form a smooth, soft dough.
Place in an oiled bowl.
Cover and let rise until doubled, about 90 minutes.
Divide the dough in half and shape into two oval loaves.
Place on a parchment/silpat lined baking sheet.
Cover and let rise until very puffy, about 60 minutes.
Slash the tops with a very sharp knife.
Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 30 minutes, or until golden brown.
Remove from oven and cool on a rack.
Like I said above, making the bread is really simple…no bread machine required. Your challenge will be keeping the starter alive, and remembering to feed the starter BEFORE you need it…..but it is soooo worth it! Fresh, hot bread you made yourself with no additives or chemicals…what could be better than that?
Notes:
- You can slash the top of the bread in straight lines, cut both direction to form squares, cut in a spiral pattern. You can choose any design your like.
- You can get sourdough starter from many different place or even make your own from scratch if you prefer.
Recipes that use Sourdough Bread:
Enjoy!!
Sourdough Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup "fed" soughrdough starter
- 1 ½ cups lukewarm water
- 2 ½ teaspoons sea salt
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 5 cups unbleached all-purpose flour I always use King Arthur
Instructions
- Place sourdough starter in a large bowl.
- Add water, yeast, salt, and sugar.
- Add flour and stir.
- Knead to form a smooth, soft dough.
- Place in an oiled bowl.
- Cover and let rise until doubled, about 90 minutes.
- Divide the dough in half and shape into two oval loaves.
- Place on a parchment/silpat lined baking sheet.
- Cover and let rise until very puffy, about 60 minutes.
- Slash the tops with a very sharp knife.
- Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 30 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Remove from oven and cool on a rack.
Thanks for sharing on Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s!!!
That is so pretty and I like your tenacity. It has inspired me to try again. Thanks for sharing at What’d You Do This Weekend.
I have not tried using starter – I need to check this out.
That looks AWESOME and way better than my breads do.. The feeding part scares me…I remember to feed my kids but the fish…they sometimes wait all day! Not sure I can handle feeding food!!! Following!
When I was first married, my step mom gave me a starter for some kind of sweet bread…it was wonderful! Wish I knew what that was.
Beautiful loaf, sourdough is my fav, I would make a meal off bread alone!